Top tips for goal setting

We’re often told it’s a great idea to set goals – but what makes a good goal, and how can you make sure you take the right steps to achieve it?

Here are some tips that will make the process of setting some aims and achieving them much easier.

Get specific

It’s not enough to set a general goal such as “I am going to improve my time management”. Choose an aspect you can zero in on, such as improving time management in terms of how quickly you respond to your emails or phone messages.

Having a specific focus will give you something tangible to work towards, so you’ll be able to better measure your progress.

Set a time frame

Be specific about when you aim to accomplish your goal. Having a deadline spurs you on to action and helps you avoid procrastination.

Plan your steps

It’s also not enough to say “I will reply to my emails faster”. In setting an effective goal, you need to outline how you are going to achieve this.

Will you keep a diary of your daily tasks so you can ascertain where your time is going and then make a change? Will you devote regular small allotments of time to replying to your emails so you don’t fall behind? Come up with some techniques that you can rely on to get the job done – and goal achieved.

Regularly re-evaluate

Make sure you’re regularly tracking your progress and checking in on your goal.

If time is passing and you’re not quite seeing any improvements, you might have to re-evaluate your overall strategy.

If you can see you’re doing well, you’ll feel more motivated to continue, or maybe even expand your goal.

Sometimes as time goes on, your goal may become less relevant or you may need to tweak it to keep it in line with your current situation.

Don’t forget to reward

Once you’ve achieved your goal, make sure you take a moment to celebrate or reward yourself.

Ideally, it will be acknowledged by others too! This will help to motivate and inspire you to achieve further results and goals.