How to set your goals and reach them

These days most of us decide to set new goals for the new year starting: stop smoking, go to gym, learn English, loose weight, break a suffocating relationship, have a baby, change job, spend more time with the family, meditate… Are any of them familiar to you?

The new goals are set with optimism, however most of them end up being only good wishes that we don’t know how to reach.

What is the main reason for this? It is simple. Only thinking what we would like to do during the new year is not enough. You need to take some time to make a more reflexive exercise. Do you want to know how?

Don’t worry. You will not need to spend many days on it. What you will need for sure is to invest some few hours in yourself. These will be the hours you will make better use of during the whole new year.

First, take a break to think what you really want to reach during this year. Afterwards take a blank paper and write down those goals. By writing them down you will be more conscious of what you really want, you will spend more time for reflection and, most important, you will strongly commit to those goals.

How should your goals be?

1. Specific.
2. Positive, saying what you want to reach, not what you want to avoid.
3. Challenging, and realistic at the same time.
4. Measurable.
5. Depending on you, not on others’ actions.

What do you need to bear in mind?

1. Analyze the resources you need (people or material things) and how many you already have.
2. Calculate the costs of reaching your goals (money, time, impact on those around you). Every gain brings as well a loose and having this in mind will help you not to give up later on.
3. Make a plan with micro goals that will help you to overcome the obstacles.
4. Set deadlines to reach each micro goal and each goal.
5. Set a following plan with reviewing dates, and set how you are going to measure what you achieve.
6. Set the rewards you will give to yourself when you will reach the goals. And do not forget to celebrate those moments when they arrive.

And last but not least place your goals in a visible place in your bedroom or working place.

Be as creative as you want for them not to be unnoticed. Having them present will make you remember that one day, at the beginning of the year, you committed with yourself to put them in practice. You will see deadlines and follow your progress, and over all you will motivate yourself seeing your success, getting new strength not to give up and to reach those goals that are still open.

If you follow these guidelines and you commit to yourself you will be able to reach your goals in 2014. What stops you from trying?