Goal Setting: A Different Method  

Goal setting is an important aspect of anyone’s life. It can be said that attempting to set goals to be daunting while keeping them and acting upon them can be even more challenging. While there are goal-setting forms that do work, taking a different approach to goal setting can also be encouraging and enlightening.

Keeping it simple, let’s look at how to set goals with a different approach in the form of questions, using a six-step model:

What – What is it that you want to do? Be precise, think about the result is that you want to achieve.

When – Set a date. When do you want to achieve this? Think about breaking down the goal and when you want to achieve each step by. For example, if you want to connect with a certain person on LinkedIn to discuss potential opportunities to collaborate or that you want to lose 10 lbs within 2 months, think about dates and steps to take to get your goal mapped out.

Where – The where is clear. Where is this going to happen geographically, at work, school, or home in your personal life? In some instances, you might plan on moving somewhere else, in this case, work the where into your plan.

How – Break-it-down. This is the most important part of a goal because without a breakdown of the steps you need to achieve to get to your goal. You have a bigger chance of not following through if you don’t know where you are going to start. You will need to define the steps for progress and where you are going to end up. For example, when breaking it down, write out the smaller components needed for achieving the goal, give them dates and determine what you will need to achieve these goals.

Who – When considering the ‘who’ aspect of goal setting think about who you are involved with, who can you work with to help you get there, and who do you want to be when the goal is set and achieved. This part of the goal-setting process is dual in the fact that you are thinking about who you can work with and how this goal will help you succeed in where you want to be. If there is someone you want to work with, reach out to them via email or LinkedIn. Start to build a relationship with that person.

Of note, when you are thinking about who you want to work with, always remember that building a relationship is a process where you need to make sure that you are also giving back to the person you want to work with!

Why – Your why! The most important part of your goal. It is important to remember why you wanted to work towards your goal in the first place. When you get discouraged and aren’t progressing in your goal as fast as you would have liked to, remember to revisit your way to remind yourself why you set out on pursuing this goal in the first place.