Goal Setting
The beginning of the year, is often a time we reflect on the achievements and struggles of the past year, and look forward to creating new goals.
“You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
However, goal setting isn't just for the beginning of the year, and can apply anytime we want a stronger guided direction or to be held accountable.
If you find yourself in goal planning mode - this post is designed to help guide that process for you and give you tips on how to create a goal plan that will work, and that works for you.
How to use this post:
Read through it in its entirety before grabbing pen and paper or opening your preferred note taking app. The first part covers the process. The second part covers creating quality goals.
Setting goals is a process
that determines
how you get from point A to point B
Where Do I Start?
Start with any goals already rolling around in your head.
Even if they aren't firm or fully flushed out, go ahead declutter your mind by writing them down, so you don't worry about forgetting them.
(This is where I think a pensieve would be very helpful in real life - don't you? Also to gather and remove all of the thoughts that come rushing in as soon as you lay down to go to sleep. Save them somewhere safe, and then check them out in the pensieve in the morning :)
Okay so you've decluttered your mind. Great!
Next Step: Categories
Write down your ideal goal categories.
Place your big goals or decluttering thoughts into their respective categories.
Do you have empty categories? Think of other goals you may want to add.
“I think goals should never be easy, they should force you to work, even if they are uncomfortable at the time.
”
Consider any other big goals or dreams you want to add. Dream Big!
They could seem unreachable or crazy, that's okay, write them down.
So by now, they should all be listed in their respective goal category.
Next Step: Related Goals
Are any of these goals related or does one possibly lead to the other?
If one leads to another - pick the one which must happen first, before the other goal can be met, and place it underneath the latter. (They are likely in the same category, but don’t worry if the categories have cross-over)
If they’re related but one isn’t required for the other to occur, then leave them separate. Place an identifiable mark linking them together, or use the same font or color, so that in 2 steps from now, you can remember to consider them simultaneously if needed.
Now we will focus on one goal at a time.
Next Step: Stepping Stones
Determine the small stepping stones that are the path leading to your larger goal.
There is no right number of how many stepping stones to create.
This will vary by personality & goals.
The more stepping stones you have, the more "little wins" you have or mini-goals you will achieve along the way. If you are someone who thrives and is motivated by little wins - then I would continue to sub-divide your initial list of stepping stones, into even smaller chunks. Eventually these smaller steps could even become to-do list items - and once you do them - you get a little win.
If, on the other hand, you can stay focused on a medium term goal, you may not need to create the smaller steps. If having a lot of steps feels daunting or overwhelming, then choose 3-5 intermediate steps that build toward your end goal.
The number of stepping stones that works for you, may also be related to or possibly determined by the amount of time it will take to realistically complete each of your initial stepping stones. Which brings us to the next step.
Next Step: Choosing a Goal Timeframe
There are 2 ways to do this
If your goal has a finite end date that you cannot possibly change - then you will work backward.
Determine the number of days, weeks, or months until your goal due date.
Divide that amount of time between the steps you laid out in the previous step.
Some steps don't need as much time between them as others - so make those decisions appropriately - and set your intermediate goal due dates. Now you know when each step comes due.
If any of these steps seem unlikely, or unable to be achieved by that date, then adjust them to reality. Consider what that may mean for meeting your goal, maybe a period of time where you'll be required to do more concentrated work toward your goal.
Go ahead and write all of this down in a planner, calendar, or anywhere you manage your time. The goal and due date, and any expected periods of increased effort/time needed.
2. If your goal does not have a finite end date, then I recommend the work forward approach.
So that you can set realistic time frames that are achievable.
Choose step number 1 in your list of steps getting you to your end goal.
Think about all of the things you have to do or complete before this step is done. Then think about the time you have, looking at your calendar, assessing your current availability and stress levels, and pick a reasonable and achievable date to do it by.
Then you move to step 2. Do the same thing. So on and so forth with your stepping stones until you get to your end goal!
Repeat for your other long term goals.
You don't want to set all of your goal timeframes too short. Because inevitably life happens, and you won't meet them all if they're too short. This can potentially lead to feelings of failure - which for some more than others, could be detrimental to staying on track. So be realistic, and give yourself some wiggle-room.
