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Goals 2012 Toolbox [Type text]
Desire. Determination. Persistence. Perseverance. The single most critical difference between people who achieve their dreams and people who do not is their level of persistence and perseverance. Those who achieve their dreams continue to work toward them no matter what. In spite of the most daunting obstacles, all the negative people who tell them it can’t be done, and numerous “failures” or false starts, the people who succeed in achieving their dreams keep on going and going and going—just like that Energizer bunny. They refuse to quit no matter what. For them, it is mind over matter. When someone tells them they can’t do something, they set out to prove them wrong. The more you want something, the faster and easier it will be to achieve it. You won’t accept “no” for an answer, you will find a way around your obstacles, and you will refuse to give up. You will do whatever it takes to make your dreams come true. And you will keep on doing that until they do. Consider a person whose dream is to walk across the entire United States. Perhaps the person has serious limitations—artificial limbs or arthritis. There will be many naysayer and people who will discourage him from pursuing this dream. Many people without limitations will scoff at the idea. Still others will set out to achieve the dream, but they will give up when they become tired or get a few blisters. The difference between the people who discount the dream, those that try and give up, and the person who achieves the dream will be the level of desire, determination, persistence, and perseverance. The person who really, really wants to achieve that dream will set incremental goals for himself and will steadily progress toward them. He will not give up until he has achieved the goals and the dream. One tiny step at a time, he will continue moving forward, despite the pain and the blisters, without regard to how long it will take him to achieve it, focusing single-mindedly on the dream and its achievement. Mentally, he will block out distractions and focus on the end result. “ Courage and perseverance have a magical talisman, before w hich difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish into air.” - J ohn Q uinc y A da ms
Assessment & Helpful Tools T o H e lp Y o u A c h ie v e Y o u r G o a ls Study Other Successful Goal Achievers Motivational speakers and goal achievers like Bob Proctor, Jim Rohn, and Brian Tracy aren’t shy about telling you how they learned to set and achieve their far-reaching goals. Read their books, listen to their seminars on tape or CD, or better yet—attend a seminar firsthand—to get you fired up and maintain a high level of enthusiasm about goal setting and achievement. "Y ou’ve got to be careful if you don't know w here you're going, because you might not get there." -Yog i Be rra Affirmations Restate your goals in positive, present tense terms “as if” you are already achieving the goals you set. Write them down in those terms and include a statement about how you will feel when you reach each goal. For example, if my goal is: “To walk one mile each day between now and Christmas,” a positive affirmation of that goal might read like this: “I am walking a mile every day and enjoying my newfound feelings of health and energy!” Every day, read your affirmative goals/affirmations aloud to yourself. You may even wish to tape a copy of them on your computer monitor, bathroom mirror, or the dashboard in your car—any place where you will see them throughout the day and re-read them. Reading your goals reworded as statements on a regular basis suggests to your subconscious mind that the goals have already been achieved. Your affirmations frequently become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some people find it helpful to record their affirmations (on a tape recorder or CD) and then play the affirmations back so they can hear them repeatedly, letting the affirmations seep into their subconscious while they are driving to work or performing other tasks. Affirmations can really work for you! They help keep you focused on your goal, your dream, and what it will feel like to achieve those goals and dreams—because you read them as if you’ve already achieved them. They can help you maintain a positive attitude and reaffirm your commitment to doing what it takes to make them become reality. Positive Self-Talk Similar to affirmations, positive self-talk involves speaking aloud to yourself—and talking to yourself within your mind—in a positive, uplifting, encouraging way. Telling yourself that you CANand WILL achieve your goals boosts your self-confidence and increases your level of self-motivation—the two driving forces that will propel you forward and lead you to complete the actions necessary to achieve your goals.
