The New Year has kicked off and with the beginning of a new year comes new dreams, goals and plans.
That’s great, but it’s important to put all of this into perspective; ‘Have you set the right goals?’, ‘Why are these goals important to you?’, ‘What action steps are you going to take to help you achieve these goals?’, and ‘Have you got the right support network to help you achieve your goals?’
So let’s examine these questions one at a time:
1. Have you set the right goals?
It is important when setting goals that we choose the right goals. What I mean by that is if you have a long term goal to feel 10 years younger or be the same weight you were as when you got married, your short term goals aren’t going to be “to hit chest 3 times a week in the gym”.
In this instance your short term goals aren’t going to help you achieve your long term goal.
The second part of setting the right goal is that your goals are challenging but not unattainable. If your goal is unattainable you will end up losing your motivation, whereas if your goal is challenging but attainable it will help you to strive to work hard for the feeling of accomplishment which comes with achieving your goal.
2. Why are these goals important to you?
Goals are great, everyone should have goals; the important question we ask all our clients though is “Why are these goals important to you?”
Every person will have different goals, the question is why have we chosen that specific goal or goals for ourselves. Your goals have to have some kind of importance to you, if you don’t value the goal you have chosen why then are you going to put in any effort to work towards it. If however your goal is something you truly value this will provide you with the motivation you need to succeed.
3. What action steps are you going to take to help you achieve these goals?
Once you have chosen your goal or goals it is important to determine what action steps you can take to achieve these goals, after all your goal isn’t just going to achieve itself!
Action steps can be simple little behaviour or lifestyle modifications which you put in place which help you on the path towards your bigger goals.
One of my favourite quotes is: “Small changes can make a big difference”.
Action steps are these little changes, things like cutting out those 2 beers every night during the week or take the dog for a walk or play with the kids in the park which in the long run can add up to big results.
4. Have you got the right support network to help you achieve your goals?
Support can go a long way to helping you achieve your goals, surround yourself with people who are going to push you up instead of pull you down.
Having the right support crew or coach can help provide you with that extra guidance, motivation or encouragement that pushes you towards your goal. There will be days where you feel like you are struggling or your goal is out of reach; at these times having someone to talk to, guide you or even is your own personal cheerleader can give you the lift you need to persevere on your journey.
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So here are my final thoughts and some advice on your goals and the year ahead.
Persistence is key! Remember they say ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’; you’re not going to achieve all your goals in one day or one week or even a month, the important thing is you keeping moving forward and striving to be better.
Your mindset will define your success, aim to be the best you can and in the words of the Maori proverb:
‘Aim for the highest cloud so that if you miss it you will hit a lofty mountain’
The best is yet to come! Good luck and best wishes for the year ahead!
– Coach Niall
