As a speaker in the area of goal setting and achievement I am often asked my opinion on what I believe are the keys to reaching one’s goal and objectives. While the answer to this question alone can take up a half-day seminar, allow me to spend the next few paragraphs covering the top ten.

However, before I get started, please realize the one thing that above all launches you towards your goals faster than all the top ten lists you will ever hear or read is consistency. All of your goals, dreams and aspirations are going to require not only effort but also a sustained effort. The best analogy I can give you is pushing a car. Most of you during the course of your life may have had to push a car that ran out of gas or broke down. You strained your muscles to get that car in motion. The sweat poured from your bow and finally the wheels began to turn. Once the 1200 pound car was in motion, the pushing became a bit easier. All you had to do is continue to put forth a little effort and you’d be at the gas station shortly. (Barring any hills of course). But if you would at any time stop pushing, even for a moment, you would have to put forth EXTRA effort again to get those wheels rolling.

Achieving your goals is much like pushing a car; you cannot work hard for a day or two and then stop. Pick up your goal again later and work for a day or two and then stop again. You need to put for the consistent effort that will get those wheels rolling. Then once you have that 1200-pound monster rolling forward at a good speed all you need to do is keep putting forth a little consistent effort. With this type of consistency you will reach your goals far faster than with the start and stop method so many people practice these days.

Here are ten of the ways you can focus that consistent effort to get even more out of the effort you put forth. I have found these ‘techniques’ very useful and honestly believe that if you put them to work for you that you too will reap their rewards.

1. Write your primary goals down. There is something that happens when you put pen to paper and write out your goals. It seems to activate your mind and your goals become ‘written’ into your sub-conscious, making your more aware of situations, people and events that will bring you to your goals faster.

2. Re-write your top tens goals daily. Each day re-write your top ten goals without looking at your previous lists. This process accomplishes two things.
a. Deeply imbeds your high priority goal into your sub-conscious.
b. Weeds out those goals that are really important TODAY. Those goals that are not truly high on your long-term priority list will not consistently remain in your top ten lists. This will help you focus on what is truly important rather than those whims all fall victim to.

3. Narrow your focus – by focusing on only a few goals at a time. Pick those goals that are truly yours and your hearts deepest desire. Then focus all your efforts like a laser beam upon their completion. Take the top ten and zero in on those three to five goals that mean the most to you. The three to five goals that you know you have the deepest desire to achieve.

4. Develop an action plan. Once you have determined what you want to accomplish you must now begin to lay out how you will go about accomplishing it. What skills do you need to develop? What contacts do you need to make? What steps do you need to take to get your from where you are today to where you are trying to get? Be aware that your plans may change as you go along gaining new insights and information. But you need to have a plan in order to know what comes next. The knowledge of what your going to do next will do wonders to keep you focused.

5. Envision your goal already achieved. The great achievers of yesterday and today all had one key-ability – the ability to see their goal as already accomplished. Be detailed in your vision of your goal; feel the pride of its accomplishment. What will your friends and associates say once you have reached your goal? The more detail and emotion you can insert into the vision of your accomplishment the more that vision will drive you towards its accomplishment.

6. Empower yourself with affirmations. When take the time daily to write down your top ten goals, write them as present tense personal affirmations. I.e. “I weigh 160 pounds,” rather than “I want to lose weight.” Or “I earn $10,000 a month,” rather than writing “I want to earn more money.” Then read these goals aloud. Stand tall; hold your shoulders straight and your head high. Then in a firm positive voice read your goals aloud. This will ignite the passions and pride within you. The passion to achieve your goal and the pride of what it will feel like to reach it.

7. Take daily action, no matter how small. Do not let a day go by that you do not take some sort of step towards your goal. This is where your consistency will pay big. Do not let the 1200-pound car stop rolling or your will have to push even harder just to get it moving again. Break your large goals down into smaller tasks and work one those tasks daily until complete.

8. Track your progress. You cannot effectively see that which you do not track, and you cannot change that which you cannot see. Create ways to see how far you are towards reaching your goal. Create charts and timelines so that you will see when you are falling behind or pulling ahead – make adjustments to your plans as necessary. A program like Microsoft Project is great for this, but use anything that will motivate you by allowing you to see where are along your road to success.

9. Celebrate Milestones. Another great reason to track your progress is so that you can set and celebrate your milestones. All large goals are made-up of smaller goals and milestones that you need to recognize and pat yourself on the back once you complete them. As you reach each of the milestones, applaud yourself. Pause to feel the accomplishment. As you savor this triumph you will believe more strongly that you will in fact reach your goal.

10. Network and surround yourself with a group of like-minded people. Surround yourself with those that will not only encourage your accomplishments but challenge you towards them as well. None of us will accomplish any big goal alone. You are going to need assistance from others.

