Setting goals gives you something to strive for. Whether it’s becoming the best professional in your field or changing bad habits like pulling all-nighters, if you have goals, they can motivate you to do better.
Research suggests that goal content and difficulty influence performance. It has also been found that framing, or how you view a goal, influences performance.
Identify Your Goals
If you want to achieve something it starts with identifying your goals. It’s important to define what you want, and to create a strategy to attain it. This process is often referred to as goal setting.
To identify your goals you need to ask yourself the key question “why”. Deconstructing your desires into their core elements is an effective way to understand what you really want. For example, if you wanted to get a promotion at work it would help to understand that the key driver is gaining more responsibility and having greater say in decisions. It’s also a good idea to understand the rewards and benefits of reaching your goal. This will provide the motivation you need to stick with it, even when things get tough.
Some people find it useful to write their goals down and keep them somewhere they can be seen on a daily basis, like a vision board or pinned to the wall in their office. Visualization is another powerful tool for keeping your goals top of mind. It is well understood that where focus goes, energy flows, so the more you are able to visualize your goals the better your chances of success will be.
It’s also important to consider how realistic your goals are. You don’t want to set yourself up for failure or cause yourself unnecessary stress. This can be done by examining your existing workload and other variables that may impact on your ability to meet your target, such as available training or support from colleagues.
For example, if you are a sales person and increasing your unit sales by 8 percent isn’t realistic given your current performance and workload you might need to look at other factors, such as your availability for training or the support of colleagues, before setting a higher goal.
You can take a practical approach to goal setting by starting with a small number of goals that are easy to accomplish. Research has shown that this can lead to more positive emotions than trying to tackle too much all at once. It’s also a good idea, if possible, to set goals that align with your personal values.
Define Your Goals
Research shows that when goals are clear, they lead to improved performance. Achieving a goal gives people a sense of accomplishment and provides motivation to continue working toward the same objectives. When goals are unclear or vague, people often become discouraged and stop work. Having goals that are specific, challenging and time bound help people stay focused on their work.
Developing an effective goal setting process is essential for ensuring that employees have goals to strive for in the workplace. It’s important to allow each team member to express themselves during the goal-setting process and ensure that everyone feels like their ideas are heard.
It is also important that the goals developed are not just personally motivated but also tied back to company success in some way. For instance, if an employee is tasked with increasing sales by 8 percent, it may be necessary to look at company history and current workload to determine if this is realistic or not.
Achieving a goal can have many outcomes, including improved productivity, increased motivation and positive emotions, greater academic achievement, better organizational behavior, and improved cognitive functioning. Having a goal can also help you prioritize your activities and prevent you from engaging in goal-irrelevant behaviors, such as consuming unhealthy foods or staying sedentary.
Framing goals – the way in which you perceive your goals and how they are framed – can also influence your performance. For example, individuals who identify a situation as a challenge perform better under difficult performance goal conditions than those who identify the same situations as threats.
The importance of having a strong belief in your ability to attain a goal can also increase or decrease your commitment to it. Individuals with high self-efficacy are more likely to pursue challenging goals, while those who are less confident in their abilities will often lower the level of the goal or abandon it altogether (Locke, 1996).
One of the most important aspects of a successful goal setting process is that it should include frequent feedback. This will allow you to see whether your current strategy is delivering the desired results and provide you with an opportunity to reassess and redefine your goals, as needed.
Make Your Goals SMART
A big part of goal setting is defining specific behaviors that are measurable, achievable and realistic. Using the SMART acronym for goal setting can help ensure that your goals are both challenging and within reach.
The first step in making your goals measurable is to determine how you will measure progress toward them. This will usually involve establishing a clear timeline or benchmark to achieve your desired outcome. Using a SMART goal statement, which looks like this: “My goal is to [quantifiable objective] by [target date]. I will accomplish this goal by [achievable actions] and by [time-related parameters] in order to achieve [result or benefit].”
Your goal should also be realistic, meaning that it is both attainable and appropriate for your current situation. This requires taking an honest look at what you are capable of and what resources you have available to work with. Choosing a lofty goal that is out of reach will only lead to discouragement and failure. For example, saying you want to learn to speak Spanish well is a worthy objective, but putting aside two hours a day to practice is probably not realistic for most people.
A realistic goal should be based on the current status of your skills and knowledge. It should also consider any potential obstacles that could stand in your way. Identifying barriers to achievement is an essential component of goal setting, which can be addressed by employing the 5 whys framework. This asks you to delve deeply into your desires by asking yourself why you want to do something five times.
A SMART goal should have an end date, which gives you and your team a deadline to stay on track. Without a deadline, projects can drag on and become unfocused. Adding an end date to your goal will keep your team motivated and avoid scope creep, which is the tendency of a project to expand in directions other than the original plan. If you’re not sure how to set an end date, consider using a goal-setting software program that creates project roadmaps based on the SMART model.
Set A Timeline
Once you have a clear vision of the goal or goals that you want to achieve, it is time to set up an appropriate timeline for each one. Creating a timeline for your goals will help you track and measure your progress, which in turn will help keep you motivated to reach your final goal. When setting up a timeline, be sure to make it SMART by making it specific, measurable, attainable and realistic. Having a timeline will also allow you to develop the steps needed to achieve your goal, so it is important that it is as detailed and specific as possible.
When establishing your timeline, it is also important to consider the possibility of obstacles that may interfere with reaching your goals. It is always good to have a plan B, so you can be prepared for these setbacks and still meet your deadline. You can also consider making your timeline a bit flexible by giving yourself the opportunity to adjust your plan as you see fit.
While establishing your timeline, be sure that it aligns with your overall purpose, values and passion. This way, you will be more likely to commit to your goals and work diligently toward them. Lastly, be sure that your goal is not too high or unrealistically ambitious. You can easily set yourself up for failure if you choose to aim too high.
It is also a good idea to schedule regular check-ins to determine if your goal setting strategy is working for you or not. This will help you stay on track and will give you the information that you need to make any adjustments. During these sessions, you can assess your current progress and compare it to the previous one. You can also use these opportunities to discuss any challenges that you may be having and how best to overcome them.
As a wellness professional, using goal setting with your clients is a great way to encourage and motivate them to make positive lifestyle changes. With a telehealth platform like Healthie, you can create a personalized client journey that includes convenient food, lifestyle, and activity journaling to help your clients achieve their goals. Start your free trial today to learn more about how Healthie can improve the care that you provide.