The Ultimate Guide for Setting Goals

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In follow up from my goals that I expressed for the new year in my previous post, I thought it might be a nice idea to suggest my ideas for how I set goals and things I have learnt that help me. Therefore, today I am going through the ultimate guide for setting goals.

I am not saying this is the right way or anything, this is just an ultimate guide that I have put together to showcase what I have been doing to set my own goals for years and feel that they might help others.

The ultimate guide for setting goals!

We all no matter what have goals either in our mind or written down on paper/on our phone that we aspire to achieve at some point throughout our lives. Some people choose to focus on goals to keep them motivated (like myself), and others set their goals and continue about their lives not really concentrating on the goals too much.

However, as I have mentioned before unless you do some basic steps then it is more than likely you won’t achieve the goals that you have set yourself.

Goal setting may seem simple and easy, and in fact sitting down and writing a list of goals is. That is the simple part however, actually following through with what you say is the hard part. Statistics suggest that only 8% of people that set new year goals actually achieve them, and to me that is shocking to me.

Therefore, in my post today I am hoping to provide you with the ultimate guide that will help you goal set into success! I mean what more could you want?

Write it down

This step is pretty obvious but it is a must for the ultimate guide to include it as it should be the first thing that you do when you are setting your goals.

There have been many previous studies that have suggested that writing your goals down in detail means that you will more likely follow through with your goals and plans to achieve them.

I personally love writing my goals down both on my phone (in my notes) and in my notebook. But of course you only have to do one, and writing them on paper is suggested the better way of the two. Also in terms of my blog I have a separate blogging planner (AF link) which ensures that I keep on task with all my goals in terms of posting, and with my blog.

Set specific goals

When you are setting your goals they need to be specific. In your mind you want to vision yourself doing that goal so that you can give yourself some clarity. Therefore, in order to set those specific goals you want to be able to visualise yourself doing that goal and if you can’t then maybe it is not the right goal for you.

For example, one of my goals is to buy a house. Therefore, I would want to visualise myself in that house. What it would look like, what finances am I earning to pay for that house, where is that house located. I need to truly think and visualise all those things to really become specific with that goal.

By being specific with the goals you are setting this makes it much easier for you to work towards them, because you can imagine them happening and so you truly believe that this goal can be achieved. Therefore, setting specific goals is essential for this ultimate guide.

Set a date

Next in this ultimate guide is to think about dates. When you are goal setting it is so important to set each goal (or most goals) a date in which you want to achieve them. Now when you are doing this you really want to be specific again. For example, if I want to run a PB for a 5km run then I would set myself a date of 2nd April 2021 (for example) that I want to complete this by.

By doing this it helps you to break down that goal setting process. Therefore, this will help you to work on milestones (smaller goals) along the way which will help you to achieve that end goal.

Of course whilst you are doing this make sure you are being realistic and you are giving yourself time to achieve this goal. This also will help set you up for long-term success. Achieving smaller goals along the way will add up those big wins and this ultimately gives you confidence to reach and work hard for more in the future.

Explanations for your goals

As well as getting specific and visualising those goals you also want to come up with an explanation as to why you want that goal. When you want something strong enough then nothing will stand in your way. You will work hard towards that goal because you want it that bad.

These explanations or reasons have to be deep values and belief’s as well, and not some superficial reasons. For example, if you want to achieve a certain amount of money and your reason is because you want to live in a big house or be rich then it won’t work. Instead you have to think about why you want that money. Will it give you more freedom? More time to spend with those around you? More space for you to do your art? Think about that goal and what it will give you, and give these goals a reason which should motivate you to achieve them.

As I have mentioned above I think this is important for this ultimate guide, because wanting something bad enough will be the reason you achieve that goal and why you will work hard.

Create a MAP

Something that is important when you are goal setting and maximising your success is to create a massive action plan (MAP). Your MAP is your roadmap to success in a way, and is there to help you get from point A to point B in achieving your goals. If you don’t know how to make it towards that destination then how can you expect to get there?

Therefore, think about the steps you will take, the strategies and methods that you will use, how will you do it. All of these things you need to think about in order to be successful in achieving your goals, and this is why I have to mention it in this ultimate guide.

Of course creating a MAP does take time and effort, but the more time you invest in your goal-setting the more beneficial it will be in the long-term. You want to achieve these goals and so planning and investing that time beforehand and along the way is crucial.

Define your limiting beliefs

This is a bit more difficult but it is important when it comes to goal-setting. It is important to think about what is limiting you from achieving that goal/your dreams. This may be a difficult step to do, but try your best to identify these limiting belief’s.

There are many ways you can do this through mind maps (which I personally love using), talking to people around you (this could really help as others can give you that perspective that you cannot give yourself). By identifying these limits you can get it all out in the open and then work on overcoming these belief’s and this will help you towards being successful with your current goals.

Similarly, make sure you think about any mental obstacles as well. Get all these out in the open and work on beating them. For example, you might think you are not good enough/smart enough to do something. Well then look at people who achieved amazing results that were “underdogs”. Instead of focusing on that “limiting” characteristic focus on you doing it.

Effectively manage your time

It is easy to set yourself goals and then fall into a trap of putting off doing things to achieve it. Therefore, learn and practice how to manage your time effectively.

There are many great time management systems out there so do some research and find out what works best for you and stick to it! But of course you can check out my tips for managing your time and apply them to this ultimate guide, and boss both managing time and setting your goals. That is a double win if you ask me.

Track your progress

One thing I couldn’t recommend more is to keep track of your progress. In my planner for 2021 by Pepper and Cute (not an ad) it had pages that you can track any projects or goals. You can set the deadline and track the progress through percentages (for example 25% complete or 75% complete etc).

Tracking your progress also helps you understand what might be working for you and what is not working. Therefore, during the process of working towards your goal it can help you make any changes to your progress. For example, break your goal down into milestones (either weekly or monthly whatever works for you) and give yourself markers along the way.

You can also use this mini blog tracker (AF) which is super affordable and great for tracking your blog!

This way it keeps you tracking how well you are doing in order to achieve your goal. Therefore, as long as you stay committed, work hard and show up then you will achieve that goal. This again is important with this ultimate guide, and with setting your goals.

The ultimate guide for setting goals!

There you have it the ultimate guide to setting goals for 2021. I hope you find these tips useful and it will help you in terms of setting those goals in the future.

Thanks for reading,

Gemma Jayne x

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