Any time that I have put all ten of these techniques to work for me at the same time – I have reached my goal far faster than I could have imagined. Any one of these alone are a way to reach your goal faster but I would highly encourage you to put all ten of these steps in action today. If you do I know I will be hearing about your success in the very near future.

Think successfully & take action!
Tracy Brinkmann

http://www.SuccessAtlas.com Tracy Brinkmann is an goal setting and success counselor. Through his company Success Atlas, he provides goal-setting, motivational & educational material, & training via live presentations as well as digital/audio products. Sign up for his free e-Zine http://www.SuccessAtlas.com

If you have read more than one of my articles, I’m sure you may have come away with the notion that I am big on goal setting. You would be correct in this assumption. I have done a number of presentations on this subject. During these presentations I have noticed that there are two overriding views on goal setting. The first, is of those that are either new to goal setting, or yet haven’t tried it. I have their full attention in the presentation when I get to setting and achieving your goals. The second overriding view is of those that tell themselves “Goal setting hah! I’ve tried that and it didn’t work for me…” In discussions with these folks I have found that the majority of them agree on the positive impacts that goal setting has. Most of them have even gone so far as list out their major goals, however that is where they stopped.

To be a goal setter, and more importantly a goal achiever, you not only have to have a written set of goals for you life (business and/or personal), but, you also have to have a written plan of action towards their achievement. In a recent Success Atlas article I noted that I have an article on goal setting. The many requests I received for that article has prompted this more in-depth look at goal setting and achievement. In other words, you asked for it you got it, Goal setting 101.

The goal setting process really starts with a self-evaluation of sorts. Sitting down and asking questions like, “What do I really want out of life?” “What do I want to accomplish, become, have be or do?” Open your mind and your heart. Sit down and fill out a desire journal. Fill it with all the dreams, aspirations and desires that lie in the recesses of who you are and who you want to become. Don’t hold back, write everything down! Dream like a child the evening before his/her birthday or the evening before Christmas. Dream like anything and everything is possible. Because unless it is legal, immoral, or unethical, I would highly encourage you to believe that it is possible.

Decide what it is you want in each area of your life: Personal, Family, Professional, Financial, Physical and Mental. Don’t be vague either, if what you want is money (financial) then define how much you want and by when. Specifics are necessary for you to have a plan. Being clear in what it is you want will cause about 80% of your success. You can not plan for the goal “I want more money.” You can, however, plan for the goal “I want to earn $250,000.00 annually by the end of 2003. The more specific your goals are the easier they are to build a plan for. If as your reading this you are thinking “I do not know what I want to be, do or have.” Then set a goal to find out.

Write down your goals. Don’t type them (not at first anyway) sit down and print them out, clearly, specifically and in measurable terms. This moves them from a desire, wish or intangible dream to an item on paper. Something you can see, touch, and relate to.

Okay now you know what you want – next you will need to identify what skills and knowledge you will require in order to accomplish your goal. Ask yourself what knowledge you need to gain in order to speed-up the successful accomplishment of you goal. Ask yourself what skill(s) you need to make the greatest positive impact on getting to your goal. There is always at least one skill or key piece of knowledge that is holding you back – otherwise you would already have accomplished the goal. Identify what it is and go out there and get it! If you are not able to figure it out for yourself then ask your spouse, your friends, your boss, a mentor, or any other person that you believe would know.

There are some things that you can do alone, however to achieve significant goals in your life you will need help. List all the people, groups and organizations that you will need to interact with to reach your goal. Write them all down then prioritize them. As you are going through this process consider the ways you can be of assistance to them. Everyone’s favorite radio station is WIIFM – What’s in it for me? So knowing in advance what you can do to assist them will payoff in faster results on getting their assistance in your goal achievement. Think through some win-win negotiations. Remember the more you give the more you get. As Zig Ziglar reminds us “You can have everything you want if you just help enough others get what they want.” As well as those that can help you, I would also suggest listing out those that could hinder your progress as well. Forewarned is forearmed.

Obstacles – we have all encountered them, and we will continue to encounter them during our attempt to reach any goal of worth. If there were no obstacles along the way everyone would have already accomplished all of their goals – you included. List all the obstacles, barriers and impediments to your goal. Why are you not at your goal already? Write down each and every answer to that question. This will allow you to find the bottleneck to your success. Once you are aware of what is holding you back, apply all your resources (which you listed out already) towards the removing or overcoming of this blockage. More often than not, the removal of a single primary blockage will uproot and resolve many other smaller barriers to your goal. This can help you make quantum leaps towards reaching that goal.

