What is a goal?
From buying your first home to improving your fitness and developing a new skill, a goal is something you want to achieve. It’s an objective or target that enables us to achieve focus in life by helping us determine what we want. A goal keeps us motivated, propelled and puts us in a state of action, and whether it’s long term or short term, can include different aspects of your personal and professional life.
Define your goal
Having clearly defined goals will set you up for success, so take some time to reflect on exactly what you want and why you want to achieve it. Identifying your purpose and getting full clarity on the reason behind your goals will help begin the process of change.
Benefits of being goal oriented
There’s plenty of reasons why you should have a go at setting goals, including…
- Gives a sense of direction and focus
- Helps you to see the bigger picture
- Provides motivation
- Gives you control of your future
Any downsides?
It’s important to remember that goal setting isn’t always perfect! You may feel increased pressure, and longer term goals can take years to achieve, which makes it harder to stay focused. However, this can be tackled by breaking down your overarching goal into intermediate ‘mini’ goals, which feel more manageable.
Strategies for success
From SMART goals to OKRs, there’s plenty of goal-setting techniques worth trying out. Although no one approach suits all, the GROW model is a popular method that helps us identify, set and plan a goal. The GROW acronym outlines a series of stages for how you will achieve your goal…
Goal
Big or small, short or long term, the first step in the process is to decide on your goal and articulate what you want to achieve. Transformational or learning goals are often more powerful than transactional or performance goals. This is because transformational and learning goals are more internally focused, with emphasis on improvement through learning.
For example, the goal ‘I want to be healthier’ is better worded as ‘I want to understand how I can feel healthier and incorporate this knowledge into my food and drink decisions’. This helps bring about longer term change and improved habits.
Reality check
After you’ve set your goal, assess your current situation and what barriers may exist between now and the achievement stage. Acknowledge what you’ve tried in the past that might not have gone to plan, ask questions and assess your strengths and obstacles. Being realistic about your goal early on will improve your success and can help you stay motivated.
Options
Explore the options for moving forward. There may be multiple things you could do to help you on your way to achieving a goal, so assess all possibilities. For example, there may be an option that feels more achievable, or appeals more to you. Be imaginative, you may have a breakthrough moment!
What next and When
Time for action. In this stage of the model, agree specific actions and set a timeframe for your goal. Ask yourself questions…
- What will you do now?
- When will you do it?
It’s important to check in on your commitment levels, take accountability and regularly review your progress.
The GROW approach works well if you’re used to setting objectives at work, following the same approach as SMART objectives to ensure your goal is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timebound.
Visualisation
If you’re more of a visual person, a vision board is a great tool for bringing your idea to life. A visual representation of your goals, there are no rules when making one, since it’s all about crafting something that’ll inspire you. Fill them with images, words, quotes and photos that represent something you’re trying to accomplish.
Monitor your progress
Set time aside each week to monitor your progress. This will not only keep you motivated, but help you identify blockers and reframe your goal if necessary. Keep moving forward and stay focused on making progress, no matter how small.
Stay motivated
Fundamental to achieving your goal, motivation is very personal and often specific to the task in hand. Motivation levels rise and fall depending on how you’re feeling and what else is happening in life.
The motivation triangle is something that describes key pillars that support motivation, compromising of…
- Purpose, making sure you’re clear on the why and what for.
- Autonomy, making sure you have freedom and space to carry out tasks.
- Mastery, making sure we’re confident in ourselves, our skills and knowledge.
With all three pillars in place, you’re setting the foundations for staying motivated and achieving your goals.
Reflect on your wins
When things go to plan, it’s so important to celebrate success! Taking time to recognise your achievements allows you to pinpoint exactly what worked so you can repeat it in future. Be proud of your wins and celebrate them (even if they’re small), which will help boost your confidence and motivate you to achieve more.