How to Accomplish the Goals You Set (Part 3 of 3)

Setting and achieving goals can be a difficult yet rewarding endeavor.

If you’ve already taken the five steps discussed in part 2 of this 3-part series - identify your goals, set a deadline for each one, identify the obstacles, develop a plan of action, and list the benefits of attaining each goal - you are well on your way to achieving them.

Now you must execute them, and the following steps can greatly help you stay motivated and on track towards achieving your goals and making your dreams come true.

Keep Goals Front of Mind

It’s one thing to set excellent goals, but quite another to execute them. If we write our goals down and then forget about them, our odds of accomplishing them is greatly diminished.

We must revisit our written goals on a regular basis. Daily is ideal but find a routine that works well for you to schedule time regularly to look at your written goals.

This is the first step towards accomplishing them.

Track Your Progress

Tracking progress towards goals is important because it allows you to measure your progress, identify areas that need improvement, and stay motivated.

Tracking progress can also allow you to set realistic expectations for achieving your goals, as you can see how far you have come and adjust your plans accordingly.

Additionally, tracking progress helps ensure that your progress aligns with your overall goal, as you can quickly determine if you have gone off track.

Finally, tracking progress gives you an objective record of your efforts that can be used as evidence for success and motivation.

Accountability

Because nobody can force us to do anything, they can’t truly “hold us” accountable. However, we certainly can hold ourselves accountable to the actions we have committed to doing and can ask others to help us.

One of the best ways to do so is to regularly report your activity and progress to somebody who cares - your accountability partner or group or partners.

As the late Mr. Pearson, who studied under Albert Einstein stated, “when performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported back, the rate of improvement accelerates.” (Pearson’s Law)

Not only should we track our progress, but it’s also helpful to report it to others.

Reassess and Adjust

Did you know that an Apollo rocket on its way to the moon is only on course two or three percent of the time? At least 97% of the time it takes to get from the earth to the moon, it's off course. Put another way, for every half hour the ship is in flight, it is on course for less than sixty seconds.

Without making course corrections, it will miss the target destination, the moon, by many miles.

The reason it arrives at its destination is because they are constantly making adjustments to its heading, correcting its course.

Our goals are similar. As time passes, it is also important to reassess and make adjustments in order to stay on course and reach our goals. It may be adjustments to our actual goals themselves, their timelines, the quantity of activity needed to reach them on time, or all the above, in order to stay on course and reach them.

Re-examine goals and resources frequently and be ready and willing to make changes if needed.

Never Give Up

Finally, no matter how far you’ve come, or how much further you have to go, never give up! Staying committed and motivated will ensure your success in reaching your goals.

If you’d like to hear the most recent interview on my “Life's Hard, Succeed Anyway” podcast with Joel Merritt, who overcame obesity, alcoholism, and depression, you can listen and subscribe here.

Until next time,