Now that you have this valuable collection of information you need to map out a plan to utilize it and accomplish your goal. Successful business men do not set out on a course of action without a plan, you wouldn’t go on vacation without some planning and most do not even get married with out hours and hours (one hundred or more at times) of planning. These days far too many spend one hundred hours, or more, planning the wedding. Yet, they spend no time at all planning their marriage or their life. You can change that in your life. Lay out the key points you have put together thus far and develop a plan of attack. This plan can start with the steps to gain the knowledge and skills you need to gain. Steps to get you in contact with the people and organizations you need to help you along your road to success. Lay out all the steps you know you need to take to reach your goal. Organize then by priority, then sequence them. As you go through this process you will be motivated to take actions against the first step on your plan. Completing the first step will further motivate you to take action on the next step and so on.

Now that you have a plan you need to set a deadline. A goal is a dream with an achieve-by date. Setting a deadline develops and intensifies your desire to attain your goals. Don’t scare yourself with large goals or underestimate how long it will take to accomplish them. Instead break down large goals into small milestones with deadlines. These milestones will act like a forcing system for you unconscious mind. They will motivate and drive you towards your goal. Having deadlines for your goals will keep them on your mind. Making you more conscious to the situations and people in your life that can aid you on your road to success. Set your deadlines as realistically as possible. Do not over or under estimate them be honest with yourself. You could always reset deadlines. The key point I want to drive home here is that you MUST have a deadline to shoot for.

You have the plan – now what? As I mentioned early in this article most people agree on the positive impacts that goal setting have. Most of them have even gone so far as listing out their major goals, however that is where they stopped. Here is where you are going to act differently and succeed in your goal achievement. The key word here is ACT. Take action on your plan! Do not procrastinate! The clock is ticking and your deadline is inching closer with each passing second. Do something each and everyday towards the accomplishment of your goals. Work with all your gusto on the first step of your plan until it is either completed or until you can make no further progress on it. Then move to the next step, coming back to those incomplete previous steps as soon as you can move them forward to their completion. Keep moving, keep working and keep taking your action steps every day, do not stop. Anyone that has ever had to push a car will tell you the hardest part is getting it moving. Once your moving it will still take effort, but it takes far less effort than if you stop pushing and have to start moving all over again. Taking consistent daily action will not only move you quickly towards your goal but it will reinforce in your subconscious mind that you can and will attain your goal. Giving you a positive attitude towards it.

Two additional things you can do you that will steel your resolve to accomplish your goals are to visualize your goal and resolve to never give up. Visualize your goal continually or as often as possible during every waking moment. Your subconscious mind does not differentiate between your visualization and reality. So visualize your goal as already attained. View it in you mind’s eye with every detail possible. Feel the pride, joy and fulfillment that will come with reaching a significant goal. Visualization will also make you aware of those situations and resources in your life that you will need to reach your goal. Finally resolve to never give up in your quest to reach your goal. Attack it with a dogged determination. Let the words of the Capcom commander in Apollo 13 ring in your ears; “Failure is not an option!” When you encounter barriers and obstacles do not ask yourself what will happen if or when I fail. Instead think positive, then develop a plan action. Ask yourself “How can I get over, around or though this barrier and reach my goal!”

Everyone has goals, I have them you have them even a child has goals. These goals can be keeping your job, getting a promotion, and the child has a goal of passing a test, getting that much desired toy they saw on television or showing mommy and daddy how much they are loved. The difference between these goals and the goals of the top achievers is focus. Peak achievers go through processes similar to the one I have laid out here to focus their actions on what they want to be, have or do. They design their goals with a mission and this mission is success. Follow this process and you too can rise to the levels of those you have watched in awe.

Think Successfully & Take Action.
Tracy

http://www.SuccessAtlas.com

(C) Tracy Brinkmann 2000-2005 all rights reserved

http://www.SuccessAtlas.com Tracy Brinkmann is an goal setting and success counselor. Through his company Success Atlas, he provides goal-setting, motivational & educational material, & training via live presentations as well as digital/audio products. Sign up for his free e-Zine http://www.SuccessAtlas.com

Have you ever made up your mind to do something, did it and then had disappointing, lackluster results?

Well, you’re definitely not alone in that.

Recently, I came to realize that there are people who make up their minds to do something and take "Action" right away, only to become defeated and never look back and stick with their idea. Tjhey don’t achieve the results that they desire and self improvement and sucess seem a distant dream.

You see, the problem is not necessarily with the idea but rather in their need for immediate gratification and taking "Action" right away. Immediate gratification has become so inherent in our society that even "Action" has become a problem just like fast food and diet pills.

Sure, there are entire billion dollar industries built on fulfilling the need for immediate gratification but, sometimes the cost is too high and often it is more than just money.