Say “I Will” There is no greater commitment than those two little words: I will. There is no room for questioning or doubt. Instead of saying, “I plan to” or “I want to” or “I think I can,” say “I will” whenever you refer to your goals. Reaffirm it regularly and watch it happen. Enlist the Help of an Accountability Partner Ideally, an accountability partner is another person who, like you, is set on making some changes in his or her life and is setting goals to do it. It might even be someone involved in this course. While your goals need not be similar at all, the fact that you are both committed to setting and achieving your own goals is the common factor that binds you together. It is often helpful to share your goals and action steps with your accountability partner and set up a schedule to report on your progress and discuss any unforeseen obstacles and how you can address them. Ideally, you will do this for each other on a scheduled, regular basis and literally hold each other accountable for following through on the action steps and goals each has committed to. An accountability partner is also a great source of support and encouragement when you get discouraged. Do you know any people you might approach to become your accountability partner? If so, jot their names down here and contact them when you complete this workbook. A Coach or Mentor While accountability partners are mutually accountable to each other, a coach or mentor is your own private guide and support system. A good coach or mentor will help you think outside the box, challenge your thinking, require you to stretch yourself so you will grow, and hold you accountable for taking the actions to complete the goals you set for yourself. If you can afford a personal coach or have the opportunity to work with a mentor, jump at the opportunity for this kind of undivided attention, guidance, and direction. If a friend or acquaintance recommends a good coach, jot their name and contact information down here. You should contact him or her to talk about your goals and see how he or she could help you after your complete this course.
Create a Visual Whenever possible, create something visual that will stimulate your desire to achieve your goals and realize your dreams. Help to “picture” your dreams fulfilled. Want to vacation on a cruise ship? Get some of those travel brochures, cut out the cruise ship, cut out a photo of yourself from your last vacation, and paste it on the deck of the ship! If you can scan photos and manipulate them with your computer, go all out and put yourself in the action. Trying to get down to a size 10? Buy a pair of size 10 jeans and hang them on the wall of your exercise room where you’ll see them every time you work out. Dreaming of writing a book? Create a mock-up of the potential cover and post it by your computer where you can see it while you work. It will make the whole thing seem more “real” to you and help you stay motivated! Actor Jim Carey used this technique when he was a struggling actor in the early 1990’s. He wrote himself a check for $10 million for "services rendered" and dated it November 1995. Just days before that actual date, he signed a $10 million contract for the movie, “The Mask Part II.” “ W e’ve got to have a dream if w e are going to make a dream come true.” - De nis E. Wa itle y Post Pictures Pictures are an important way to maintain your focus and your commitment and to stay positive. Whether they come from a camera, a magazine, a catalog, or clip art, it really doesn’t matter. Cut them out or print them out, and put them up where you can see them throughout the day and be reminded of what you’re working toward. If your dream is to own a specific car, for example, find a photo or magazine of that specific car—right down to the year, model, make, and color—and tape it to the dash of your car where you’ll see it often. Then when you’re driving around in your old beater, imagine yourself driving your new vehicle! Experience It If it’s possible, experience a taste of success. Instead of just imagining it, give yourself a peek at the life you’re working toward. Do you dream of being wealthy and successful and buying all your clothes on Rodeo Drive? Go window-shopping! Heck, stop in and try on an outfit and ask a friend to snap a photo of you in an Armani suit. Tape that to your desk at work! Test drive a Ferrari and then ask the salesman to take a photo of you sitting in it. Tell him your goal is to buy one. He’ll be thrilled and encourage you to come back and buy it from him when you’re ready! Want to buy a house but don’t have the down payment yet? Go house hunting anyway! When you find the perfect one, your drive to do whatever it takes to get it will skyrocket.
