Going, Going, Goal!

It’s that time of year. Everywhere you turn, people are talking about what they’re resolving to do differently in the new year. It’s a new year and new goals are in order for all aspects of your life, right? Well, not to so fast, I say. Ninety-four percent of people who make new year’s resolutions don’t end up achieving them. It’s because goal-setting is serious business and goal implementation is even more serious.

So how might you maximize your chances of achieving your new year’s resolutions? A healthy dose of realism and some specific, well-proven strategies will help you avoid being a new year’s statistic. Here are ten of my top tips to get you started and keep you on track towards success:

1.  Start with only one personal and one professional resolution/goal. Choose each wisely after scanning all the areas of your life and then prioritizing. Make sure each goal is your own (and not a goal someone else has for you) and is aligned with your core personal values.  

2. State each resolution/goal in concrete, positive, motivating language. State each goal as though you’ve already achieved it. (“I am physically fit; my healthy body enables me to perform at my best in business and have an active, adventurous personal life.”)

3. Identify the reasons for each resolution/goal. Once you’ve identified each resolution or goal for 2010, list at least 10 reasons why you want to reach each of these goals. Then ask yourself: Do these reasons seem like compelling reasons? Will these reasons provide me the strong motivation I’ll need to achieve my goal? Compelling reasons (and, might I add, a reward/incentive system!) significantly increase one’s likelihood of achieving a goal. Post the reasons in a place where you’ll be able to review them regularly.

4. With every action or decision, ask yourself one question: Is this going to bring me closer or further away from my goal? My personal goal is to be more physically fit. Which action will bring me closer to my goal: running on my treadmill or laying around in my pajamas all day? When I ask that question, there’s no ambiguity about what my decision should be if I’m serious about achieving my goal. Try it! Of course, if you make a decision that brings you further away from your goal, ask yourself how much you really want to achieve the goal. Review the list of 10 reasons for renewed motivation.  

5. Create a plan for each goal and allocate sufficient resources (time, energy, money) to the implementation of the plan. Most change initiatives fail at the implementation state. Create a step-by-step plan with manageable actions you can take to achieve your goal. One step at a time. Make sure it’s logical to you.

6. Visualize yourself achieving your goal. Close your eyes and try to imagine yourself achieving your goal. As I reflect on achieving my goal, I think about questions such as: What would I look and feel like if I were more physically fit? How would I feel in a stronger, healthier body? How might I feel if others noticed a change in my body and commented? How would it feel to have more energy? Utilize this visualization exercise in the beginning and thoughout the process as necessary to sustain your motivation.

7. Don’t go it alone. Share your goal with others. This serves both to create a support system for you and to create pressure on you to achieve your goal (or risk losing face). Find someone who is working on the same or similar goal who will be your accountability partner, pushing you when necessary along the way. Alternatively, create an accountability group. Social networking sites are great ways to find friends and others in your geographic area who are working on the same goal as you.

8. Use images that inspire you. Surround yourself with images that remind you of your achievement of each goal. Perhaps it’s a picture of the reward you’ll provide yourself when you achieve your goal. Or perhaps you might post an image of someone with the focus and commitment to success you seek to emulate. Alternatively, you might post an image of someone who’s already achieved your goal against far greater odds than you might be facing.

9. Reward yourself. Whether you’ve set your goal for a short-term period (i.e. 90 days) or longer, you deserve a reward. And studies show that rewards do work to keep people motivated and moving towards their goals. Some folks incentivize the goal-setting process with betting. They bet their friend (or a third party company) that they will achieve their goal, with cash or a donation to an anticharity on the line. This too, studies show, works to keep people on track. Figure out what most will motivate you across your finish line and set it as your reward. If your goal is longer term, provide yourself rewards along the way.

10. Be patient with yourself. Don’t give up. Achieving your goal, no matter what it is, will take focus and commitment. But if you’ve selected wisely, you’ve set goals around the most important changes you’d like to make in your life and work in 2010. And certainly those are worth making happen!

January 2, 2010