Goal Setting

Goal setting helps you to create and live the life that you desire. It helps you to decide and focus on what it is that you really want to achieve and to take action to get the desired result. It gives you clarity and direction because if you don't know where you are going, you'll never know when you get there.

My goal setting procedure is as follows:

• Decide on what I would like to achieve in each area of my life
• Decide on when I would like to achieve each target
• Visualise, using all my senses, each target as if I have already achieved it.
• Use positive affirmations to stay on the path to my success and to neutralise negative thoughts about my ability to succeed.
• Meditate every morning and every evening. Before each meditation session, I completely relax, visualise each goal and mentally say my affirmations.

Determine your Goals

Your goals should not be restricted to one area of your life. Have a written goal for each one of the following and any other areas you might be interested in:

• Health
• Career
• Finance
• Lifestyle
• Spiritual Development
• Personal Development

For each area, write down what you would like to achieve regardless of whether you think it is achievable or not.

Timing

You should decide how long it will take you to achieve each goal or target. Against each one, write down the estimated time for achievement.

Action Plan

For each target break down its timing into shorter periods and decide what you will achieve in each period. If my dream was to become a proficient guitar player within 3 years then I would do the following:

• Find out about guitar playing courses within 1 month
• Enrol on a guitar course within 3 months
• Buy an appropriate guitar within 6 months
• Link up and gain experience playing with other musicians within a year
• Complete intermediate guitar course in 2 years
• Complete advanced guitar course in 3 years

This clarifies my intentions and gives them direction. It is also an action plan. I would review this action plan every month acknowledging what I have achieved and revising what I have not. Should I decide, at a later stage, that I would prefer to learn a different instrument then I would change my goal and revise my action plan.

Visualising your Goals

Creative visualization is a powerful tool that goes hand-in-hand with goal setting. It places you in a success mind frame. For each goal, write down what you would see, hear, feel, smell or taste when you realise you've been successful. Make these as vivid as possible and then, on a daily basis, combine all these senses to vividly imagine having achieved your result. You will find yourself suddenly noticing opportunities that have always been there but that you had never seen before.

Further Reading

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