SETTING GOALS AND GETTING THINGS DONE IN 2019

It is that special season of the year, again. The countdown for 2018 is gradually coming to a stop. Festivities are in the air. People are bracing up to meet the New Year full of hope and great expectations. Every one dreams big for the year where everything falls into place. To achieve our dreams, we need to set goals and take action.

Setting goals in life is a fundamental requirement for success. Setting goals allow us to create our future in advance. Setting goals helps us grow and expand, and allow us to push ourselves to transform in extraordinary ways that might not be possible without setting stretch goals for ourselves. We all set goals, right?  Every year, we start by making New Year resolutions. But how much of that did we follow through? Are you setting your goals effectively? Will your goals transform your life in the ways you want? These are the fundamental questions we hope to address in this blog post. Many times people think they understand how to set goals, but then they never quite achieve what they were after. One common reason is that those goals are neither compelling nor inspiring enough. How do you set the kind of goals that make you leap out of bed every morning raring to go? Your goal should be what you dream about with a firm deadline. So how do you create that compelling goal for 2019 and beyond?

Achieving your personal and professional goals in the New Year requires dreaming big dreams. But achieving those dreams, you need to set deadlines. Then your dreams become goals, to bring them to life, you need planning, then you need to take action. You need to learn how to set better goals, manage time better, overcome procrastination, prioritizing in a better way, set S.M.A.R.T goals, self-motivate, and to get things done more effectively. This will increase your chances of success, and improve your productivity in every area of life in the New Year. So how do you create that compelling goal that keeps you wide awake when others are crashing?

DREAM BIG DREAMS

If the mind can conceive it, the hands can wrought it, and you can bring it to pass. Dreaming big dreams is neither about unreasonably building castles in the air nor about the visions do you see during your sleep or in a drink-induced stupor. It is a systematic rejection of all limitations. It is about de-cluttering your mind, and allowing it to roam unfettered. It is about giving wings to your imagination to flourish, and casting aside all limitations imposed by circumstances, by others or your own belief. It is about gravitating to becoming the best version of you. But it is only the first part.

SET GREAT GOALS

The next step is setting goals to achieve your dreams. But before you dive into setting your goals for 2019, here are few tips to consider:

1. Remember the 4P’s of Goal Setting. Make your goals Positive, Personal, Possible and Prioritized.
2. Check in with yourself to see how far, or where you are currently in relation to Business (or Career), Friends, Family, Passions, Health and Spiritual. Constructing a Goal Wheel will help here.
3. Set your intentions in any or all areas of your life above mentioned, and take ownership for achieving your desired outcome.
4. Outcome + Process. Enumerate your desired outcome in any, or all of the six areas mentioned above. Then, outline your process for achieving the desired outcome.
5. Identify and neutralize blockers – what logistical constraints, behaviors or other people that might hinder you from achieving your goals. Doing so will help you actively plan to work around them.
6. Activate your plan.

To activate your plan and translating your goals to action, we recommend the S.M.A.R.T principle of goals setting. The S.M.A.R.T principle is an acronym which will help you map out measurable and attainable goals, and will help you create and maintain momentum with your goals setting.

• Specific: The more detailed you can be, the better. How specific can you be if your goal is to make more income? For example, “I want to make more money” is a general goal, but “I will make more money by adding a side hustle to my 9 to 5 job “is a specific goal.
• Measurable: Precision is your friend when it comes to goal setting. When you can measure, you will be able to see your progress and know when you achieve it. For example, “I want to get better at managing money” is not a measurable goal, but “I plan to get better at money by paying off my debts, and saving at least 25% of my income monthly this year” is a measurable goal. It gives you benchmarks that you can use to check your progress on the way to success.
• Achievable: If you can’t actually attain your goal it will only serve to frustrate and dishearten you. You cannot create a billion-dollar business overnight. You should avoid getting too lofty in setting your goals thus increasing its chances of making them impossible to achieve.
• Realistic: Can you realistically create a billion-dollar business overnight?  Perhaps in the movies, you can, but you live in the real world.  So ensure your goals match up with reality.
• (In a) Time frame: Having a clear idea of your timeline creates a sense of urgency. You’ll be working toward what you want more quickly. Perhaps your goal to get more income is to set up a new business. What is the realistic time frame to get the business up and running? Do you have a prior experience in the line of business? Set a timeline for your goal so you can check in with yourself along the way.

