By Dr. Trevor Tew
“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” - Zig Ziglar
When we have summers as beautiful as we are having this year, it's easy to let priorities and goals get pushed aside. Rather than picking one or the other, here’s a few ideas to stay on track and the positive impacts crushing those goals will have on our daily lives.
Provides Direction- Its second nature to become overwhelmed when we are thinking about all the things we have on our plate. Rather than just going through the motions, setting goals and being aware gives you directions to your destination. Start by writing these goals down, or setting them in your head. Whatever works best for you. When you have the ability to key in on what the next steps are that need to be taken, you are focusing your attention on what accomplishments you need to get through to arrive where you want to be. This provides the clarity to ask yourself, “ Is this getting me closer to my goal?”
Provides Motivation- Goals give you something to aspire to that are there for the betterment of yourself. Having a meaningful goal you're able to envision reaching, is incredibly motivating in itself. The importance of long term goals, is the same as short-term goals. The short-term goals you're easily able to accomplish will have a positive impact on your daily life, while also giving yourself the assurance that you can successfully reach the long term goals. Here’s a tip-- Have these goals jotted down in a place you tend to look at on a normal basis. By manifesting these goals, your self determination and efforts in them will guide you in the right direction. Small actions can lead to big results!
Personal Satisfaction- When we add challenging goals into our lives, we feel accomplished. Daily goals help us appreciate our personal capabilities and self discipline. These internal feelings shine onto others as a positive light. When we have a multitude of things going on in our lives, it's easy to feel scattered as if there's no way to succeed. Goals help guide us down the path we want our lives to take.
Overcoming Obstacles- More often than not, we talk ourselves out of goals because of the obstacles that are in our way. Stop letting the obstacles win and try changing your approach. Instead of thinking about all the things that will keep us from accomplishing our goals, think about the things we have in our power to accomplish them. Are you too busy with work and family to get that workout in at the end of the day? Well, what if you gave up an hour of sleep in the morning to crush that workout? You may find out that personal time when the sun is rising is beneficial in itself. With great risk, comes great reward!
Try setting daily, weekly, and yearly goals, and see how beneficial it can be in your daily life. It's time to discover how more short term, attainable goals, can lead to greater long term success.