Goal Setting: Turning your Dream into Reality

For the last 20 years, we have had the privilege of working with thousands of leaders. Leaders who are passionate about life and love what they do to earn their living. Leaders who are CEO’s, managers and supervisors representing all types of organizations and industries.

What is important to note is that each of the leaders we have worked with and every one of us who is reading this article are equally fortunate in one way: we are all blessed with the same amount of time each day. Everyone has the exact same 1,440 minutes each day and 365 days each year. Although we are all granted the same amount of time in a day, some people accomplish a lot more in their time than others do.

How are these people able to accomplish so much more?

The single most influential difference between those people who are wandering across the median of life, and those who are the peak performers achieving great accomplishments, is that the peak performers almost always have goals and a plan of how they will turn their vision into a reality.

To make this year the best year ever for you and your team, here are six steps to creating great goals and building a successful path to accomplishment.

Step One: Create a powerful, positive, compelling vision of the outcome

Without a clear, compelling, positive vision of what you want to accomplish, it is very difficult to know what goals to set and actions to take. A vision is a clear mental picture of the outcome you are trying to achieve. A great analogy of a vision is the picture on the cover of a jigsaw puzzle box. You know what you are trying to build and what the puzzle is going to be before you even start working on the puzzle.

Once your vision is clear, make a list of all the actions you will need to take to turn your vision into a reality.

Step Two: List the potential problems and benefits

Most goal setters do not take time to acknowledge potential problems. It is important that you take the time to list every problem that could stop you from accomplishing your goal. It could even be as simple as one word such as time or money. If you take the time to list the problems and create a plan to overcome them, there is a good chance that the problems may not arise.

Once you list the problems, compare them to the benefits. The benefits have to outweigh the problems or the problems will stop you.

Step Three: Create a written plan with measureable actions and time frames

When writing out your plan, you need to include both milestones and deadlines for accomplishments. Without deadlines, things always take longer to accomplish. If you were leaving for vacation tomorrow at 10:00 am, between now and then, I promise you will accomplish a ton more than you ever would or could if you were not leaving for vacation.

Once your plan has been written out step by step, you have successfully worked through the plan both on paper and in your mind. At this point, you could actually lose your written plan and most likely you will still be successful in accomplishing your goal.

It is important to note that every action and goal needs to be measurable. Without goals clearly identified, you will still be rewarded, but most likely, rewarded in Heaven.

Step Four: Is the goal realistic and obtainable to YOU?

This is a step that is not discussed much in the literature. The reason I feel it is important is that there are far more people in this world who will tell you what won’t work or can’t be done than there are people who will extend their arm and lift you up with encouragement. Some of you are the type of person that truly gets pumped and motivated when someone tells you something can’t be done. If the goal is realistic to you, GO FOR IT!

Step Five: Be willing to do whatever it takes

In 1982, a little book called The Ultimate Secret, written by an author known only as J.D., shared what I feel is the most important ingredient to your success after you have crystallized your vision. J.D., in his book, says the ultimate secret is asking yourself this one question: Are you willing to do whatever it takes to successfully accomplish your goal? If you can answer yes, then nothing will stop you. If you are not willing to do whatever it takes, there is a good chance that one of the problems you listed is going to be too big of a mountain for you to climb.

Step Six: Celebrate your successes today!

Life is short. It is over in one heart beat. If you wait to celebrate your successful goal accomplishment, you may never find the time. Celebrate what you have accomplished today and set new goals for tomorrow.

I have found out the hard way that life is short, at its best. Dream big. Set Big Hairy Audacious Goals. Believe in yourself. Take Action. If you do so, you will be a person who out accomplishes the wandering generalities of life. When our time comes to leave this world, we all want the ability to say, “I made a difference and left this world even better than I found it.” I encourage you to set goals and make a positive impact.