The old saying goes


"If you fail to plan you are planning to fail"


or


"If you have no definite destination for your life  - you are guaranteed to arrive"


Setting a set of goals is the single most important part of achieving anything in life, however most people either don't do this or don't even know how.


Here are some simple rules and a methodology.


First take some time out to sit quietly with a paper and pen and think about what you really want from life, big ideas and small ones too. Ideas from work to play to family


Write out what your heart would most like to happen. write lots of ideas.


Next review them and ask how they would effect your life, for good or bad. reject those that have a negative effect.


Contemplate which ones hold the most meaning for you. and reduce the list accordingly.


Write each goal as a specific, with a time date by when you want to achieve it.


IE "I want to own my own my own surf shop in 2 years time"


Do this for each one.


Now expand each one and put more detail in that means something to you.


You should have goals that are both long term and short term.


Now decide what are the steps you need to make in order to make this dream come true? Put these in time order in three categories, 3 months , 1 year, 3 years. If you want you can have even shorter timestamps. right down to weekly goals that form part of the overall picture and  journey to the big goals


What are the hurdles along the way?


Who do you need to help you?


What do you need to learn, what courses do you need to take etc, set these as mini goals.


Now when you have all the goals, rewrite them. apply this test to them.


They should be SMARTER goals. Your goals should be:

This time rewrite them in the now.


IE Today is 26th October 2013. I have my own surf shop on Venice beach California. I have 3 staff and I make $100,000 a year net profit. I have a great lifestyle, really enjoy my work and work with some really cool guys. I get to surf almost everyday, life is good.

Remember


Specific
Meaningful and Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time stamped
Enticing, juicy
Rewards


Visualize your goal in full rich colour. 
What does it feel like, 
What does it sound like , 
What does it taste like. 
Live it.


why is this important ?, 


Because you create your own future and so many people visualise disaster, bad times, and failure in full rich colour and texture everyday, so guess what they have in their life?


When you have the list of goals, copy them out into different places.


Like


Stuck on your bedroom mirror.
On the opening page on your computer.
On the back of the toilet door.
In your phone
use post it notes, pictures, anything to remind you of what and why you are doing something everyday.


Now write an action plan for the next week and the next month on how you are going to get the first short term goals achieved. Update this weekly, stay on track and adjust as things change. 


This is how big business gets things done so if its good enough for them it has to be good enough for you.


Now go and do it.


Nothing is achieved without action and purpose in life. Act as if you already have your goals, live them and be congruent with them and they will come true.


If you don't have any real goals and vision then you are condemned forever to work for somebody else that does.


You help them get theirs!