Believe it or not but chances are very low that your big dreams come true, your life goals get achieved all by themselves. You need to work on your goals. And your work needs to have the right impact.
Of course, this is not a big secret, nor is it a surprise. What is surprising, however, is how many people do not work on their goals.
How about you? Maybe you go to work, maybe you have some hobbies and you enjoy your weekends. But does this really bring you closer towards your goals?
Your Progress Last Week
Let’s take a look at last week. What did you do for reaching your goals? If you now say you want to work to earn money to invest it in your future goal, that might be reasonable. But it might also be dangerous.
Here is why. Let’s say your goal is to travel through Latin America for three months and now you are working for half a year to get all the needed money for the trip. This sounds reasonable because you have a clear plan with clear deadlines.
If your plan is to travel through Latin America at some unspecified time in the future, chances are that this time will never come. You keep working and working and dreaming and dreaming. And then, one day, you will wake up and realize it is too late – because you are on your deathbed. Or, you will never wake up again before you even realize it is too late. Not sure what is better.
Is Your Job Aligned with Your Goals?
Ideally, your job is fulfilling, fun and brings you closer towards your goals.
However, if you are working, if you hate your job and your only goal is your retirement, that is definitely not the recipe for a fulfilled life. Sure, we all might need to work for a living. So what to do if you hate your job? You might want to consider the following two options.
1. Make your job more meaningful
How can you make your job more meaningful and fulfilling? Is there a project or improvement you can suggest or a coworker you can help? Maybe you can ask your boss for some extra responsibility you are passionate about. Start small and unless it is completely unbearable start in your department and company first. If this does not work you can still think of changing jobs. And try to be open-minded and positive. You will be surprised of what you can get if you just ask.
2. Work on your passion project after work
If your job is just a job, make sure you can work on your goals outside your regular job. You are exhausted? You have a family and friends and too little time? No, what you really have in this case is excuses. Or, you have a goal that is just not big enough. You can surely reserve a couple of hours per week to pursue your goal. And if you have a big goal you are really passionate about you will jump out of bed in the early morning and still think about your goal when you go to bed late at night.
Your Assignment for Next Week
Now think about your next week. What can you do better in regards to your goals? Or / and think about what you can do for your goals after work. Maybe start writing your own business plan (or goal plan) or talk to friends and like-minded people. You can start your own blog, start your own podcast or even start writing your own novel.
Your Biggest Impact
Probably you heard about all the good things that happen out of your comfort zone. Although leaving your comfort zone is a good exercise to become more open and brave, it is no guarantee for reaching your goals. When you do parachuting for the first time you surely leave (and broaden) your comfort zone but it will not necessarily bring you closer towards your goal to travel through Latin America.
Think about what to do that has the biggest impact on reaching your goal. Starting your own blog and write what you are passionate about might have a bigger impact than just watching TV. Oh, and it can be fun too. And the good feeling and pride about your first blog post or just about your first step surely lasts longer than you will (positively) think about the TV program.
Try to make it a habit to work on your goals on a regular basis, like it is a habit to eat lunch or to brush your teeth.
Also, think about all the activities you do throughout the day. What has impact what hasn’t? By the way, no problem if you want to watch a movie from time to time. You can even use this as a reward for having reached a certain milestone.
If you do not know where to start or what your goals really are, start with goal setting. Find out what your goals really are and make a plan how to achieve them.
An Exercise for the Week
As an exercise for the coming week you might want to think about the following questions.
- What do you want?
- Why do you want it?
- How do you get it?
- What to do net that has the biggest impact?
Write the answers down and as a result you will get an action plan for next week that will really bring you closer towards your goals.
Learn More About Goal Setting
You can find more information about goal setting in our free eBook (download as PDF or ePub).
If you are looking for a goal-setting app we recommend our free Android app VidaGoals.
