Think again.
Do you have a long-term goal? Maybe you want to find a new job or relocate? Or maybe you have just been handed a complicated project to manage. Or maybe it is something personal, like paying off a car or buying a new house?
How do you handle this?
One of my past bosses always told me: “you must plan to plan.”
As urban planners, we planned using a goal system and then planned cities.
This means when I was given a complicated project, I had to set up goals for short-, mid- and long-term achievements using the SMART goal system.
By creating a system of objectives, action items, and deadlines, we provided focus and clarity. This was not only for staff, but administration, stakeholders and the public used it to gage our progress and provide easily accessed information when needed.
Write down your goals. Add objectives and action items. This will allow you to measure your progress and track your success. Its almost like crossing items off of your to-do list. Its exciting and provides a sense of accomplishments.
Provide for accountability and discipline with written deadlines. These deadlines must also go in your planner, project management software, and / or your calendar. They also provide structure keeping the project on time and on budget. Missed deadlines showing scope creep are more predominant during daily goals review.
Place the written goals where you can read and take action on them daily. They can provide motivation and inspiration when you create them. However, you must also take action, because the real jubilation comes when you achieve and complete the goal.
If you want to achieve more in your business and your life, you must take the time to write down all your goals (no matter how big or small).
Using the SMART Goal Setting method write the goal as specific as possible.
Rather than setting a broad goal such as “improve sales,” set a specific goal such as “Increase sales by 20% in the next six months or insert a date.”
Use metrics to create measurable goals. For example, if you want to increase website traffic, set a goal to increase it by a certain percentage, such as “increase website traffic by 30% in the next quarter or insert date.”
All goals are achievable and can be realistic. It’s how you craft them, write the process and give it a viable deadline, that will make it possible.
My dad always said: “there is a way to do everything, you just have to find it”.
The harder and more complicated the goal, the longer the timeline.
And remember, nothing is impossible with God.
You just have to believe that you can achieve anything with His help.
So write those goals out and dream BIG! You can do it!
