The new year is usually viewed as a time of new beginnings and an opportunity for a fresh start. Setting goals is a great way to achieve your most ambitious New Year’s resolutions, whether they be work-related or just for self-improvement. Making your goals achievable in the long-term can help kickstart your life and help you become the best version of yourself. Here are three steps to set achievable goals while we are still early in 2024.
Make Them Measurable
Setting up a plan and the specific subtasks you need to complete in order to achieve the goals will make them more achievable, especially for bigger, long term goals. Take full advantage of organizational platform skills to keep up with this aspect of goalkeeping.
Find a system of organization. You should find one platform to keep everything organized so that it is all in one place and easily accessible. This will help to ensure that nothing gets lost and you can stay on top of things. For some of our favorite tips on staying organized, check out Four Steps to Save Time by Implementing a Workflow, 10 Best Online Organizational Platforms to Improve Productivity and How to Get More Organized.
Set time frames for yourself. When is your deadline for completing your goal? How long do you want to give yourself to complete each of the subtasks that you create for yourself? Does your goal revolve around any set dates that you need to make sure to keep note of and track? All of these are important questions to ask yourself at this point in the goal-setting process. For more tips on time management, check out Killing Your Procrastination Demons.
List subtasks to achieve your goal. This gives you a clearer idea of what you need to do to get to your final destination and gives you the chance to check things off as you go, with the added bonus of giving yourself that little boost of serotonin we all need to make it to the end! For more tips on keeping yourself motivated, check out How to Use Affirmations To Get What You Want.
Make Them Achievable
Making an achievable goal could be considered the most important aspect of setting a goal for yourself. It is important to find a balance between pushing yourself with your goals and keeping them within the range of what you can do. By setting achievable goals, you are setting yourself up for success and giving yourself the opportunity to expand on those goals in the future.
When you are considering setting a goal for yourself, you should look at the reasons behind why you want to set that goal for yourself, and how it fits into your values and lifestyle. For more on setting goals and resolutions, check out New Year’s Resolutions to Kickstart Your Year.
Make sure you have the time to complete the goal you are setting. Without being able to commit the time necessary, you will be setting a goal that is unachievable.
It is vital that your goals are specific. If you have something too broad, you will not have a clear enough end goal, making it less achievable and more difficult to follow. For more on sticking to new habits and goals, check out How to Create and Stick to a New Habit.
Make sure you have the support you need to succeed. Friends, family, and co-workers can all play important parts in your success. Nobody wants to accomplish something without their favorite cheerleaders in their corner!
Always believe in yourself! You are your biggest supporter, and achieving your goals would not be possible without your own hard work and passion for what you are doing. For more on staying motivated, check out How to Reignite Your Motivation and 4 Tips To Build Confidence.
Spread the News
By keeping your friends, family, and co-workers in the loop on what goals you plan to make and what progress you have made on those goals, you are holding yourself accountable for the things you said you would do and creating a valuable community of supporters for yourself that you can use for goals in the future as well.
Having friends and family who are aware of your intentions can be one of the best things to help hold yourself accountable when it comes to your goals. It can be hard to keep yourself in check, but with others constantly checking in to see how the goals are coming along, it will be easier to stay on the right track to achieving your goals.
Writing is a powerful tool. Writing down your goals, and the smaller tasks that fall underneath them, and then putting them in a place that you will see every day such as on your nightstand or at your desk, can make a lasting impact on the likelihood of you completing your goal.
Check out Quotable articles Why is it so hard to ask for HELP as a business owner? and Strengthening Professional Relationships for more information on spreading the news and having your community rally around helping you with goals!
