How to focus on Goal Setting

What better post to finish this year and begin the new year with than a post to talk about goal setting!

Life is one of the most extreme obstacle courses. It is about getting through this obstacle course to your desired goal and many people seem to have a problem with this. It is completely normal to encounter obstacles in the pursuit of your goal. You could look at it as a test to see if you’re truly committed…

However, when these obstacles start to become a nuisance to the point of almost putting a stop to your goal(s); or worse, making one completely abandon a goal, that person gets to take action and think things through.

Firstly, here are 7 Reasons Goal Setting Is Important:

1. To give direction to life
2. To make sure we are the one choosing the direction of our life — not others, not fate, not the media, etc.
3. To motivate
4. To make sure we get what we want from life
5. To save time
6. To reduce stress
7. To give a sense of accomplishment

While it can be fun to live without direction in the short-term, in the long-term human beings are wired to need a purpose and direction. Goals give a sense of direction and purpose to life.

It is often easy to let others set our direction for us. We take a job because family or friends point us in that direction and then we follow the dictates of our bosses. We move in other directions because popular culture or the media tells us to do so. The simple truth is that if we do not set our own goals then we will find it too easy to follow a path set by others. This can lead to stress and unhappiness. We have a greater chance of happiness and fulfillment following our own path and pursuing our own goals.

As a 2/4 Generator in Human design I can definitely feel the effects of following a path that doesn’t bring me my highest happiness.

While goals certainly give our lives direction, they also provide the motivation to get us through difficult times and choices.

Goals also serve as the destination for what we really want out of life. For some people, goals are measured in money or material goods, while for others, goals are measured in time or freedom. If we do not have goals outlined that suit our unique perspective on life it is easy to become sidetracked by all of it.

Goals can also help save time. When your “To Do” list becomes too long and your calendar too full, then you can simply compare your goals to the list. What items help you achieve your goal? What items are necessary to your goal? Scratch off the rest as unimportant.

Just as goals save time they also reduce stress because using your goals to focus your life and choices makes it easier to make those choices. Should you take that new position at work? How does it match your goals?

Finally, goals give you a measurable sense of accomplishment. Every goal you achieve, in fact, every step you make toward that goal, can give you a boost of energy and momentum to keep going. Each success powers you toward the next level of success.

So after saying all of that, here are some helpful, tested tips that will keep your attention focused on achieving any goal that you put your mind to:

1. Think Positive

This means: Do not quit. Especially when one is in the middle of working towards a goal, there should be no room for quitting.

To quit is the same as going back to the start line of goal accomplishment. That is – time, energy, money, and a whole lot of things wasted and lost. It is more costly to quit than to find a solution to the problem, not to mention the frustration one feels.

2. Keep a clear and open mind

Always be ready to receive new ideas. Focus and concentrate. Think in a wide scale manner and always be open to new options to eliminate the particular obstacle you are currently dealing with.

3. Persist and Persevere

Be sure to exhaust every possibility, even to the point of trial and error, just to be sure that there is a solution to correct the problem you’re dealing with.

4. Simulate

Try to picture inside your head a possible solution to help overcome and/or solve the obstacle that’s setting you back

5. Ask for Help

If all else fails, get assistance from others you know, who are more knowledgeable on the work being done. Their suggestions might not necessarily be the exact ones you were hoping to hear, but they may trigger some NEW ideas in finding the right solution to your problem.

Sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference between your ego getting in the way and telling you that you aren’t good enough and should give up, and actually really needing to go in a different direction.

So it is important to have a good relationship with yourself and your body and the signs it gives and receives as well.

Sometimes having an outside perspective can help see the difference between these things.

Know when to ask for help. This was one of the lessons I learned that gave me the most return value.

Now go out and set your goals!

Bring on 2022!

Xo S