7 Secrets for Accomplishing Your Goals

Published July 28th, 2008

Every single person has hopes, dreams, and goals for their life.  In popular culture, we often hear about a few people who have become exceptionally good at turning these thoughts into reality.  I believe that success can come to every person.  I’m by no means an expert, but a few short years ago when I actually started to take action, my goals and dreams started to become very real and tangible.  Whether young or old, rich or poor, formally educated or educated by a life well-lived, we all have great capacity for change. 

Today I’m going to share what’s worked and continues to work for me on my ongoing journey to accomplishing my goals.  None of this is rocket science, and some of you may feel I’m stating the obvious, but really it’s the execution of these ideas, and not the ideas themselves that’s turned thoughts into reality.  The path to personal success is different for each and every person. 

Sometimes I’ve had to try different things to motivate myself, and had to climb over several obstacles before I’ve accomplished my goal, but the common thread is that I always get back on the horse–I keep an open mind and keep moving forward.  The following are general steps that work for me, again, it’s not the idea that will bring you success, it’s how you adapt and implement the idea in your own life that counts: 

1.  Define your goals

Many of you have heard of setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound or some version thereof).  SMART goals are often used in the workplace and education.  When considering personal and financial goals, I guess I look at it from a different perspective: I look at my value system, and define my goals based on that as well.  Part of the reason why we sometimes fail, is that we ignore the human and individual element, and try to go along with a plan that’s worked for someone else, or many other people.  If this method isn’t in line with who you really are or what you believe in, it’ll be hard to maintain that success over the long term.

My advice is to think about what is really important to you, and more importantly why.  Dig deep and get to the root of why you really want something and what it will do to improve the rest of your life.  Think about your values, do your goals fit with what you really believe when you’re all alone and there’s nobody to impress. 

2.  Put it in writing and in pictures

Now that you’ve defined what your goals are, and you know why you want to accomplish them, put it in writing.  I’m not an expert, so I don’t know what exactly changes when you put something it writing, but it does.  It gives you something to focus on if you choose, and brings a thought floating around in your head one step closer to reality.  Be very specific about exactly what you want to accomplish, how you plan to do it, and a rough timeline of when in your life you’d like to do it.  Once you’ve gone through all of this work, don’t put this piece of paper in a drawer and forget about it (I made that mistake)–keep it handy, and refer to it often.  Even if you’re not ready to take action just yet, keep conscious of it so that if an opportunity does arise, it’ll be in the forefront of your mind.

One other tool many people use is a life list.  This is basically a list of everything you’d like to do or accomplish before you die.  Same idea here, and some of these things may seem very small, but write them all down, because again you don’t know when or where an opportunity may come up.

Another great way to bring your dreams closer to reality is to make a vision board.  A vision board can be made of anything, but you basically put your goals in a visual form with things like magazine pictures and clippings, photos, and sayings that will help you to actually see some of the most important things you want for your life.

3.  Tackle one big goal at a time

In the past, I’ve made the mistake of trying to attack many big goals at one time, and the result was no huge improvement or resolution in any of them because my efforts were too scattered.  Mentally this is also very difficult because the absence of any tangible accomplishment over time can be demoralizing, even if you are making some progress overall.  When we become demoralized, we sometimes give up.

I found when I focused on one goal, say paying off one credit line from school, I felt a huge sense of accomplishment knowing it was over and done with, and was ready to tackle the next one in line.  If I’d paid off the same total amount in little bits at a time over many loans, it wouldn’t have the same “wow” effect.

4.  Find your motivation

This will be very different for each individual.  Some people need to just start and the motivation comes along with the results.  Others need to find the motivation first, that’s why some people find group weight loss programs helpful when they couldn’t do it on their own.  Some of us want a healthier life, some (like me) motivate ourselves by making snazzy charts and crossing off something once it’s been accomplished with little rewards along the way.  You know yourself best, pick a motivation that will actually mean something, and will spur you forward.

5.  Celebrate your successes

When you accomplish your goal, always give yourself a pat on the back.  It doesn’t even have to be food, or something that costs a lot of money, do something that is meaningful and will really uplift and recharge you as you then shift focus to the next big goal on your list.

6.  Get Closure

We often tend to think about getting closure after a negative trial like a death or divorce.  I feel like I need to finalize the end of even a positive goal by either physically or symbolically closing that chapter.  When I finally got over an almost debilitating fear of roller coasters, I bought the overpriced picture and it’s sitting in a frame right here on my desk.  Why? That fearful part of my life is behind me, and the split second captured by that picture represents this to me.  Overcoming that one fear has given me so much more confidence in what I thought were completely unrelated areas of my life. It’s not a great picture of me but I don’t even care–I know I can crush anything else that scares me.  You can read more about that story and how I got over it here if you like. 

7.  Move on to the next goal

We only get one crack at this life and all of the things, places, people, and animals that go along with it.  I feel like it’s important to keep moving forward all the time.  Even when things don’t seem that great, or you feel like you’re taking a step back, keep pushing on.  When one goal is accomplished, another one is ready to step up to the plate.  This is life, and I’ve learned to embrace it.  I don’t want the feeling of being stagnant and standing still.  I want security, and peace, and love with those who are important to me, but I want to grow and be a better person with each passing day, month, and year.  I don’t ever want to regret not trying to accomplish something I’ve set out to do.  I would honestly have bigger regrets wondering “what if”.

I believe in the law of attraction, that what you focus on expands, but good things do not come by good thoughts alone.  It’s the hard work, positivity, willingness to think outside the box, and patience that bring true and sustainable long term success.  Just ask anyone who’s lost a significant amount of weight and kept it off, working on correcting damage from their childhood, or  who’s conquered a crushing amount of debt.  Some of these people almost glow, they’ve freed themselves of a certain burden, and they feel free because they did the hard work to get there–they’ve literally changed the way they live their lives.  I believe that if I do the hard emotional and physical work, I can find a way to achieve my goals–no matter how daunting.  I also know this possibility exists for you. 

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