Setting goals is vital to getting to the “big picture” of your personal finances or any other area of life. If you’re discouraged about the economy and, in particular, your finances, it’s time to re-evaluate. What can you do for the rest of the year to set new goals and achieve them?
“The two hardest parts of achieving a goal [are] planning and follow-through,” says Greg Helmstetter, CEO of myGoals.com, a company that provides goal-management services for corporations and large organizations and offers a web-based goal-setting application for everyone.
Just get started
Carve out time to create your goal list and plan. Make sure you are rested and relaxed. Pick a setting where you feel energized and empowered. Then get to work.
You can get out a pencil and paper, open a document file, or create a spreadsheet. The idea is to make a list of what you want to achieve, set a realistic time in which to complete the goals, and lay out the action steps needed to get there.
To keep yourself accountable, share your goals with someone you trust, set up reminder emails, or give your goals to your assistant, financial planner or someone in your organization who can help keep you focused and on task.
No pain, no gain
If you want to get ahead, make some of your goals hard — very hard. Make them uncomfortable. You don’t grow or learn unless you are pushed out of your comfort zone.
If you hate to dance but know that dancing is a lot of fun for your wife or may be required at an upcoming formal occasion, get over it and get moving. Enroll in classes at a local studio, get a private instructor, or pick up a DVD. Practice what makes you uncomfortable until the unease dissipates and you have acquired a new skill.
Remember that even if a very hard goal is not fully achieved, you have still benefited from the effort. Yes, that’s right. Even what looks like a failure is actually a success — simply because the striving refined you. It built your intellectual, emotional, physical, or spiritual muscles.”
Give your goals regular check-ups
Goals are not set in stone but often must be fluid because of changes to circumstances over time. Here are four pointers for making sure your goals keep you aimed where you want to go:
1. Set goals with the expectation that they almost certainly will change if they take longer than six months to reach. The change may be big (such as changing the goal itself) or small (such as slightly modifying your plan).
2. Constantly re-evaluate. Once a month, ask yourself, “Am I still pursuing the right thing?” and “How can I improve my approach?”
3. Finally, don’t allow your tolerance for change to allow you to give up on something prematurely. Ask yourself the straight question, “Do I still want this?” and you’ll know whether you are adjusting a goal that no longer fits or giving up a goal too soon.
These goal-setting tips courtesy of www.myGoals.com .
Tags: discouragement, goal setting, goals