Simple Guide to Successfully Setting GoalsHome » Goal Setting Tips » Successfully Setting GoalsOne of our contributors shares her experience on how you can start successfully setting goals. I set goals all the time with varying amounts of success. Sometimes I achieve them, sometimes I fail, sometimes the goal just sits there staring at me as if I were some sort of idiot for even presuming to make it. Even with uneven success, I still make goals. And here’s how I do it successfully. A goal is an achievable target, often with intermediate steps, and a definable endpoint. I suppose making a million dollars is a goal for some, but my goals tend to be more pointed. For example, one of my current goals is to have the final edits on my current novel ready to pitch at the Willamette Writer’s Conference in August. Be SpecificMy goal is a good one because it is very specific. It tells me what I have to do, what I have to do, and when I have to do it. I could just write, “Pitch a novel this year” but there are some problems there. Which novel? I have three in progress. When? I can fudge “this year” six ways from Tuesday. Is a year 365 days from today? Is it December 31, 2009? And I don’t even want to think about where to pitch it.Set a DeadlineAgents and publishers in my genre will be in my hometown in August. Pitching a book to a person is better than pitching it by mail. So, by August 2009 I have to have the book ready to pitch. Being a former journalist, I tend to work best with concrete deadlines. Now I have one.Make It AttainableI’m sure I can reach this goal. This particular book is in final edits, has been read by several readers, and all I have to do is go through their notes and make recommended changes. It might take me a week to do this. Since it is now early June, I should have no problem fitting this into the schedule between now and August.Takeaway Lesson: If you want to begin successfully setting goals, remember to set SMART goals. MotivationI want to see this book published. It’s good, it’s the first in a series, and the second book is almost complete. There are a lot of reasons it should get published, or at least get valuable feedback that will help get it published.Takeaway Lesson: Without a strong desire and motivation you will find it hard to achieve your goals, take a look at some motivation techniques you can use to push yourself to achieve your goals. Put It All TogetherI need goals, and motivation to achieve them. But this goal wouldn’t have come together if a friend hadn’t told me that publishers in my somewhat obscure genre will be here in August.Getting the book published has been floating around in my mind for over a year now, but the thing that got me moving was a combination of all these things. I was finally able to put an achievable goal, with a solid deadline, good motivation, and specific details together. Now I can get started because I know where I’m going. I’ll let you know how it goes. Takeaway Lesson: Don’t let procrastination hold you back, you must learn how to overcome procrastination if you want to achieve your goals. Tips for Successfully Setting Goals - Contributed by Susan L. Return from tips for successfully setting goals to find more goal setting resources
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