We all have dreams. Small or large, they are of considerable importance in our lives. Making them come true means achieving a desired state of happiness and well-being, and is a great way to boost our self-esteem. Moving towards our goals also helps us become better people. Whatever your dream - to become a millionaire, to break through as an artist or to win the Olympics - don't wait any longer. Start working on realizing your goals today.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Set Goals
Step 1. Decide what you want
Your first step must be to determine what you want to achieve. Reflecting on what to do could be a more or less difficult step, but to achieve success it is essential to dedicate time to planning your desires.
For example, do you dream of becoming a happier person? To learn to play an instrument? To improve your sports skills? To be healthier? Each of these goals is correct. It is only up to you to decide what you want
Step 2. Establish your terms
Once you have a general sense of what you want, you need to start focusing on the meaning of "your" goals. The definition of the same goal can in fact differ enormously from one person to another.
- For example, if your goal is to become happier, you need to clarify what happiness means to you. What do you think a happy life looks like? What are the things that can make you happy?
- The same method must also be applied to the more specific objectives. If your desire is to learn to play the guitar, make it clear what level you want to reach. Would you be happy to get to know some chords to be able to sing a couple of songs at parties? Or do you aspire to play in a classical guitar concert? As you can see, these two definitions of knowing how to play the guitar are very different.
Step 3. Ask yourself why
At this point it is important to stop and reflect for a few moments on the reasons that drive you to want to achieve your goals. In doing so, you may also find that you want to review them.
For example, imagine that your dream is to learn to play the guitar. You stop and start thinking about why you want it, discovering that what motivates you is the belief that people who can play the guitar are popular in school. Such a justification doesn't necessarily make you determined, so it may be time to stop and find an easier way to achieve your true goal, which is to improve your social relationships
Step 4. Determine the feasibility of your dreams
Last but not least, you need to decide if your goal is realistic. As unpleasant as it may be, not all dreams can come true. If your desire seems to cross the line of the possible, it may need to be changed.
Imagine that you have decided that you want to become the best basketball player in the world. This is a major challenge for anyone, but achievable for some. If you were five feet tall, this goal would most likely be beyond your reach, which would expose you to a very high probability of failure and disappointment. In any case, no one prevents you from having fun playing basketball with friends, but if your dream is to excel in a sporting activity, it is good that you choose a discipline in which height is not of such importance
Part 2 of 3: Develop a Plan
Step 1. Put your ideas in writing
Once you've established your overall goal, you'll need to start being more specific and developing a plan that will help you achieve it. A great first step is to write freewheeling. Grab a piece of paper and a pen and write down your thoughts on the following topics:
- Your ideal future.
- The qualities you admire in others.
- Things that could be done better.
- The topics you would like to learn about or learn more about.
- The habits you want to improve.
- The purpose of this step is to help you fantasize and imagine multiple possibilities. Once you've written down some of your opportunities, you can rank them based on what you think is most important.
Step 2. Be specific
Once you've decided on your goals and collected your thoughts, it's time to start getting specific. Use the notes and definitions developed in the previous sections and write down some specific steps you intend to carry out or perform.
- A vague goal like "I want to sound better and I'll do what I can to do it" is not as effective as "I want to be able to play my favorite song within six months". Goals that are vague ("Do what you can") or goals with no deadline are not as effective as specific ones.
- Move beyond generic goals, such as "I want to get rich," and focus on specific achievements. Instead of saying "I want to get rich", describe your goal in these terms, for example: "I want to become a skilled investor in the stock market." Instead of "I want to know how to play the guitar", give yourself a goal similar to "I want to be the lead guitarist of a rock band".
- At this point, it is advisable to pick up pen and paper again, trying to describe your goals in as much detail as possible.
Step 3. Try using the SMART method to detail and evaluate your goals
This strategy allows you to refine your goals by determining if they are:
- S.specific.
- M.measurable.
- TOusable.
- R.realistic.
- Defined in T.empo.
Step 4. Rank your goals
Many people have multiple goals. By describing your goals in writing, you may have realized that you want to make more than just a wish come true. In this case it will certainly be useful to try to classify them in order of importance.
- Ranking your goals will help you focus on the ones you feel are most significant.
- For example, you may want to successfully take a master's course in astrophysics, learn to play classical guitar, read Tolstoy's complete opera, and run a marathon. Trying to accomplish each of these things at the same time is probably very unrealistic. Deciding which goals you consider most important will help you make both short-term and long-term plans.
- Part of this process is to evaluate your level of commitment in relation to each goal. A hard-to-reach or long-term milestone, combined with low commitment, will most likely remain unfinished. Obtaining a PhD in astrophysics effortlessly is not physically possible and should not be considered a priority.
