Make your goals specific, realistic, and timely.
The new year is a classic time to set new goals in the hopes of transforming your life, or at least veering off your present course a little bit. While many of us set intentions, rumor has it that only about 8% of people actually succeed in following through and meeting their goals, however. Part of this has to do with how difficult even small changes can be to secure. Challenges are also presented through the nature of the goals we set in the first place. We often try to move mountains. That’s too hard.
Here’s a new tactic. Corporate America may be dry and boring at times, (or possibly amazing, depending on your position), but no one can argue that it doesn’t often come with a good dose of common sense.
A popular benchmark for setting goals in the business place is to follow the SMART acronym. This year, it might help to follow suit in your personal life. Keep your goals Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely. Who knows? It just might work.
Be Specific
Making a vague goal like promising yourself that you will “work harder” in 2022 is a great place to start. This goal leaves a lot up to the imagination, however. Because of this, it can be too easy to abandon the idea altogether. What, exactly, do you mean by “harder”? Do you intend to work an extra hour each day? Is your goal to take on one extra client each week? Help yourself get there by making your goals specific.
Make Sure You Can Measure Your Goals
The beauty to making your goals measurable is that you know when you’ve reached them. And if you don’t, you may have gotten somewhere instead. Shoot for the moon, you’ll land among the stars!
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So, you plan to lose weight. How much weight do you plan to lose over the next year, and how does that break down each month? How about each week? What changes are you going to make to get there? Finding an exercise routine that suits you and talking with a nutritionist can help.
Be Realistic and Make Your Goals Reachable
Some people achieve amazing feats in small amounts of time. Many of us, however, take time to get there. If you have never run a marathon before, you will need to work up to it, gradually. Make realistic goals by building on what you can already do, a bit at a time. When you meet your goals, adjust them to achieve a bit more.
Make Your Goals Time Specific
A year is a long time. If you have a goal of making more money in 2022 but you’re not sure of how you can do that, break it down. Set smaller benchmarks along the way. How much money will you have made by March, 2022? What about June 2022? Make your goals time specific in order to help keep them and reach them. This can provide you with greater motivation to keep going.
Celebrate Even if You Fail
Failure will come. Even if you fail to meet your goals, celebrate the fact that you tried, however. This is a good first step towards acknowledging you want to change for the better.
Be Willing to Try Again and Start Over
There’s nothing stopping you from trying again if at first you don’t succeed except for, perhaps, your own pride. Push your ego aside and try again. There’s nothing wrong with starting over.
Remember, Practice Makes Perfect
Most goals take time to achieve. Statistics show that it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days to break a bad habit. You may have to make a good run at your goal several times before finally hitting the mark. Be patient and practice self-forgiveness and keep going until you make it a reality.
Whether you are setting health, financial, or overall wellbeing goals for 2022, being realistic with your vision and working from where you are at can help you get there. In addition, reaching out to the right resources in your community can also be beneficial. Are you trying to stop smoking? Do you know someone who has done it successfully in your area? Connect with them and ask their advice. Keep checking in. Ask them to check in on your progress. Getting support and sharing the load can go a long way. Good luck and Happy 2022!
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