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Motivation has been a hashtag of choice for some time now. So many of us desire this seemingly magic drive to work hard and achieve all of our goals. And if we feel we’re lacking motivation, it can quickly become an easy reason to give up on our dreams. In this fast-paced world, the ability to set aside time to create goals and work towards them can seem out of reach. And then there’s the nasty little friend called procrastination that likes to take up residence on your shoulder!
Goal setting 101
So how do we defeat procrastination? How do we manage motivation? How do we make a change and stick to our goals? The first step is acknowledging that motivation doesn’t always come naturally. Sometimes it doesn’t come at all.
“Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.”
Mario Andretti
Motivation is a process. It can initiate, guide, and help us maintain goal-oriented behaviours. But sometimes we just have to get up and do the thing without the magic of motivation. How can we define our motivations and increase the chance they will help drive us towards our target? Goal setting is a useful tool in this battle.
Why is goal setting important?
Sitting down and setting goals to work towards your ultimate aim is a powerful process that allows you to reflect on what you want to achieve, map out a path, determine what needs to change and lock in a timeframe.
Documenting our goals is a great way to focus our attention on what is important to us. Goals allow us to create a vision of how we would like our life to be. When we have an end goal in mind, it has been shown that people increase the amount of time and effort they spend on related activities and develop effective strategies to achieve their goals. Setting goals helps you see the bigger picture for your future and builds motivation. Elite athletes, successful businesspeople, and high achievers across all fields set goals to create and maintain motivation. Setting goals allows you to focus your attention on your achievements, which also encourages motivation.
Tips for setting goals
- It’s important to write your goals down. Whether it be on your phone or with a pen and paper. This will give your goals more force and help you remember them!
- Make simple goals that are expressed positively.
- Ensure that goals aren’t too big. Keeping your goals smaller will help you see you are smashing them and incremental goals give more opportunities for reward.
- Be as precise as possible with your goals so you can measure your achievement.
- Keep in mind your priorities. What is most important to you? What do you want to achieve first? Having priorities can stop you from feeling overwhelmed.
- Make sure you set your own goals. Don’t let those around you set goals that don’t align with your values or desires in life.
- Make realistic goals. You want to be ambitious, but don’t set the standard too high otherwise you will lose motivation.
- Keep a vision board. Vision boards are a fantastic tool to keep you on track. They are usually a collage of images and words that align with your goals and remind you of what you hope to achieve. You can look to them to remind you of your values, goals, or dreams.
- Review your goals as you go. This keeps your goals at the forefront of your mind and is the key habit to actualizing your goals. You don’t want to risk your goals just becoming wishes.
- Have fun with your goals! Make it your passion, not something you dread! This is a positive process that should be enjoyed.
“Goals are dreams with deadlines.”
Diana Scharf
Example of a good goal vs. a bad goal
Even with these tips in mind, it might be difficult to recognise the difference between a good goal and a bad goal. Take a look at the difference between these two goals:
- Example one: I want to wake up earlier.
- Example two: I am going to start waking up at 6am each morning as I want to make the most of my day.
Example two is the much better goal. It uses a lot of tips mentioned above such as being precise, using positive language, and it’s realistic! With all these tips this goal will be easily achievable and have an encouraging outcome for your next goal.
TEDx Talks for inspiration
Here are some powerful TEDx Talks about goal setting:
Carol Dweck – The power of believing that you can improve
Angela Duckworth – Grit: The power of passion and perseverance