We all have things in our lives that we want to improve and that’s one reason why setting goals is so important. The problem is that people often set goals that are out of their reach and instead of being motivated to achieve them, they get frustrated and quit.
During the new year, people often set goals to better their bodies or to make more money. They start their goal making out with a lot of positive energy but as the time goes on, the goal and the dream seems to fizzle out. This can happen because the resolutions are too long, or they are too hard.
Instead of focusing on goals that are long term and goals that might never be attainable, the best thing that you can do is to try small goals such as focusing on saying a mantra each day. You can choose one-word mantras to focus on and this can remind you to be present and to live your best life.
Being simple when you set a goal can help you to set goals that are reachable. Instead of getting yourself overwhelmed or stressed when you set goals, make a goal that is reasonable and one that you can reach. Here are some ways that you can set some goals in a healthy way!
- Why Choose That Goal?
The first thing that you need to do is to figure out what you really want in your life. Do you want to lose weight, or do you want to be more involved in your family or in your community? Maybe you want to spend more time with friends. Whatever you are wanting to do means that you probably aren’t happy with what you’re doing now.
Start by writing down your ideas and your thoughts on these things. This can help you to see if your life is unbalanced and what you can do to balance it. You might have to ask yourself what you have to give up in order to improve your life and to reach your goals.
- Small Changes
Instead of making a goal that has to have a huge change, write down goals that can happen if you make small changes in your life. Take small steps to reach your goal and do this so that you can reach your goal without messing up and without failing.
What does it mean for you to be happier or to be healthier? What steps can you take to move towards those things? When we set goals, we often overreach what we can do by trying to do a million things to get there. Instead, write down just a couple small steps that you can take over the next year in order to reach your goal. Your goals don’t have to be huge it can be something as simple as dressing nicer when you go out with your friends.
- What Do You Want?
Choose the goals to set that you really want to achieve. Don’t just pick things that you should do but pick things that you want to do. There is a difference in this, and you won’t be nearly as motivated if you set goals for things that you are forced to do instead of things that you desire to do.
Even if there are other things that you want to do in your life, you might need to wait on those things and work on those goals later. You will have a lifetime to reach all of your goals.
- Pick One Goal at a Time
Instead of setting 20 goals, try setting one goal at a time. Pick the one that is most important to you and work on it until you reach it. Goals that are harder will take longer and you need to give yourself more time. Those that are smaller will require less time.
Set a time limit of when you want to achieve your goal and then work towards that. If you get finished reaching your goal before your time limit, great job. You can start working on another goal after that. If you don’t get done early, that’s okay too! Keep working on your goal until you get there.
- Take Action
Don’t just think about a goal but take action to reach it. You need to ask yourself the 5 W’s!
- Who?
Who can help you to reach your goals? Who is your go to person that you depend on? Find this person and see if they can help you to stay on course and help you to reach your goals. You will be more successful if you do this with someone that you care about.
- What?
What is going to get you to the place where you can reach your goal? Write out your plan and keep going until you reach it. Figure out what you need to do. Do you need to take a new class or pick up a new hobby? Take the steps needed to get you there.
- When?
When do you want to reach your goal? When will you have time to work on this goal? How much time are you going to be able to dedicate to reaching your goal? Try and make your goal part of your daily routine until it becomes a habit.
- Where?
Where are you going to work towards reaching your goal? If you are choosing to become healthier, are you going to go to the gym to achieve this? Figure out where you’re going to go. Think all these things through before you ever get started.
- Why?
Why out of all the things that you could be doing did you choose this goal? Why is this goal important to you? You need to write this down so that you can feel motivated.
Final Thoughts
Once you take time to plan out your goals and to figure out how to achieve them, you can get started. What are your goals? What are your plans to reach your goals? Keep pushing and moving forward as you set out to achieve some healthy goals in your life!