This is the start of our blog series on how to set and achieve your goals, which will come in handy for years to come. In this first blog, we’ll talk about why setting goals is important.
Setting goals gives you a long-term vision and can help to motivate you by triggering behaviours. It helps you to organise your time and your resources so that you can get the most from your life, and enjoy the journey. Unless you define, refine and maintain goals then it’s unlikely you’ll ever realise your full potential. There’s proof that setting goals increases achievement! Hundreds of studies have been done to show evidence that setting goals will increase how successful you are in life.
Top-level athletes, successful people, and high achievers in all fields set goals
Figure out what you want to achieve
You can benefit from setting goals by giving yourself something awesome to aim for. By identifying goals and writing them down you’re already more likely to achieve them and be more successful. It’s easy to get stuck on autopilot. Many people pick their ambitions by looking at everyone else, but if you consciously figure out what you want to achieve, you can move up a level. Switch out of achievement autopilot by setting goals that you’ve actually chosen, not that people have chosen for you.
Reaching goals is addictive
By setting clearly defined goals that you can take ownership of and measure, you’ll see progress in what might previously have seemed a long grind. You will also raise your self-confidence, as you recognise your own ability and competence in achieving your goals. It isn’t just increased self-confidence that will make you continually strive to reach new goals though. Reaching goals is literally addictive because of the dopamine your brain releases when you get a reward, so if you want to be happier and more successful you should start setting goals today.
A goal can help to turn an insurmountable mountain into a walkable hill
A goal can help to turn an insurmountable mountain into a walkable hill. In other words, you’ve probably got some big dreams, you might even have dreams that are so big that them coming true seems impossible. By turning these dreams into stepping stones, your goals will become more achievable. This also helps you to be more content in life, because while you’re striving for bigger success, you’ll be hitting smaller milestones more frequently.
You should also set goals so you can be accountable for your shortcomings and learn from them. If you don’t write down concrete goals and give yourself a timeline for achievement, how can you look back and re-evaluate your path if you don’t succeed first time?
“Setting goals is the first step towards turning the invisible, into the visible”
– Tony Robbins
Next up: how to set goals
In the next blog on how to set and achieve goals, we’ll explain how to set goals and why you need to be SMART, so stay tuned. In the meanwhile, you can download and read our free GOALS whitepaper below.
If you would like to get started setting goals and need extra support, contact our business advisors today.