Calendar Your calendar is a key component in your goal-setting system. When you set goal target dates and create checkpoints to complete action steps toward completing those goals, be sure to mark them on your calendar. Treat those goals and checkpoints like real deadlines and work hard to meet them. This is one of the single best ways to ensure steady, continuous progress toward your goals. (Some people like to use electronic calendars that provide audible beeps or reminders of appointments or other activities throughout the day. Don’t forget to program the calendar to remind you when you should be doing something to work toward your goals, too.) Journal/Diary If you have the time, recording your goals and action steps—and your daily progress toward your goals, along with your feelings, insecurities, the obstacles you encounter and how you overcome them, and your successes—in a journal or diary can prove invaluable. It’s a great reminder of how far you’ve come and an inspiration. When you feel discouraged, you can go back and read about all the things you’ve already accomplished and be encouraged that you can do this, too. “ Life best lived is life by design.” - J im Rohn Create a Photo Album/Photo Log Chart your progress with your camera! Take photos of your progress toward your goals along the way—at regular intervals or after major action steps are completed. This is a great motivator for goals like building a new home, losing weight, or sewing a quilt—anything you can see being created. Flow Charts/Graphs Some people benefit from visual aids that can show them at a glance how they are progressing toward their goals. If visual reminders are helpful to you, you might want to use a large piece of tag board to create a flow chart detailing the steps to be completed toward the achievement of your goals. Then mark off your progress with a highlighter or colored marker as you complete the steps. Or, you could create a graph that shows your goal and your steady progress toward the achievement of that goal. Post your flow chart or graph on the wall in your office or somewhere else where you will see it on a daily basis. Sign a Contract Some goal setters create and sign a contract with themselves outlining their goals, a date by which the goals must be completed, and may even include positive or negative consequences that will occur if the contract is “met” or “broken.” A signed contract—with yourself or someone else—will help you take your goals more seriously and stay focused. A sample contract is included in this workbook. Feel free to photocopy the contract as needed. Right now, make one copy of the contract and complete it for one or more of the goals you set previously in this workbook. Sign it, date it, and fax it to your coach or mentor. If you don’t have a coach or mentor, fax it to Vic or Lisa at 877-235-1557.
Weekly or Monthly Goal Sheets Many people find it helpful to summarize a list of the action steps required to be completed for a given timeframe on a handy list that they can keep in front of them. Rather than worrying about what they need to do next week or next month, it enables them to focus exclusively on what they should accomplish this week or this month. It helps keep you from getting overwhelmed and is a very effective tool. (See the sample goal sheets in the Appendix and photocopy them for your own use.) Use a copy of the Weekly and Monthly Goal Sheets to create a list of what you’ll need to focus on in the coming week and month in order to achieve your goals. Be sure to put your name on it, and fax this to your coach or mentor, as well. Master Goal List or Lifetime Goals Some people find it helpful to create one huge master goal list—or a list of all the goals they hope to achieve in their lifetime, both large and small. This is one long, ongoing list they can add to as needed. By keeping the one list, they are assured they will not forget any of the goals or aspirations that are important to them. You might also wish to create a similar dream list. List every dream or goal you can possibly think of—things you want, skills you’d like to acquire, places you want to visit, books you want to read, classes you want to take, people you want to meet, etc. Use the Master Goal List in the Appendix. While you would not work from this master list on a regular basis, you can draw from this list periodically when you review your dreams and goals and decide to set specific new goals. Fitting Goals into Your Busy Life Setting and working toward your goals takes hard work. But you’re probably already working hard. How do you fit yet another important thing into an already busy life? The fact is, somehow you will make the time for anything that is truly important to you. But here are some practical suggestions other people use to make working on their goals a priority: Get up early; Stay up late; Use your lunch break; Make a trade off for something less important to you (i.e., quit watching TV to focus on your goals instead); Identify your other responsibilities—which are flexible and could be taken care of at a later date? Which are not? OR Keep track of how you spend your time and assess your real availability (or refer back to the exercise when you did this previously). Find what works best for you and work with it. Whatever you do, don’t just try to cram setting and achieving new goals into an already overbooked life. It won’t work, and your goals will be doomed to failure before you even begin. Life is about choices and trade-offs. Whether it is sleep, lunch with your co-workers, television time, or something else, if creating the life of your dreams is important to you, you’ll make the time to work toward your goals.