Step 5. Predict the effects of your decisions
Reflect on how each goal will affect your life to be able to evaluate the benefits of your efforts.
Thinking in these terms will also help you visualize the entire process of achieving your dreams, inspiring you to continue
Step 6. Create sub-goals
Many challenges immediately become more feasible when broken down into smaller assignments. Each small task will be a sub-goal, or a small step that brings you closer to the realization of your dream.
- For example, if you want to learn to play the guitar, your first sub-goal might be to get one, the next to take lessons, the third to learn basic scales and chords, and so on..
- Setting a schedule for your sub-goals will help you stay focused and stay on track. In the example above, you could commit to making the money to buy a guitar within the next three months. After that, you can decide to start attending classes within a week of that date and learn how to play basic chords within two months, and so on.
Step 7. Identify possible obstacles
Last but not least, think about the possible impediments you may encounter along the way. By evaluating them in advance you will have the opportunity to plan potential solutions.
For example, you may find that the cost of a guitar lesson is higher than what you can currently afford, so you will need to find ways to raise money to support the lessons as well. Alternatively, you can consider enlisting the help of books and videos and embarking on a path as a self-taught
Part 3 of 3: Completing Your Projects
Step 1. Make time for your goals
There are many things you can do to simplify your journey and be able to stay focused on the finish line. In fact, however, achieving most goals requires dedicating time and hard work to them in order to make them a reality.
- Evaluate your time expectations and find out how much time you intend to dedicate to your dreams, and by when you want to achieve them. For example, your expectations of knowing how to play the guitar may indicate that you think it takes about 40 hours of lessons to learn how to play the first chords and that you intend to reach that level in a month. To do this, you will need to spend more than an hour studying the instrument every day.
- There is no way around the need to spend time on your goals. If you really want to cross the finish line, that's the right thing to do.
Step 2. Turn your commitment into a routine
The best thing to do is to make your efforts a real daily routine. Organize your day so that you can dedicate part of your time each day to achieving your goals.
For example, every morning from 6:00 to 6:30 you could spend half an hour practicing musical scales, after which you could train up to 7 in the execution of the main chords. Finally, from 7:00 am to 7:15 am, you may want to commit to learning a specific new song. By sticking to your schedule every day (or every other day), you will be able to learn the basics of any tool very quickly
Step 3. Track your progress
Once you have started working towards achieving your goals, it is important to note every step taken. Write in a journal, use an app or get a desk calendar and keep track of the time you spend on your dreams, the sub-goals you achieve, etc.
- Tracking your progress will allow you to highlight your successes and will help you stay motivated accordingly. It will also make you more responsible for your daily routine.
- Having a journal in which to describe your daily steps also helps you to keep under control the stress that comes with the process of achieving your goals.
Step 4. Stay motivated
One of the hardest aspects of the journey leading to your goals is the need to stay motivated, especially in the long run. Setting realistic sub-goals and tracking your progress will be of great help, but further reinforcement may be needed.
- Reinforcing your motivation means setting up consequences for your actions. There are two types of reinforcement:
- Positive reinforcement brings something good to your life. This is the case, for example, of a slice of cake that you decide to give yourself for having reached a sub-goal.
- Negative reinforcement takes something unpleasant out of your life. Depriving yourself of something you don't want can turn into a reward. For example, you could allow yourself to avoid housework for a week as a reward for completing an assignment. Housework will then be "removed" from your life over the course of an entire week.
- The effectiveness of reinforcement is greater in terms of motivation than punishment. Depriving yourself of something or punishing yourself for making a mistake can work, but only in small doses. If possible, always think in terms of rewards rather than penalties.
Advice
- Believe in yourself.
- Be honest with yourself. Achieving a goal by taking actions you are not proud of will prevent you from enjoying the result.
- Don't forget Lao-Tze's words: "Even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step".
- Write down your thoughts, even reinforcing ones. Even if you are the only one able to read them, writing down your goals is able to give more power to your intentions.
- People who, like you, have set goals to achieve, similar or dissimilar to yours, can be a great support. Reach out to them on a daily basis, in person or, if not possible, through an online community where people set goals and help each other stay accountable.
Warnings
- Things don't always go according to your plans. Keep your goals, but be flexible. Often, things work out in ways other than expected; this is not necessarily bad. Keep an open mind.
- Don't try to fit a square shape into a round hole. If something doesn't work as it should, try a different approach.
- Adjust your pace. Starting with a lot of time and effort on your goals and then losing vigor is a common mistake. The initial enthusiasm that comes from the hope of realizing a new desire is enormous, but it is important to establish standards that allow us to extend it over time and not to disappoint our expectations.
