Broken Goals?

Do you set goals that are never achieved? Have you already given up on your New Year’s Resolutions? If you answered yes, you are not alone. Nearly everyone forgets their resolutions before the end of January, including us.

After searching for answers to figure out what is holding us back, we found three simple strategies for achieving goals that have already produced results for us.

1)   Choose One Goal

We set too many goals each year and end up achieving none. Overwhelming yourself leads to excuses like “I’m too busy today” or “I don’t know where to start.”

So choose ONE goal that will have the most impact on your life and focus on that goal for at least 30 days.

According to the writers of the self-help book “The Secret,” forming a habit will take 30 days.  This explains why having too many goals makes it difficult to succeed.

2)   “Don’t Break the Chain”

Another reason behind broken goals is the inability to take consistent action.

Consider your goal and ask yourself, “What is one habit that will drive me towards the result I want to achieve?” The power is in finding something specific that you can do every day and requires no more than 20 minutes.

If your goal is to write a book, spend 20 minutes writing each day. It is important to create habits that require little time because it is more satisfying to accomplish small actions, rather than feeling like a failure when you take on too much and accomplish nothing. However, if you get on a role and spend two hours writing one day, then be proud of yourself!

Jerry Seinfeld, an American Comedian, shared his personal productivity secret for achieving goals by learning to stay focused. He basically said that the way to create better jokes is to write every day. He also told us about what he does to motivate himself – even when he doesn’t feel like doing it.

This technique is known as “Don’t Break the Chain.” It’s simple. All you need is a red marker and a calendar displayed in a place where it is constantly seen. When you have your action completed for the day, mark the day with a big X. After a few days you will have a chain. Now all you have to do is not break it.

There is an online tool at http://don’tbreakthechain.com. There is also a chains.cc app for the iphone.

3)   Find Your Inner Motivation

Have you ever broken a goal because you forgot why you made the goal in the first place? You lost your motivation.

We usually come up with superficial goals that we tell ourselves and others.

“I want to eat healthier and lose weight”

“I want to start my own business.”

The trick is to dig deeper and find the second layer of reasons, which is often hidden in our subconscious mind. Try asking yourself “Why do I want to achieve this?” Keep asking yourself the same question until you strike an emotional response.

These emotional reasons, once discovered, can be used as fuel to keep you motivated. Once you find your inner motivation, think about what it will look like and how you feel once you have achieved your desired result. Take a minute each day to visualize the end result.  Add one more detail every day and propel yourself to victory.

Now pick your most impactful goal, take consistent action, and start putting the pieces together day by day.

I wish you the best on your journey to achieving your goals.