Also it seems important to note here, that it is totally okay to update and extend goal time frames in the middle of your goal period. If you're learning that you just set them unrealistically in the beginning, that is totally okay, feel free to make adjustments!
As you go through this process for multiple goals - keep in mind the time you have to put in to reach each step along the way for each goal.
For instance, the total amount of time needed for all of your step ones, should not exceed your total available free time during that time period. If it does - then its likely you won't meet all of your step 1 goals. (this does not mean that all of you step 1's have to have the same end date - just a check and balance to be aware of how much time you are planning to use for your goals vs how much time you have in reality)
Creating Quality Goals
“Adventure Always” - this is a good mantra, but not a good goal. Read on to learn why.
Recommendations
Habit Change
If your goals are new lifestyle, routine, or habit related - keep in mind it takes 6 weeks or more to form a new habit. So that should be the minimum time frame for one of these goals.
Longer is better - because the longer you do something, the more ingrained and habit-like it becomes. This is what will make it sustainable and long lasting as a lifestyle change over 6 months, to 1 year, to 5 years.
Start Small
Make your step 1: do it 1 time per week. (esp. for lifestyle & habit changes)
If its for an activity you already do at least weekly, but you want to increase your frequency, start with just increasing by 1 more time per week.
You can also start small by planning on doing something that only takes 2 minutes, 5 minutes, or 10 minutes. Something short and totally do-able.
Each week or maybe every 2 weeks, increase your goal frequency or duration by a small amount (maybe this is your stepping stone #2).
This step-wise goal setting plan will slowly yet steadily get you successfully to your goal, just like the tortoise.
“Slow And Steady Wins The Race”
One could also say,
"Slow and steady forms the habit (not 0 to 60 like the rabbit)".
[ Yes, I made that one up ;) ]
Quantify
Goals must be measurable.
That’s why I was talking about frequency and duration as measures that you can easily quantify to identify if you met your goal or not. Think anything with numbers, whether its quantity, frequency, time, rating scale measure, distance, weight, vitals, etc. Here are some examples of each:
Quantity
the number you do (reps, steps) or an amount you eat (1 cup, 1 bar, 1 pint, 64 oz)
Frequency
how many times per day or per week you do it (walk outside 3x/wk)
Time
how long you do something (10 minutes of yoga)
Distance
how far you go, in feet or miles (run 1/2 mile) or
inches / centimeters (how far you can reach your fingertips to your toes, your bicep/tricep circumference)
Weight
how much you weigh (the obvious one), or
the weight of a food you eat or total food you eat (using a food scale), or
the max weight that you can lift
Rating Scale Measure
using the pain scale 0-10 rating during a specific activity,
using the Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion during/post activity,
compared to normal (10/10) and unable (0/10) how are you able to do xyz activity,
how stressed/awake-tired/hungry/energy level/anything did you feel (in general, or related to a certain activity)
Vitals
heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, glucose, cholesterol, other blood lab values
Specific
Your categories are the general areas of life you want to improve.
The long term goal or goals you chose within that category must be specific. Your intermediate stepping stones should also be specific.
Specific describes what it is you want to accomplish and how you plan to get there.
If it’s too general you won’t know what your aiming for or your route to the destination.
The how is often described in more detail through your intermediate stepping stones.
Time
You must assign a goal end date.
Without an end date, you could just float along not ever committing enough to get to your desired destination because you didn't give yourself a stopping point.
Your first stepping stone goal should come due in a short time frame, like 2-4 weeks, if not 1 week. Give yourself that little win to encourage you to continue to work hard or stay focused.
Use intermediate and short term goals as check points to get to your end game or dream goal.
Use those check points as a time to identify if your current plan is working, or if you need to adjust and make some changes to what you're doing day to day, or possibly, to the time period on your end game. Some goals may need updating if they become irrelevant or life happens, and things are very different than they were when you made your goals (2020 anyone?)
SMART
A common pneumonic for goal setting is SMART goals.
I've talked you through how to write smart goals during this post. But here is what it stands for, as an easy reminder to you:
