Most of us have heard we need to have goals to become successful but Why Are Goals Important For Success? I can remember back in high school being asked, “What do you want to do with your life?” Of course back then I didn’t really have an answer and in all honestly, I didn’t know how to figure it out, I didn’t know what I wanted to be or do especially at such a young age.
I had no idea that I would set out on a path and then change direction several times before I found my true passion.
What I have learned through the years is that it doesn’t really matter what we choose to do as much as setting a course and heading off in that direction.
In this article, I will be covering what goals are and why they are important for success and plenty of other valuable information that I am sure you will find very helpful.
Let’s get started…
Table of Contents
Why Set Goals?
We need to set goals so we know what direction we are heading. If we have no goals it is too easy to get side-tracked at every opportunity. We wander from one thing to another and never focus in one direction which prevents us from getting anywhere.
According to Wikipedia, setting a goal is the primary objective of an action plan. Setting goals gives the possibility of your dreams and prospects being brought to life.
My husband and I love sailing so I’ll use that as an example. Where do you suppose we would end up if we failed to set a course. Oh, we would have some fun out sailing but would never go anywhere except perhaps around in circles.
Wouldn’t it be more effective and perhaps less frustrating if we first picked a destination. Then we could gather appropriate supplies, plot our course, set our sails and head off. Checking our compass to stay on track and reach our destination in a safe and timely manner.
To me, that sounds much more fun and rewarding than just aimlessly sailing nowhere.
That is why we need to set goals, so we don’t aimlessly meander through life never accomplishing anything.
Setting a goal is giving your subconscious mind something to focus on like a tasking. It will keep working on that task until it’s accomplished.
How To Set Goals
The first step is to determine what it is you want to achieve. Do you want to make more money, get that promotion, lose weight, get fit?
Be sure you choose something you want to accomplish not something you believe others are expecting of you. What others think or want for you is of no concern.
This is YOUR LIFE we talking about. Decide for yourself what that life should look like.
It may help to ask yourself these questions:
- What do I want to offer my family/community and to the world?
- How do I want to grow?
- How do I want to live?
- What really interests me that I don’t mind spending a lot of time on?
It is okay if you are still thinking pretty broad at this point but let’s narrow those goals down.
Really Define Those Goals
We need to prioritize our goals. We can’t tackle every area of our life at once. That could be too overwhelming and leave us unable to accomplish anything.
Why don’t we split those goals into three tiers? The first tier is most important to you and may come more naturally. The second and third-tier goals are not as important to you and maybe more specific or limited.
For example:
- First-tier goals could be to improve my health or start a business.
- Second-tier could be to keep my room clean or learn to speak french.
- Third-tier could be you wish to learn to knit or do laundry more regularly.
Be specific about your goals. Just saying you wish to be healthier is too broad and leaves you unclear as to what to do to achieve it.
Instead, if you were to say “Exercise more and eat better”, it’s ok but still not quite clear enough.
However, if you were to say ” I wish to exercise 3 times a week and eat 3 servings of fruit and vegetables each day”, leaves you with a pretty clear picture of what you need to do.
You also need to think about all the little steps to take along the way to get you to your goal. For example:
- choosing a fruit cup instead of fries
- taking the stairs rather than the elevator
- will you go to the gym or walk around the neighbourhood?
Set a Time Frame To Achieve Your Goal
You need to set a realistic time frame to accomplish your goal. Again you need to be a little more specific here because there will likely be little steps along the way that need to be completed as you work toward that main goal.
For example, in order to work out at the gym you first need to:
- buy a gym membership
- buy sneakers and workout clothing
- register for any classes you may wish to take.
To eat healthier you may need to
- purge your cupboards and refrigerator of unhealthy food
- perhaps learn how to meal plan
- then purchase healthy groceries.
Do you see how all these little steps need to be completed along the way to achieving the main goal of getting fit or losing weight?
Even if you don’t start right away by keep putting it into your mind you will be programming your subconscious mind to want it.
Make Sure Your Goal Is Measurable
It is critical that you track your progress. It will help keep you on track when you see exactly what steps you are working on.
Tracking your progress can also keep you motivated as you see tasks being completed along the way.
Decide how you will track your progress:
- will you use a Fitbit
- activity app
- good old fashioned pen and paper
Knowing how you are doing along the journey is crucial to actually reach your goal.
Another helpful tip is to reward yourself along the way.
Be Realistic
I admit it would be awesome to climb Everest but let’s be realistic. I don’t go out climbing often enough to make that achievable for me. I have other priorities that take up my time.
Managing expectations can go a long way towards ensuring we don’t get too overwhelmed or discouraged.
Not only should we be realistic about what we can achieve but also about the time it takes to achieve it.
Seriously though I would love to lose 30 pounds and that is doable but it is unrealistic to think I can achieve that in a month.
So manage your timeline expectations as well.
Create An Action Plan
This is where it gets real. Creating an action plan simply means outlining all the necessary steps in order to achieve your goal.
List the steps in the order in which they need to be completed and post them where you will see them several times throughout the day.
Seeing your action plan in front of you will help keep you on track.
It also acts as a great motivator when you get to cross off completed tasks.
Overcome Obstacles
Think of potential obstacles and create a plan to overcome them.
Obstacles could be a lack of information, so perhaps you need to do some research or take a course.
There could be financial obstacles so maybe you need to get a business loan or perhaps find a business partner.
Emotions such as fear or anxiety can be internal obstacles. In that case, talking about your fears with a trusted friend or professional could be a big help.
The key here is to identify possible situations that could derail your best efforts to accomplish your goal then come up with a solid actionable plan to eliminate each obstacle.
Conclusion
As you can see, the question Why Are Goals Important for Success is a very important topic especially when we are young and just starting out.
It is very true, our goals are critical to achieving success in any area of life because they give you a firm direction in which to apply your efforts.
Just like in sailing, it is only after we have determined our destination that we can plot our course and trim our sails.
Could you imagine the disaster our websites would be if we did not take the time to set goals for content creation or answering questions in a timely manner?
We have learned that our business as well as our life runs so much more smoothly when we properly goal set and establish a game plan.
As online bloggers, we check our progress daily to ensure we stay on track with our goals and as a result, we experience steady growth which gives us a nice bonus of an income which.
Click here to learn how I make a living online.
With proper goal-setting and a renewed focus, there really is no telling how far you can go.
Please feel free to leave any questions or comments below.
Yes I agree with you goal setting is very important for success in what ever we do. My biggest problem in goal setting is my lack of confidence in my self. With out the confidence I am not very strong on goal setting.
Thank you for sharing this great article, I am sure those that have a better confidence will benefit from it.
Wish you the best,
Jo
Yes one’s self confidence does have an impact on the results for sure but I have found that there are other determining factors which also effect your confidence level. When helping other entrepreneurs with goal settings the first thing I help them to to clear up is:
-is it even possible to be done? Once this is cleared up then…
-Ok, but can “I” do it? This is where our own confidence comes in.
the next thing then to consider is…
-How bad do I want it, what am I willing to give in return for it.
All these factors has to be considered when making goal decisions. And then there’s the size of the goal. If we make our goal too big and it takes too long to achieve the little goals then all the other factors start to show their ugly face’s again.
And one negative though breeds another and another until it over powers you.
Check our my other articles:
What Is A Positive Attitude?
What Is The Law Of Attraction?
All education systems, games etc have kept these factors in mind when developing them.
And we should too when developing our own goals.
Thank you so much for your comment Jo
I wish you all the best,
Rick
Why are goals important for success is full of great points and tips we all can use to accomplish our goals.
Since many of us experience anxiety when working towards some of our goals, how do you recommend we accomplish our goals without causing ourselves to become so overwhelmed?
