It’s been a while since I talked about goals, here and here, but since I have been recently talking about accountability, goals are a big part of that. When built and used properly, goals can be a great accountability partner to help you build your business and make sure that you are on track for personal success.
I am not going to go into how to set goals or why goals are important because there a ton of great resources to help you with that already. The problem that we sometimes have is actually doing something with our goals once we have them set. So how do we actually make effective use of our goals?
The first thing to do once your goals are set is to set up some milestones for reviewing your goals. Initially, I would make this at least a once a week activity to get into the habit of looking at them. This review will ensure that you are thinking about it and if adjustments are needed, you can make them quickly. Looking at your goals frequently will greatly enhance the chances that you will achieve success.
Next, take your goals and post them all over the place. In your journal, your car, on your bathroom mirror. Anywhere that they will be available for review. I have shrunk mine down and have them all over the place. The more you look at them, the more real they will become.
Send your goals out to a select few people that you think can encourage you along the way. If you can’t afford coaching, the next best thing is to surround yourself with a group of people that care about you and want to see you succeed. Sending your goals to other people also makes it more real too as you have now publicly declared it. No more playing small for you.
Using these tools in conjunction with well placed milestones for your goals will help to ensure that you keep yourself accountable and that you are working towards your goals. If you aren’t utilizing goals in your life, it’s not too late to fix this. Don’t worry about the fact that we are midway through the year. Make the second half of your year even more productive and get them set today.
How have you used goals for productivity? If you don’t have goals, what keeps you from setting them? What other tools have helped you be more accountable?