Dreams and Goals Evolve and Change The dreams you have for your life today—and the corresponding goals you set to reach them—are not the same dreams you had 10 years ago, and it’s likely that 10 years from now, your dreams will have changed again. Life is a process of growth and development—and change. It’s natural that your dreams and goals should also change. "Tw enty years from now , you w ill be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bow lines. Sail aw ay from the safe harbor. Catch the trade w inds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover." - Ma rk Twa in Your Motivation Level to Achieve Y our Goals and to Complete the Action Steps Necessary to Achieve Those Goals, W ill W ax and W ane Though your motivation after this course is finished will likely be very high, daily life quickly takes over, and it’s easy to go back to doing things the same way we’ve always done them. Continuing to focus on your goals and strive for them will be one of your first big challenges. Knowing this in advance, it’s important to build in little rewards for your continued progress toward your goals along the way. There’s no need to wait until the goal has been achieved to reward yourself. Pick little intervals along the way—particularly at points where you know you’re likely to procrastinate or put things off—and then schedule a reward for reaching that checkpoint. It might be something simple like treating yourself to a round of golf or ordering pizza for dinner instead of cooking. The important thing is to reward yourself regularly for progress and reinforce your new behaviors. Set Goals for Yourself. Measure Them against Yourself Setting and achieving any goal should be something YOUwant to do. Likewise, measure your progress toward your goals against the criteria established initially. DON’T compare yourself or your progress to someone else or his or her goals. Self-improvement is a continual process, not a competition. All Goals Have Consequences When you set a goal, you should realize there would be consequences as a result—whether you meet the goal or miss it by a mile. Some consequences are positive and others may be negative. Some are the natural result of meeting or missing the goal, while others may be self-imposed. Natural consequences might include a fine from the IRS if you’re late filing your income taxes (negative) or losing weight if you begin an exercise regime (positive). Self-imposed consequences are those that you set as a reward or “punishment” for achieving or not achieving your goal. Perhaps you will donate a specific amount to a charity if you fail to meet your goal (a negative consequence for you, though it’s a positive consequence for the charity) or buy yourself a new sweater (positive) if you walk a mile every day for a week.
What If You “Fail” or Do Not Achieve Your Goal? What is a failure really? If you do not achieve your goal—but you tried and you learned something from the experience—then it really isn’t a failure at all. You can choose to regroup and set a new, more realistic goal. Or you can decide the goal wasn’t as important as you thought it was at this point in your life and select another goal to work toward. The only real failure is if you fail to try. As long as you’re trying and giving it your best shot, you can’t fail. It’s called living and learning! “ Believing you have failed is the end of the journey. Believing in yourself is an endless destination.” -Lisa Le g ue ne c Be Grateful for the Experience and Learn From It Every experience is an opportunity to learn something about yourself. As long as you’re learning, you’re growing. And as long as you’re growing, you’re living and enjoying life. So live in the moment and experience life to it’s fullest! Reaching the Goal Isn’t the End For people like you who are focused on growth and personal development, the achievement of any one goal—or even a long series of huge goals—is never the end. The process begins all over again. That is as it should be. If you’re not growing, you’re dying. So keep on growing! Set new and exciting goals for yourself at every stage of your life and give yourself something to look forward to as long as you are on this earth. Pass It On Share what you know with someone who is just starting out. Teach someone else how to set and achieve goals. Invite them to dream, grow, and develop themselves! Become a mentor and share your wisdom. Pass it on.
Other Resources Goals 2006 Foc using on G oa ls, A c hie ve me nt a nd Living the Life You Wa nt! Acres of Diamonds by Russell Conwell As A Man Thinketh by James Allen Attitude is Everything Tele-Seminar on CD by Jeff Keller Conquer Fear! Tele-Seminar on CD by Lisa Jimenez and Vic Johnson Day by Day w ith J ames Allen by Vic Johnson Create Y our Ow n Future: How to Master the 12 Critical Factors of Unlimited Success by Brian Tracy Failing Forw ard: How to Make the Most of Y our Mistakes by John C. Maxwell Goals: Setting and Achieving Them on Schedule by Zig Ziglar How to Be a W inner by Zig Ziglar How to Get W hat Y ou W ant by Zig Ziglar Make Y our Life W orthw hile by Emmet Fox Message to Garcia by Elbert Hubbard No Dream Too Big Tele-Seminar on CD by Vic Johnson Pulling Y our Ow n Strings by Dr. Wayne Dyer The Challenge to Succeedby Jim Rohn The J im Rohn W eekend Event on DVD/ CD by Jim Rohn The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason Think & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill Y ou’ll See I t W hen Y ou Believe I t by Dr. Wayne Dyer Y ou W ere Born Rich Tele-Seminar on CD by Bob Proctor, John Kanary and Vic Johnson
Goals Contract I, (insert your name here), shall: (outline goal specifics here) on or before (date by which goal must be completed). Upon completion of this/ these goal( s) , I shall: (Outline the reward for achieving this goal here–include something that will be a personal motivator for you). I n the event that I do not complete my goals as outlined by the date set forth, I shall: (Include any negative consequences you wish to include here). Signature Date
