Have you ever found yourself mentally committing to starting a business, learning a new programming language, or traveling more often? And while you have every intention of accomplishing all of your goals, that’s just not enough to make it a reality. You need a system to get from intentions to reaching your goals. Systemic goal setting and the right process can produce amazing results.
Get your emotions involved.
You will much more likely reach your goals when there is an emotional element. To get the emotional connection to your goals, you have to start an internal dialog. Let’s say your goal is to start a business. It is important to keep going until you reach a deep emotional level. It is essential to make an emotional connection to your goals. That is the only way to get the motivation you need to reach your goals. A. Because I want more freedom. Q. Why do you want more freedom? A. Because I want to spend more time traveling. Q. Why do you want to travel more? A. Because I want to experience other parts of the world. Q. Why do you want to experience other parts of the world? A. Because I want to learn about different cultures and meet people from other cultures.
Motive + System
Motivation is a start but it is not enough. The next step after getting clear on the motive behind your goals is to make sure you have a system to reach them. As you get an emotional connection to your goals, you have to think about the system that will help you get there.
Keep track of your progress. Write down your progress. You can use a notepad or a personal blog. Journaling your progress will help you stay focused on the goal. Writing about your progress helps you know when you are on the right track or if you need to make changes.Verbalize your goal. It is not enough to think about it, you have to talk about it. Tell people about it.Break it down. You can’t reach any substantial goal in one step. To get there you have to take many steps. Be specific about the actual steps and be as detailed as possible. I will do X today, and Y tomorrow. The steps you identify must be specific and measurable.Visualize what your life will look like once you reach your goal. Visualizing is very different from daydreaming. When you visualize the future you are not just letting your imagination run wild you are using the power of your mind to shape your future. Make it a point to visualize daily. Keep visualization to a few minutes. Focus in on the details of your visualizations. See the details of what the future will look like.Learn about those people who achieved their goals. A great way to improve your chances of reaching your goals is to learn about those who have achieved. Read books. Visit blogs. Listen to podcasts. Watch videos. Meet people who succeeded with similar goals to yours. Exposure to such people will give you an idea of what to expect during your journey.
