How To Set Goals The Right Way – A Detailed Guide

If you’re a person who’s not mediocre and wants to ensure you reach your targets consistently, you’ll need to learn how to set goals correctly.

There are various reasons you should learn how to set goals the right way.

Below are just a few benefits of what can happen when you learn how to set goals correctly up front.

How To Set Goals The Right Way – A Detailed Guide

Clearer Focus

By learning how to set goals the right way, you’ll be able to rid yourself of confusion, stalling, and procrastination.

By having your goals clearly documented, it’ll also give you more time and energy to focus on executing what needs to be done, rather than wondering what outcome you need to achieve.

Better Use Of Your Resources

Once your goals are written and clear, you’ll be able to start looking at putting together an operational, marketing, and sales targeting strategy.

This also means you’ll have a better use of your resources and how to allocate them effectively.

You’ll Be Able To Measure Impact

One of the best bi-products of learning how to set goals correctly, is having the new ability to measure how you’re keeping track – and then pivot if you’re required to.

When measuring your goals, we recommend using an acronym called SMART.

SMART stands for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Time bound

SMART Goals – A Simple Breakdown

Commonly attributed to Peter Drucker’s Management by Objectives concept, SMART goals are a great way to measure your impact and what may need to be done to pivot correctly.

When learning how to set goals the right way, you need two very key fundamentals.

The first is having logical goals.

Secondly – is tying them to emotion.

Prior to looking at how to tie it to emotion, let’s look at how to measure them logically using the SMART acronym.

How To Set Goals Correctly With Logic

Below is a simple breakdown of how to set goals correctly from a logical stand point, using SMART.

Specific

A part of learning how to set goals right, is ensuring you’re specific in regard to what you want to achieve.

Some questions to ask are:

• What exactly do you want to accomplish?
• Why is it important that you do?
• Who needs to be involved?
• What resources are available to help you?

Measurable

The next step when learning how to set goals with logic, is ensuring that you have a system in place to let you know if you’re on track.

This means your goals need to be measurable.

Questions to ask here are:

• How many do you need to reach your target?
• How much you may require?
• When and how will you know when you’ve achieved it?

Achievable

Achievable can also mean realistic; that it is something within reach that you can in fact achieve.

Stretch goals are great for growth, however if you set goals that are clearly unrealistic, then you won’t feel motivated or driven to get there.

Questions may include:

• How can you go about making it happen?
• Based on your income, time, and current situation – how realistic is it that you can make the goal a reality?

Relevant

The next step when executing and learning how to set goals with logic, is ensuring it’s relevant to your cause.

Questions to ask may include:

• Is it worthwhile?
• Timing wise; should you focus on something else instead?
• Are you the right person to achieve this goal?
• Is it applicable to your current socio-economic climate?

Time Bound

Finally, the last step in SMART and learning how to set goals with logic is ensuring it is time bound.

As the famous saying goes – a goal without a date is merely a dream.

When setting time bound goals, as yourself these questions:

• When?
• What should success look like in three months?
• What outcome should you have achieved in six months?
• Can you do anything today to help you move toward your end goal?

How To Set Goals Correctly Using Emotion

The next – and just as important part when learning how to set goals the right way, is ensuring you anchor them with emotion.

Many people set goals purely with logic, which is important.

However – human beings are emotional creatures.

We do things for emotional reasons, and then justify them with logic.

The reason why so many people set new years resolutions and then don’t go through achieving them, is because they set their goals purely with logic.

You need to anchor them with emotion too.

Ask yourself these questions when learning why you want to achieve your goals on an emotional level:

• If I achieve this, what will this mean for me in the short term?
• How will this affect my income – and what will that mean for me?
• If it becomes a reality – what will this do for my family?
• What opportunities will this open for me?
• By making this happen – how will this help me on a positive note?

These emotional questions will help guide the reason – and more importantly, meaning behind why you want to achieve your goals in the first place.

Anchoring your goals is crucial when learning how to set goals the right way and following through to get them done.

Final Thoughts On How To Set Goals The Right Way

After you learn how to set goals the right way, you’ll be well on a path toward personal success.

Many people set goals that don’t get achieved, because they lack both important foundations to achieve them – logic, as well as emotional drive.

Ensure to ask questions that align both. This will give you the daily fuel to be consistent on a daily basis, and follow through with what you want to achieve.