GETTING THINGS DONE IN 2019

You have dreamt big dreams. You have set your goals. Now, the next part is the hardest – Getting things done – no matter the constraints. We see some people who seem to have the ability to get more things done day after day while we struggle with a backlog of yesterday’s unattained goals and missed targets. How can we get more done in the New Year? The following six tools and techniques will help you considerably to get more things done.

Overcome Procrastination

We all procrastinate from time to time. Procrastination occurs when we avoid tasks that we find unpleasant. Even if we perform other work-related tasks instead of the ones we dislike, we are guilty of procrastination. Unfortunately, procrastination will hinder our long-term success. With the proper skills, you can overcome procrastination. The following diagram, in no particular order, highlights the best tools o overcome procrastination.

Improving motivation

Goals can be inspiring, but that inspiration can fade in the reality of everyday life. In order to achieve your goals, it is important that you find ways to motivate yourself. You cannot constantly rely on external motivation. Implementing different methods of motivation will help. Examples of methods to improve motivation include remembering your peak moments, writing down your goals, gamification and tracking your progress. They will help keep you stay focused and positive as you work towards your goals daily.

Wise Time Management

Time management is the key to getting things done. It is easy to become sidetracked by unimportant tasks that do not help you reach your daily, short term or long term goals without proper time management. The following are time management tools and techniques that you can use to improve the use of your time, and getting more done in less time. They will help you achieve your goals while decreasing your stress level and making your life easier. They are:

• Constructing your Urgent/Important Matrix to manage daily tasks
• Prioritize better with the 80/20 Rule
• Proper use of Calendar
• Create your own Ritual

Increase your Productivity

Improving your time management strategies will help increase your productivity. By improving your productivity, you will find it easier to reach your goals. Increased productivity takes time. However, as you begin to implement different strategies, you will discover which methods are effective and improve your personal and professional productivity.

Make use of To-Do Lists

“To do” lists are staples in modern life. However, if “to do” lists are not done properly, they are useless. Too often, people create lists that they never come close to completing. There are characteristics that effective “to do” lists share. If your own “to do” list includes these basic characteristics, you will find it easier to accomplish the tasks that you set to accomplish. To prepare your “to-do” lists, you need to bear in mind the following:

• Focus on the important tasks first
• Chunk, Block and Tackle – Break your tasks into smaller chunks, block out the time to accomplish, and tackle the tasks individually rather than as a whole.
• Make it a Habit
• Plan Ahead. “To do” lists will not help you reach your goals unless you implement them. Until they are executed, lists are just reminders of what you still need to accomplish.

 When mistakes happen

No matter how well you prepare or what precautions you take, mistakes will happen. Mistakes are an essential part of life. Without them, it is not possible to fully grow and learn. When mistakes do occur, accept it. The key is to bounce back, learn from the mistakes, and move forward. If you learn from your mistakes, you are less likely to repeat them. You will also be able to guide others away from making the same mistakes you have.

Conclusion 

If you faithfully implement these goals setting and execution strategies, you will be able to achieve what others can only dream of. The above post is an extract from our Goals Setting & Getting Things Done course – a personal development program.

You can get the full course here: https://f2aresourcesng.com/product/goal-setting-and-getting-things-done/ or you can download our full 2019 Course calendar here: https://f2aresourcesng.com/F2A Training calendar For Jan June 2019.xlsx

Here is wishing you a great 2019, in your career, business and life.