Why it’s Important to Have Goals
by Rick Wilson
Having a written goal means you have focus, it removes any vagueness and sets it aside from the 1,500 thoughts per minute that the average human being experiences. They turn the invisible into the visible and you are twice as likely to succeed with a written goal, than without one.
When you think about it we have lots of goals that we must achieve each day. In more or less all instances we have a routine which will ensure we achieve them. Some examples could be as below: –
- Goal: School uniforms all washed and ironed for Monday morning
- Action: Its 7pm on Sunday evening and they still haven’t been ironed. Get ironing board out and iron them.
- Goal: Pay the bills on time
- Action: Set up direct debits
- Goal: Get up in good time for work so you’re not late
- Action: Set the alarm clock and the alarm on your phone as a backup
- Goal: Ensure there is food in the cupboards and fridge to feed the household
- Action: Do a big shop at Aldi every Saturday morning
- Goal: Take the children to football, hockey, cricket practice
- Action: Keep those evenings free between certain hours so you can take them there and bring them home
- Goal: Take the family on an annual holiday
- Action: Save up, make sacrifices, research locations, hotels, campsites etc on the Internet, spend weeks on Trip Advisor, visit Travel Agents to pick their brains, speak to friends who may have recommendations, finally book online to save a few quid
- Goal: Prepare the family to go on that holiday
- Action: Buy new holiday clothes, sun lotion, check passports are in date, ensure you’ve checked in online at the airport, booked parking, arranged transfers, planned an itinerary, booked trips and excursions
- Goal: Lose weight and get fit
- Action: ….you tell me?
Mine was initially this…
- Goal: Lose one stone in 6 weeks
- Action 1: 30 minutes vigorous cycling on an exercise bike at home on Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun
- Action 2: Park car 1.5 miles from work and walk that distance to work, then back after work to collect the car. Allow enough time to do that
- Action 3: Eat no more than 1,900 calories each day. Researched which meals I loved eating that fitted within those calories, wrote them down and stuck to them.
- Action 4: I would only weigh myself once each week at the same day and time to measure my progress
Did I lose that stone? Of course I did, and a bit more! Did I stick to the plan? Yes, because it was realistic and I actually felt good, I enjoyed the feeling it gave me. I felt it was possible to keep this up for quite a while. And you know what, now I’m the fittest I’ve ever been. Those small steps have become my way of life, the only difference is that today, just before I wrote this, I did a very hilly 6.5 mile run at a good pace, I felt strong. My starting point was 12 stones heavier than I am today, it was 25.5 stones! I was a 54″ waist, I am now a 32″ waist. Did it take time, was it hard work, did I have setbacks? Yes, yes and yes! Did I give up? No, because my weight and greed will never ever rule my life again. You will get used to the new you but the way to get there is to get a routine in your new lifestyle so it becomes as normal as going to bed and getting up, doing the shopping, paying the bills and going on holiday.
Please write down your goal and the action you will take to ensure it happens, it really is the way many of our people have achieved success. If you can’t find the motivation to sit down and do this then speak to me and we’ll work through it together.
Summary
Goals can be highly motivational but please remember, to achieve them, you will need to make sacrifices. What you experience, learn and achieve on the way to your goal, will very often be far greater than achieving the goal itself. Be prepared for the physical and mental battles ahead, the highs, the lows and have a plan for every step you take on your journey.
- Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible
- Goals ‘held’ in the mind are more likely to be jumbled up with the other 1,500 thoughts per minute that the average human being experiences
- People with written goals are 50% more likely to achieve than people without goals
- All motivational ‘gurus’ agree that goals should be written down
- The act of writing down a goal down in is a very powerful motivator
- Writing down goals forces us to be avoid being vague
- Only 3 out of every 100 adults write their goals down on paper
- Specific goals which are time-bound and measurable work best
- In the process of achieving your goal you will be sacrificing something else
- 92% of New Year’s goals fail by January 15th
- Sharing your goals with a close friend is proven to increase the chances of you achieving your goal
- The world’s most successful people agree that what you ‘get’ by achieving your goal’s is not as important as what you become in the process