I’ve personally seen men with reputable and thriving businesses make such immediate gratification "Action" decisions and lose the trust and money of the customers that they worked years to acquire. They ruin the success they worked hard to achieve.

Our personal lives and businesses are not the only things that are affected by such decisions. Our customers and family are too.

In the end there is really only one course of "Action" that should be taken and it is often not even considered. It is "EFFECTIVE ACTION" that makes all of the difference in our lives and businesses. Strange?

Effective Action can only be taken and applied when we use the SMART Goal Setting Principle with a twist.

SMART = Specific + Measurable + Achievable + Realistic + Timely

Specific: A goal needs to be exact and clearly stated. Vague and general terms are not goals. Your brain needs to focus on a specific target.

Measurable: How do you know when the goal is completed? When stating your goal you should state how you are going to measure when it is complete. If you don’t know the measurement then you will never know that you have achieved it.

Achievable: Your goal must be attainable. If you have not learned what you need to know in order to attain your goal, then you must either learn it and then apply or find someone to assist you that already knows what you don’t. Think about past achievements or failures in your life and apply some of the lessons that you learned.

Realistic: Being realistic is a bit tricky. What may be realistic for you may not be realistic for others. You can see this truth throughout your life. Keep your goal within boundaries that you set and upgrade how realistic it is as you get closer or achieve more.

Timely: Keep a specific time of day for working towards your goal. In addition to that, keep a timeline of when you intend on completing each portion of your goal. Keep track of each item completed and when. Tracking is an essential element in achievement.

The twist in taking Effective Action is in the asking of specific questions. The questions are not asked of others but they rather are asked of you!

For example, if you wanted to lose weight and didn’t have a lot time to exercise; your question would be:

Q - What is the most time efficient or effective way for me to lose weight through exercise?

A - The most time efficient way would be through interval training or sprint training type of activites that involve little time and maximum effort, which result in maximum fat loss.

Thanks to the information age and your own subconcious mind, the answers are available but you just have to ask them.

Effective Action involves a little planning, thought, and question asking but, the results will be available as proof that this method is better than just taking plain "Action."

So in the end it is "Effective Action" that gets the results you want and they are not always immediate. Self Improvement and Success are guaranteed!

Copyright 2005 Rasheed Ali

Rasheed Ali was once homeless and penniless on the streets of New York and is now helping to change the lives of THOUSANDS of people around the world with his innovative coaching, mentoring and newsletters. He is the worlds first Solution Coach and 80/20 Mentor. You can learn more about him and his newsletters at http://www.SleepYourWayToRiches.com

You’ve heard it before, "The key to succeeding is make sure you write down your goals plan and review them daily!" The problem is the onus is on you to remember to review them and if you are able to review more than once a day, you’re better than most.

But is 1,2 or 3 times daily enough to make them happen. Is it often enough to engrain with certainty, your goal objectives will be met? If you’re truly serious about your goals and achieving them, why would you even want to leave that to chance?

Why not put your daily goal review on autopilot. Imagine having your goals fed 1000’s of times a day to your subconscious mind unobtrusively while all the while you’re working, typing, playing or surfing on your computer.

If you want to have the most impact, you have to engage the other 5/6ths of your brain ( your subconscious) to work harmoniously with your conscious will ( 1/6th of your brain power).

Today, we have the technology to do precisely that. Open up your mind to these new proven techniques and watch your goals transform and gravitate to your desires. Your goals deserve everything you have in your arsenal to make them happen.

Rich Douglas is a self improvement newsletter columnist and the creator of an amazing software program that will recondition your mind to positively impact over 31 key areas in your life. His simple as pie approach means it works unobtrusively while you’re in front of your computer, working, surfing, typing or playing a game. Click Here Now ==> http://www.easymotivation.com Click Here Now ==>http://www.easymotivation.com/familyeditionfull.html

BHA - Be Held Accountable: If no one else knows what your goal is, it’s all too easy to rationalize (rational lies) why you are not making progress toward what you want. When you tell someone else what you are shooting for, you have added two very important benefits to the mix - someone to hold your hand and encourage you, and someone to hold your feet to the fire when you need it.

SRA - Start Right Now: One of the best small predictors of goal success is to do something toward your goal the same day you set a goal, before your head hits the pillow that night. So start right now, by doing one small thing toward your goal. Strong momentum is necessary to see you through, and doing something right now begins to build momentum.

SED - Something Each Day: Doing something each day toward your goal, whether big or small, continues to build momentum, creates a firm new habit in your life, and makes large goals manageable a piece at a time.

WYW- What You Want: "Discipline is remembering what you want." - David Campbell. It takes a sustained effort to meet most worthwhile goals. A sustained effort always takes discipline, and remembering what it is that you want helps keep you disciplined and on track.

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