What Goals Should I Set?
The first step in this process it to figure out what goals are right for you. These goals should be important to you and should also motivate you. You need to take time to think about what you really want to achieve and where you want to be in life down the road.
Start Broad
The first goals and the easiest are the broad or long term goals. For example, I want to create my own business - This would be a perfect broad and long term goal for someone here at Wealthy Affiliate.
Figure out where you want to be a year from now, 5 years from now, or what is your ultimate goal for this process.
Begin To Narrow
Once you have figured out what your ultimate and long term goals are, you will need to figure out some shorter term goals that you can use as steps to achieve them. Taking the yearly goal for example, I would break that down into the 4 quarters of the year and set goals that would build on each other to achieve the overall annual one.
Be Positive & SMART
As you create your goals there are several things you will want to keep in mind. To me the most important thing is to stay positive. Goals are meant to help you improve your life for the better and by keeping your goals positive, you will move in a positive direction.
Many people also use the SMART method for setting goals which follows these parameters:
- S - Specific
- M - Measurable
- A - Attainable
- R - Relevant
- T - Time Frame
Using our journey at WA, let's look at an example using this method.
I want to start my own business! This is why many of us are here, but is this goal specific enough? Definitely not. Let's take this a step further and make it specific as there are many different ways of accomplishing that here.
So instead how about a goal like one of these:
- I want to create my own business by the end of the year where I am able to create websites for local businesses.
- I want to create my own business by creating 3 niche based sites that generate enough revenue to allow me to be independent. I would like to have this goal achieved within the next two years.
Now that we have a better idea of how to figure out what goals to create, let's move onto doing just that...
I'm a big fan of the S.M.A.R.T. method as well when it comes to setting goals and sticking to them. And I like that you included the need to write your goals down, keep them visible, and track them as you complete them. It was also great that you shared your weekly progress report too - especially the version with your hand-written notes. It shows you've been busy. :-)
All the best and keep up the great work!
- Jeff
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