Goal setting strategies
Contents
The key principles to goal setting.
We all want to live happy and fulfilling lives. But we also know that can be far easier said than done.
Goal setting is one proven way that can help us get to where we want to go.
Goals provide purpose, direction and motivation. They give you a target to strive for, they may force you to make new skills, change or move out of your comfort zone and improve yourself to achieve them.
A goal is like your Google Maps – it sets out your starting point, destination and the best way to get you there. A well-planned and achievable goal can also allow for unexpected forks in the road, allowing you to adjust to the changing circumstances in your life to keep you on track.
So how do you go about goal setting and setting yourself up for success?
Start with your five Ls
Choosing a goal that you truly want to achieve can be difficult. In fact, a 2017 study revealed that 73% of Australians struggle to plan out their lives. Of these, 36% admit that they don’t know what they want from life.
Often, the desire to keep up appearances causes us to create goals that we have no real intention or desire to accomplish. If we create goals without really understanding why we’ve chosen them in the first place, we’re setting ourselves up for failure.
To identify what you truly want from life, a great place to start is by thinking about your five L’s – live, love, learn, laugh and legacy. This means looking at:
Once you’ve got these figured out, you can then create a statement which encompasses all of your responses. These will form the basis or the “heart” of your goal setting. Any goal that you create should help bring you closer to at least one of your answers for your five Ls.
Make them SMART
You’ve thought about your five 5 Ls, so now you’re in a great position to start crafting your own goals. The best way to do this is to make them SMART.
SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely. You’ll find that your goals are easier to accomplish if you keep these five principles in mind when developing your personal goals.
SMART goals take much of their inspiration from the thoughts and ideas of goal setting gurus Locke & Latham, who in 2009 published their book A Theory of Goal Setting and Task Performance which detailed the five principles of effective goal setting. These five goal setting principles focus on:
- Clarity – Specific goals put you on a direct course to achieving your goals.
- Commitment – How much an individual is attached to their goal will impact achievement.
- Challenge – Challenging goals can improve performance through increased self-satisfaction.
- Task complexity – Overly complex goals may become overwhelming.
- Feedback – Goal setting is more effective in the presence of feedback.
To further build on these principles, the theory of SMART goals was created to offer an easy and practical approach to successful goal setting. Goals that are SMART have a much higher chance of being achieved, as they are simpler to understand, monitor and keep you on track.
Stay on track
Thinking about your five Ls and applying SMART principles will certainly go a long way to helping you create and achieve goals that are achievable and meaningful. But it can be hard to stay on track, especially if life throws a few curve balls.
So here’s a few tips to help maintain the motivation and focus for your goal setting:
Make it small
Taking on a goal can seem overwhelming, so it’s always helpful to break it down into bite-sized portions. Map out some small milestone achievements you’ll need to hit in order to reach your overall goal. It’ll make your goal much easier to tackle, won’t leave you discouraged and is a great way to keep tabs on how you’re progressing.
Write it down
This might appear simple, but there’s a lot of evidence to back this up. You’re actually 42% more likely to achieve your goals simply by writing them down on a regular basis.
So, put your goal in writing to make it official and remind yourself to complete it. There’s also a great sense of satisfaction you’ll get from ticking of milestones and that end goal when you reach it!
Tell a friend
It’s easy to give up if no one knows what you’re doing. Our tip? Tell someone about your goal and make it public. Research has shown that you increase your chances of achieving success when you share your goal with someone else and keep them informed of your progress. Often, just the knowledge that you will make someone proud is enough to give you the extra incentive and motivation to keep you on track towards reaching your goals.
Check in
Sometimes life will get in the way and create roadblocks, blocking the path to your goal. Get past these with ease by checking in. Regularly pencil in some time to check in on your progress and make sure you’re on the right path to achieving your goal. This can be done quarterly for long-term goals, and more frequently for short-term goals. If you discover you’re falling behind, use this time to adjust your plan to stay on track towards your goal.
Live your Good Life
At Tribeca we focus a lot on helping our clients set and work towards their financial and lifestyle goals, as both play a major part in shaping the life people want to live.
If you’re serious about taking charge of your finances, we’re seriously ready to help you enhance our financial wellbeing. The first step is to tell us a bit about yourself by filling in our contact form.