/? 160510" Goals Setting Tips

Do you go through life without setting goals? Are you among those who feel that setting goals is for overly ambitious people, and not down-to-earth folks like you? You may have a problem with such an approach to life.

The fact is, your days are passing you by one after the other without a clear vision of what it is all about. Without the vision that setting goals gives us, we tend to waste time and effort on mundane activities which do not further us as individuals.

Goal setting does not mean that you have to live a strictly regimented life. All it means is that you set realistic and consistent goals so that your day-to-day and long-term objectives are fulfilled. It is also important to provide enough room in your plans to prepare for unforeseen eventualities. This is what is known as 'having a Plan B'.

You should look at the setting of goals as a sort of game you play in your mind. It is not a one-time activity - you need to revisit your goals often so that they become fixed in your mind. The objective is to reach a state where almost everything you do derives from your short-term and long-term goals. It should not be a conscious process, but rather a reflexive one. /? 160510" Goals Setting Tips

While setting your goals in life, there are certain guidelines you can follow. One is to be as specific and detailed as possible while setting a goal. This will help you establish in your mind the 'who, what, when, where, which and why' of your objectives. Such visualization has been proved as highly effective when it comes to the attainments of a certain goal.

The attainment of goals should also be practically measurable, meaning that you should be able to track the progress you are making on a certain goal at all times. Remember that if is measurable, it is attainable - a common-enough maxim among successful athletes.

Obviously, a major prerequisite is that your goals should be attainable, and that your short-term goals are in line with your long-term ones. To be attainable, objectives need to be realistic - they should make logical sense.

You should be able to gauge whether you have the resources, the time, the basic abilities and the motivation to achieve what you are setting out to. It is perfectly okay to aim high while setting goals, but you must be sure you have the talent, strength, knowledge and support it requires.

Finally, good goals are always time-bound. If you do not have a deadline, you are apt to let your goal slip away from one day to the next - and procrastination is the deadliest of goal-killers. /? 160510" Goals Setting Tips