Jeff
Hi Jeff its good to hear from you. Anxiety is caused by intense or unwanted normal everyday situations in our lives.
-Remove the situation and the anxiety will diminish.
-If you were to get use to the situation by getting better at dealing with it, it will also diminish.
I try to analyze why I am feeling it. Once I know what is causing it I would try and avoid it. In times when I can’t avoid it then I would learn to improve my skills.
As Jim Rohn would say, “Don’t wish it was easier! Wish you were better!”
I would also try and turn things into a game and have fun with it when possible. When it comes to our GOALS you have to keep the bigger picture in mind. And set smaller goals to reach along the way. Just know your limits and set the small goals so you can reach them.
One baby step at a time will get you to your goal. It’s also important to reward yourself after each goal. And always take time away from your work especially if you’re self employed.
Thanks for your comment Jeff,
All the best,
Rick
Setting up goals can be a really great, thing along with motivation. I tend to set up my goals to be challenging but still realistic. Most of the people set their goals too high a majority fail reaching them. And just like you said, most of them set up goals to please others. Of course, the obstacles will accrue, but that is just a phase when we need to work even harder to overcome them.
Thanks for this inspiring article Rick.
Srdjan
Thanks for the comment Srdjan.
Congratulations to you on setting realistic yet challenging goals for yourself. By remaining true to yourself and with perseverance you will achieve them, don’t ever give up.
Yes life throws us curve balls from time to time, it is what we do with them that makes the difference.
Maintaining a positive attitude as I discussed in my article, “What Is A Positive Attitude and Why Is It Important” is key to success in anything we attempt.
Best wishes to you my friend.
Rick
Personally, I love setting goals in my life. As I like to see the result that I am more productive and to be honest, it feels great to have something to look forward to and check off those goals. When that happens I always feel proud of myself and reward myself something. I wish they teach more about goal settings in school. I always set my short, mid and long term goals for both my career and personal life and I also use the SMART goal technique.
Hi Nuttanee, that is a very good point you made, why don’t they teach or put more training into goal setting in schools. We know the information so why are we not teaching the power behind it. I believe it would help a lot more people by the time they left high school.
I find it’s a great feeling when I reach my goal. Like you said it really makes one proud of themselves and for good reason too.
You really know how to set goals, sounds like you on your way to achieving success.
I wish you all the best and thanks for dropping by Nuttanee.
Cheers
If we do not have goals that we work towards to then we can never truly measure our success, I always ask myself where I would like to be professionally in 5 years’ time, may it be in my work or my business. Setting goals helps me prepare for the future and what I want out of life.
That is absolutely correct Jean, most people seem to just live for today. I have heard some say, “why worry about tomorrow when tomorrow may never come”.
It is clear to see why so many live in such difficult times when their mindset is just about today and not their future. Many don’t even set goals to work towards to achieve their own dreams or desires they want. That’s because they don’t believe it will come true.
It’s actually comforting to know I have a goal to reach and when I reach it I am on top of the world. You can’t reach your goals or desires or dreams if you don’t have one.
Thanks for dropping by Jean I appreciate it.
Take care
Hi,
I think setting goals is pretty hard, we all want nice things and a relaxed way of living, where do we start setting goals?
Yes it would be great to just pick a destination, pack up and go, but again, how do you get yourself to the point of being able to take such a step?
I have set up goals in my mind, and I think about them every day even during the moments when my mind wants to wonder, it is hard, the mind is a very strong toll and most times it does not want to let go of bad lingering habits, how do you get over this and make yourself focus clearer on your goals?
I know what I want, what I want to offer my family and to the world, what I don’t know is, how do I get there?
I know how I want to grow, but how do I grow, how do I grow a business to grow my income?
I know this question has been answered here at WA, but the get to know how, is still not as simple as it is to build a website and write content, as this alone does not make you grow, this alone does not earn you money, yes this does make you grow your confidence, being confident in what you do is great, but no business pay you money for just being confident.
