A goal without a plan is a wish. A new year is a perfect time to start on your goals. Everybody likes starting at the beginning because it’s easier to measure. This year is especially exciting because it’s also a new decade.
1. Make challenging/specific goals
One main reason people give up or don’t achieve their goals is because they aren’t specific enough. An example is everybody’s favorite new years resolution of losing weight. EVERYBODY has a goal to lose weight every year. The gyms are packed in January and by February it’s back to normal. Losing weight isn’t specific or challenging. If you lose 1 lb in 365 days you have technically hit your goal. Instead, your goal can be to lose 10 lbs in the first two months, go to the gym 3-4 times per week, and drop your body fat by 10% by the end of the year. This holds you accountable for the entire year and is easy to measure. It’s also challenging enough to make you want to work for it all year.
Challenging goals are fun goals. Nobody wants to have an easy goal. If I say save $5 dollars next year that wouldn’t be challenging. You also won’t feel accomplished if you did it. If I said save $5,000 or $10,000, it would be much more challenging. You would have to work harder to accomplish that. You would also feel great if you achieved that by the end of the year. All of your planning and sacrifice would make you appreciate the journey more. It will also set you up for bigger goals in the future. If you save $5,000 this year, how much could you save next year?
2. Give yourself a deadline
I alluded to this in the example in the first tip, but you have to give yourself a challenging but realistic deadline. You want to give yourself a deadline so you can plan and celebrate mini milestones in the process. If you have big goals like losing 100 lbs in 2020, you have to start early. You can’t wait to November and think you are going to drop 100 lbs in two months. You have to start early and celebrate on your journey to losing 100 lbs. Celebrate every 20 lbs and track your progress. Make sure you are on track to hit your goal. 100 lbs in one year means losing a little over 8 lbs a month. If you only lose 5 lbs in the first month, you know you have to adjust and work harder the next month.
Of course losing weight is just an example. Giving yourself a deadline applies to any and every goal you set.
3. Adjust when needed
Let’s be realistic, life happens. We set goals hoping everything goes perfectly, but we all know that doesn’t always happen. It’s okay if that happens, adjust your goals accordingly and keep pushing.
We have to keep it real and talk about the good and the bad. Sometimes it’s not the fact that life happens, it’s actually just us. We don’t complete our goals for many reasons such as laziness, lack of planning, lack of motivation, excuses, etc. Let’s go back to our example of losing 100 lbs in 2020. Fast forward to June and you haven’t lost any weight. Instead of completely giving up on the rest of the year, adjust your goal. Make your goal to lose 50 lbs in the last 6 months. A lot of times we let not making our original goals deter us from doing anything to change our situation. Losing 50lbs is better than 0 lbs and much better than gaining weight.
4. Get an accountability partner
Like most things in life, a partner makes things easier and more fun. This is especially true if you have the same or similar goals. If you both want to lose weight, you can work out together and meal prep together. You can call them out when they aren’t doing what they should be doing.
You have to chose the right person to be your accountability partner. It has to be someone that will call you out and not take your excuses. They can’t be a “yes man” and not challenge you. If your goal is to save a certain amount of money per month and you haven’t because you’ve been shopping, they have to feel comfortable to call you out. When I say “call you out” I mean with love and your best interests at heart. They know you want to save money for a down payment of a home so they should be able to tell you to stop shopping to achieve your goals.
Summary
Choose goals that are right for you and your situation. Don’t just do what everybody else is saying they are doing. Somebody might want to save $15,000, you might not have that much disposable income. If your goal is to save $1,000 in 2020, don’t let anyone make you feel like your goal isn’t good enough. If you decide that your goal is challenging and realistic then go for it.
