Personal Goals

You will enhance your career and effectiveness by focusing on yearly, monthly, weekly, and even daily goals. Your goals are your road map to a successful future. They will determine the direction in which you are headed and ensure that you reach your destination. Here's how to set goals:

1. Identify goals that are consistent with your values, beliefs, and life philosophies.

2. Commit your goals to paper. Don't rely on your memory. Put them in a place where you will see them often.

3. Determine your goals. Make sure they are SMART, that is:

   • Specific ("I want to retire with $2 million in the bank by age sixty-five" is preferable to saying "I want to make tons of money in order to retire");
   • Measurable;
   • Agreed upon;
   • Realistic;
   • Time-based.

4. Ensure that your goals are in sync with your morals and values. If you're like most people, millions of dollars won't make you happy if you have had to exploit people in the process of making the money.

5. Prioritize your goals. Focus on those that have greater meaning to you in terms of your personal beliefs. If community volunteer work is something you place a great value on, for example, find ways of avoiding overtime and give yourself time to do the community work that appeals to you more.

6. Break your goals into short-, medium-, and long-range plans. This will allow you to stay focused and in touch with your final goal.

7. Make people aware of your goals. Tell a friend, mentor, and even your worst enemy. Contract with someone who will meet with you regularly to ensure that you remain on track.

8. Ask yourself if the goal has true value for you. It could just be an excuse to avoid doing something important but unpleasant.

9. Visualize yourself achieving your goal. Your vision will give you a sense of excitement and encourage you to keep on trying. At the same time, your work goals, although important, should not become an obsession. If this happens, you will upset the equilibrium between personal life and work, resulting in physical and mental deterioration.

10. Act on your goals regularly. True success comes from taking small steps. It is unlikely that you will make immediate huge gains without an enormous amount of luck. Therefore, focus on short-term goals that will lead to the longer goal. Try to do something each day that will move you closer to your goal.

11. Review your goals regularly. For example, monthly goals should be reviewed daily to keep you focused.

12. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small they may be