I also know how I want to live, but how do I get there? I know about putting work into it and I am doing so but how much more work do I still need to put into it before seeing the first glimpse of a result?
Everything that I’m doing interests me and I’m spending a lot of time doing it, so where am I going wrong?
My first goal was to find a good platform where I could build a foundation, I have the platform, I believe in WA, I have a good website which is indexed on google and all my content is also indexed, so this is all good.
My second tier goal was/is to get traffic and people signing up, I have very little traffic, I had 7 people signing up but all gave up when they got to the point where they had to pay a fee to upgrade to premium to be able to continue with the training, so how do I get past this goal tier in order to start earning?
My third tier goal is to earn a living online because I’m tiered of being a front line worker working 12 and 14 hour shifts, how do I reach my third tier when the second has failed?
Tracking progress/codes, I don’t really know how to do that but maybe it is because I think that tracking is not a major part of the process for me to achieve my goals, can it be?
How to make an action plan in regards to my 3 tier goals?
You have very interesting concepts in your page and it is great sharing but as you can see I have a lot of questions and the way things are going for me at the moment is not giving me a very clear path to my destination.
I am positive and I believe that sooner or later other people will sign up and see it through and I will move on with a clearer path.
I wish you all the best and I’d love to hear from you.
Idalina
Thanks for dropping by Idalina and sharing your thoughts with us today. You do have a lot of questions and I think I can sum them up. Many people start a program to make money to replace their job or just to make money. This is fine but the problem comes when things don’t happen for them. They don’t start seen the money and it gets frustrating to say the least.
Then when you hear about someone that makes all kinds of money within the first few months, this just drives you crazy because you are not there yet. And when you do get some to join you find most of them quit before too long.
The concept of making money online is a simple one believe it or not. In fact, it’s no different than with a local brick n mortar store. To make money you must sell a product of some kind.
This means stop thinking about the money and start thinking about the customer. The more you are into helping the customer the more you will sell. This is the very reason why I say someday we will be going back to the brick n mortar store because online is lacking the personality which we all love and live for.
Two people can sell the same product but one will sell hundreds while the other has trouble selling just one. It’s the same product, same features, what is going on.
What is going on is not the product but the thoughts within the seller that makes the difference. When you put your heart and soul into selling the product to the customer, that is when you have the highest chance to sell it.
In my review on Wealthy Affiliate, I explained everything about it and what they have to offer which like you said it’s a great training system. I still believe it’s one of the best you will find however the only difference is the individual that is doing the training. Not that it only works for some, it’s that only those that learn the simple rule of taking care of the customer are going to succeed. If you carried out everything else within the training you will succeed.
When you write your blog about a product be sure to cover as much as you can about it. The best thing about a blog is you can always go back and fix it up which is good for Google anyway. That is why they say just get it up there and go back later to fix things up. Once you have over 100 articles you should start going back and checking over the older ones because your writing would have gotten better as well.
The other thing that holds us back is Google, sure you got indexed which is not hard to do but Goole will take their time in showing your articles. Yes, you can be sitting around for months waiting for Google to start sharing your stuff. They do start about 6 months however they take their time. If you create pins to help bring fresh traffic into your webpage it will help speed up Google’s sharing but keep in mind it takes a lot of traffic to start getting attention to your pages.
The truth is not everyone is interested in what you have to say. That is just the way things are.
Look at when you go to a store, you are only looking for one item but may buy something else or even put it down before you get to the checkout. That is one or two items in thousands of products on the self.
The article you write should be about something that is close to what you are advertising to promote. If you are promoting hockey skates then the article should be about hockey skates in some way or form.
The article should also create emotion within the article and the call to action should be at the bottom of the article shortly after the high point in your story.
Not all articles have to be about selling either, some can just be giving value to the readers.
Please respond so I know if this helped you or not ok Idalina.
For now take care my friend
Richard
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