With success comes the sense of fulfillment that you enjoy as you record achieved milestones while watching your dreams take shape. This is only possible when you have outlined attainable goals and reasonable expectations.
Your dream can seem pretty big and sometimes intimidating that you don't even know how or when to start but big ocean dreams are made up of small drops of water that have to be consistent.
Envision Your Success
What is the 'End Goal' and what does achieving it look like to you? When you are building anything, it is important to picture what constitutes success for you. Write down your aspirations and expectations before starting, it helps your focus and drives you till that which you desire is achieved.
Set S.M.A.R.T Goals
Using this age-long and tested tool, you're able to set your goals that help you to focus your efforts on the right actions and increase the chances of achieving them.
S-Specific goals are clear and succinctly outlines what you're hoping to achieve. To set specific goals, it is important to answer the following important questions.
State what you hope to achieve. Do you want to release a new collection? Start a business? Launch a book?
Would you like the goal achieved in 2 weeks, 6 months or 3 years? State when you want to achieve the goal.
State why you want to achieve the goal. Your reasons can be personal development, business growth and more.
If you will need people to work with you towards achieving your goal, it's important to highlight them. Would you need to hire staff? Collaborate with people? Who are the key people that will help you achieve this goal?
M-Measurable goals are trackable goals. When your goal is measurable, you're able to track your progress, assessing how close or far away you are from achieving your goals. To set measurable goals, you should know the following.
How much progress would you have achieved in a specific period? For example, is your goal to record a 70% revenue increase in 6 months?
What metrics are you measuring your achievement? How do you know if you have achieved your goal?
A-Achievable goals are realistic goals. It's important to be realistic when setting goals, otherwise, you may be setting yourself for failure before you even start. Consider the resources that are accessible to you, time, financial constraints and more to determine if your goals are achievable. Answer the following questions to determine if your goal is achievable.
Do I have everything I need to achieve my goals? If not, are they accessible to me from elsewhere? If for instance, you need funds to start a new business, can you afford to do it alone or would you need to get investors on board?
Considering time, finance and other such constraints, can you realistically achieve these goals?
R-Relevant goals are important goals that make a difference. When setting your goals, make sure that they truly matter and significantly improve your life and career. Ensure that you answer the following questions.
Why is this goal important to you?
Does it align with your long term plans?
How does it advance to your long term plans?
T-Time bound goals have a timeframe within which they have to be achieved. Timelines and deadlines help you stay focused and motivated. Time bound questions answer the following questions.
State when you'd like to achieve your goals.
State how long it will take you to achieve them?
Outline Your Actions
Once a goal is clearly defined, the next thing to do is outline your plan of actions. Write down every step that will take you closer to your goal, highlight the tasks or actions involved then set milestones for each step. This helps you to take stock as you go and you're able to celebrate little wins.
Your dream can seem pretty big and sometimes intimidating that you don't even know how or when to start but big ocean dreams are made up of small drops of water that have to be consistent. Once goals have been set, it's important to break them into bite-size goals of the bigger piece of cake. For example, if your dream is to launch your clothing line in 1 year, break this big goal down into monthly, then weekly goals. We find that weekly smaller goals within larger goals take us closer to the end goal without even knowing.
Curate Your Environment To Motivate You
One of the most important things to do when you're working towards a goal is to surround yourself with things that motivate you. Curate a mood board that shows what your end goal is, if needed, set up a dedicated workspace with objects that inspire you, sticky notes that encourage you etc. You can also make your mood boards on apps such as Pinterest, Canva, Evernote and more so that you can access it on the go to make changes as needed or as fresh ideas come to you.
In addition, follow social media accounts of businesses or people that have successfully executed similar goals and remind you of the direction you intend to take. Also, attend virtual and in-person events where you can network with like-minded people that have similar interests or vision as you.
Review Your Goals
As you tick off each step or milestones, review your goals and action plans to ensure that you're on the right path and on schedule too. When you routinely review your goals, you can quickly tell when things aren't going according to plan and as such, you retrace your steps to do the right thing.
Review your goals to measure how far off or close you are to achieving them. If things aren't going according to plan, do not be afraid to change strategies or adjust your expectations, timelines etc. As you review, do not be too hard on yourself if it seems like you're far from your goal, just consistently put in work and stay focused on the end goal.
I really needed this. Thank you for breaking it down.