Author: Carmelle Smith Added: March 23, 2009
It’s almost the end of the first month of the year. Can you believe that? Seems like just yesterday…
Maybe it’s still a bit too early to check on how you’re doing with your New Year’s resolutions but I’m going to ask anyways…are you faring well? Or are things not really looking good yet (but I’m sure they will, sooner rather than later).
I have few tips to help you see your goals through the end and achieve success. They’re not really all that amazing but rather once you’ve done reading, you’ll realize they’re just a matter of common sense…
• Write ‘em down – Why do you think you need to write down your shopping list or your to-do list? Admit it, you need help remembering what you need to buy or do. You’ll more likely argue that you have a really good memory, and I believe that, but writing down your goals is one way to put those abstract concepts into something more concrete and less abstract.
• SMART goals make a good recipe for success – You’ve heard of them before and I’ll risk sounding like a broken record, but I want to emphasize that one way to help you get on the right track to success is when you set goals according to the SMART criteria – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.
• Make a public commitment – You can tell a few friends and family members or if you’re feeling really up to it, write a blog - make yourself accountable for your goals. Sometimes, you did a little prodding to get you moving in the right direction and when things get tough and the going starts to slow down, you’ll need support and encouragement from these people.
• Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize – We want to accomplish a lot of things – pay off the mortgage, ensure the children’s college plans, save up for retirement, a better job, lose weight, achieve financial security – a lot of needs and wants all mixed up. So you need to sit down and think things over – focus on your needs first and go on from there.
• Celebrate small victories – You have achieved a short-term goal so what do you do? Of course, you celebrate! You earned it so reward yourself. Take the time savor your accomplishment. If you’ll keep on doing what you’re doing then there’s more of those small victories to celebrate.
• Be flexible – So a door closed, run to the window, closed as well? Then you’d better break down the door. Setbacks are unavoidable so allow yourself some flexibility. Don’t be easily discouraged if you experience a minor drawback, learn from it, move on, and do better!
It’s never too late. If you’ve realize something’s not right on your list right now, sit down and think things over, goal setting is a learning process and it’s never meant to be rigid and unbending. Go over your goals again if you have to, make the necessary changes.
By this time next year, if you’ve followed and adapted these techniques, you’ll be quite surprised at how far you’ve come!
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