What sort of people will you find goal setting? Many, many ordinary people.

But for too many their way of setting goals is vague and lacks commitment.

Goals like " I want to be rich or successful or slim or ...." mean little. This sort of goal setting is too generalised to be effective.

How rich is rich?

How do you define successful?

How will you know when your goal is reached?

What sort of people write down their goals and plan how to achieve them?

The Successful Ones!

Writing down your goals is the essence of true goal setting!

It doesn't matter if your goals are personal or financial or social or business related.

Goal setting works for individuals, families and companies.

I can't recall who first said this but it's true! - Fail to Plan and You Plan to Fail.

Now I accept it takes a little time to write your goals and the sub-goals you need to accomplish on your way there.But there is no better way of goal setting!

Lack of time is no excuse IF you really want to achieve your objectives. We always have plenty of time and energy for the things we want to do. Sometimes you have to do something, complete an action plan, and then you feel motivated.

BUT when you are goal setting you MUST have a firm goal and a flexible plan.

Imagine the pilot of a plane or the captain of a ship knowing they wanted to get to a country and just setting out without any firm idea of how to arrive there!

They would wander all over the world and never arrive at their destination...

Remember - any road will do if you don't know where you're going!

The advantage of a flexible plan is that you can adjust it whenever it becomes necessary. Just like our travellers above who would adjust their direction if the weather interfers and they are blown off course.

Easy Goal Setting.

I want you to write down your goals using the acronym SMART to help you.

What is SMART? It is a valuable guide to help you with your goal setting. You will find references to SMART in almost all books on goal setting.

Specific - goals must be specific in their detail. Measurable - goals must be measurable in quantity,time,cost Achievable - goals must be achievable within a realistic timescale Relevant -

Using the above as your "magic" formula I want you to write down your goals whether they are personal or business related.

Don't forget to also write down your sub-goals i.e. how you are going to achieve your goal - in other words all the stages you must travel through to reach that goal!

As part of your goal setting you should also identify any obstacles you may encounter and who you are going to deal with them. In others completely specify your plan of action.

Another secret of successful people is that they keep their written goals visible and review them daily.

You could put them on a yellow stick-it note on your computer, where you will see them each day.

Make a list each morning of what you should accomplish that day. Work on the top priority until it's finished. Then go on to the second priority. Work your way through the list.

Then each Sunday evening or Monday morning review your list.

If you haven't managed to do anything for a particular goal, mark it in colored felt-tip and determine to work on it as soon as possible.

Remember to focus on what you want and not on what you don't want...

Visualise your ultimate success - write and repeat affirmations to keep your mind positive.

Remember the words of Napoleon Hill :

" Whatever the mind can conceive and believe - it can achieve"

And you must never confuse activity with accomplishment!

Common Reasons for Failing to Meet Goals.

Failure to meet goals can often be traced to one or more of the following:

Insufficent time and too many goals.

There are conflicts between business goals and personal goals.

The achievement of one goal interfers with the achieving of another.

Goals have been shared with pessimistic people who have ruined" your dream. ONLY share your goals with those you trust - Don't share with "dream stealers".

Copyright ® 2003 Joe McHenry. All rights reserved. Please feel free to pass this article on to your friends, or use it in your ezine or newsletter. To find other tips and advice visit http://www.tips-for-boomers.com