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January 1st is in the rearview mirror. Do you remember the goals and resolutions you made in January?
I’m human too so I know what it’s like to start the year with great life-changing goals and resolutions only to see them fizzle out after a few weeks.
You’re not alone; this is totally normal. Staying focused on our goals is not easy. You have to be totally intentional about it.
Gyms sell close to 90% of their memberships in January with the expectation that the majority of the people who signed up will stop coming by February and March
Over the years through trial and error, I’ve learned that goal-setting is both art and science. It’s an art because you need a process that is personal and works for YOU.
And it’s a science because there’s a lot of research out there on the most effective and ineffective ways of setting and executing goals.
I don’t have to tell you this, but if you’re reading this you know the importance of setting goals. The problem isn’t lack of information, the real issue is most of us don’t stick with our goals throughout the year.
It’s hard to stay committed to long-term goals because life gets messy. We get busy, take new responsibilities, have major life changes, or get distracted so we gradually take the easier path and go back to our regular routines.
Two things to keep in mind.
- Human beings are more emotional creatures. Emotions play a huge role in determining what actions we take or don’t take. Personal development guru Jim Rohn said, “We generally change ourselves for one of two reasons: inspiration or desperation.”
- Goal setting = behavior change. And changing behavior can sometimes be impossible over long-tern because our brains love forming routines so much that scientists have found that nearly 40% of what we do isn’t based on decision-making but on old habits.
So here five things that are helping me keep stay focused on my goals.
WRITE IT DOWN
“People forget, but paper remembers.” I know this is captain obvious, but you MUST write down your goals. There’s a lot of research showing that people who write their goals have a higher chance of accomplishing them.
When I used to make New Year’s resolutions I never wrote them down. I filed them away in my mental cabinet which is so good I never thought about them again.
And to take it further, you can write down your goals weekly or even daily.
LESS IS MORE
When I started taking goal setting seriously I focused on 7 to 8 goals per year. The more the better, right?
Wrong.
You can do more by focusing on less. Goal-setting is a highly personal thing so while focusing on 7 to 8 goals can work for some people, it also makes it much harder to focus.
Let’s be honest. If it’s hard to accomplish one goal now, can you really achieve 7 or 8 really important things at the same time?
I don’t know if there’s a magic number, but thanks to a push from psychologist Dr. Benjamin Hardy, I’m focused on just three goals. Just thinking about the difference between 3 and 8 makes me feel better (remember we are emotional beings).
SEE YOUR GOALS DAILY
On top of writing your goals, put them in places where you’ll be forced to see them. Write them on a 3×5 card, a notebook, or on a piece of paper you carry in your wallet/purse. David Goggins puts them on his accountability mirror.
On the front of a 3×5 card, I wrote my big three goals for the year and on the back, I wrote my big three smaller goals (targets) for the month. I leave the card in my daily planner so that each time I open it I’m forced to pick up the card (this is what behavioral scientist BJ Fogg, author of Tiny Habits, calls a “Prompt” which is something that forces you to remember to do a certain behavior.)
JOURNAL ABOUT YOUR GOALS
When done intentionally, Journaling has amazing benefits and can be a great tool for gaining clarity. When writing about one’s goals or future, putting pen to paper helps cement those ideas in your head.
You can journal about your progress towards achieving those goals. You can describe what it will feel like after you accomplish your goals.
You can even journal as if you’ve already achieved your goals.
USE AN ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNER
Share your goals with one person you trust or a small group of close people and that will put some positive pressure on you. And if you want to take it to the next level, give that person or group permission to ask you about your progress.
To take it even further, send them a check for $50 (or some painful amount) and tell them that if you don’t accomplish your goals they can cash it.
These five tips don’t mean I will execute on my goals, but by simplifying them and keeping them top of mind it makes it much easier for me to accomplish them.
What are you doing to follow through on your goals?