Launching and Reaching Your Goals Once and For All

Where there is a will, there is a way.

Goals move us forward.

I like having a goal. It means I’m not just sitting around getting older. I’m, ideally, doing something or going somewhere that will have a measurable positive impact on my life. I think a lot of us consider that a good thing.

We like challenging ourselves. We love setting goals.

But sometimes, we need a little help or encouragement to keep the ball rolling, so to speak. That’s what this piece is about.

Given the challenges the world has been throwing at us all lately, I think we could all use a little encouragement.

So here goes.

Goals are not just for New Year’s

There is something you hear self-development gurus refer to as a growth mindset. The idea is that we should strive to grow and learn something new every day. While it sounds like a tall order, not every bit of growth or learning needs to be momentous. For instance, no one expects you to learn to play the guitar in a day. But mastering a three-chord song in a week?

Why not?

If learning to play the guitar, or getting your writing habit up, or losing weight is the goal you set back in January, great! If it’s the goal you set today, great!

There’s no sane reason why you have to wait for the New Year to roll around. Get on those goals today!

Little things mean a lot

When we look to make a significant change, we’re tempted to start big. Sometimes, it’s because we feel grand starts mean grand intentions, and, dammit, we’re serious about change! We want to see the effects of change immediately.

The hard fact is that, more often than not, sudden mega-changes tend to fail.

Instead, start small. Want to be one of those productivity machines that begin their day at 5 am but never roll out of bed until 8?

Don’t set your alarm for 5aam. Set it for 7:45 for a few days. Then 7:30 for a few days after that. As you get more accustomed to those 15-minute differences, you’ll train yourself to meet that 5 am goal. Or you may find that 6 am is early enough to be as productive as you wish to be.

To help reach a goal involving waking up earlier, remember to go to bed earlier as well. You still need sleep. You’re just trying to get a better handle on the time frame.

If you’re trying to build a writing habit of a thousand words a day, start with only a hundred. Do that for a week at the same time each day. Then go for another hundred, and then another, and so on.

Little changes, over time, lead to big results.

Have a ritual

My wife had a hard time adjusting to working from home due to COVID-19. We saw that her change in routine was too sudden and decided that what was needed was some kind of transition ritual to make easing into her new workday more natural.

She started commuting to work again, but she didn’t go into the office.

Instead, my wife went through her usual pre-COVID-19 morning routine, then got in her car and drove around the neighborhood for 15 minutes. By the time she returned home, she was ready to turn on her laptop and get to work.

That 15-minute driving ritual made all the difference.

A friend of mine who wanted to teach himself cartooning had a difficult time focusing while practicing. For reasons that are still unclear, he drew an “X” on the back of his drawing hand before starting.

After he established that small, weird little ritual, he found he had an easier time practicing his drawing for at least a solid hour.

Rituals don’t have to make sense. Their power is in the act, not necessarily the logic of it.

What small ritual could you start to help motivate you toward your goal?

Reward yourself

Hit a milestone on the way to reaching one of your goals?

Reward yourself.

Self-reward is a time-tested method of positive reinforcement. I wanted to do a major purge in my house and set a goal of removing 40 trash bags or boxes of old baby clothes and toys, clothes that no longer fit, unused kitchenware, old books, and the like. Some went to the trash, some were donated.

Once I hit my goal of 40, I promised myself I’d get a new fish tank. But when I hit 20, I helped myself along by buying a couple of decorations for the fish tank I’d eventually earn.

In short… use a system of rewards to help you along with your goals. You don’t have to wait until the Big Goal is accomplished. Little prizes for completed steps along the way are also beneficial.

Be your own best friend

Don’t beat yourself up if you’re having trouble getting traction — even with these suggestions in your back pocket. If change was easy, everyone would be doing it. If you’re having problems attaining specific goals, ask yourself why that might be.

Is there something blocking you?

Maybe you should address that first. You might even learn that the goal you initially sought isn’t the best one for you right now.

People always feel so down about themselves when they don’t meet goals. Quite often, other factors are going on that need attention first. Take some time to examine your life, be kind, and see how you can refine your goals to best suit your life right now.

The real gain in striving for a goal isn’t always the goal itself but the process.

But the process of goal setting can be uplifting and is always worth a shot.

Remember, if you don’t try, you won’t change. If you do try, you have everything to gain.

Good luck!

Thank you for reading. I’d love to share more with you via my Bi-Weekly Word Roundup newsletter sent to subscribers every other Sunday. It will feature news, productivity tips, life hacks, and links to top stories making the rounds on the Internet. You can unsubscribe at any time.