Setting Goals
Ever wanted to be rich and famous? Well some people reach that while others don’t. This feat does not happen overnight or by wishing on a star. It takes a great amount of effort and some luck. This all begins by being able to set your goals.
To do that, you first have to ask yourself what do you want to do in life. As a child, you probably said to yourself “I want to be a fireman” or something to that effect. Years later this changes and if you look back, you ended up doing something else.
Does this mean you don’t know how to set goals? No because it is a fact of life that the things we liked as a child change as we grow up. We matured and decided to pursue something else more fulfilling.
As you grow older, you don’t always have to do what your parents say anymore because the decision is in your hands. Do you want to join the varsity team? Do you want to go to college? These are things you have to ask yourself then from there, you can review which one has more priority over the other.
For instance, teens who got pregnant have to raise their baby which means they don’t have time to finish high school or even go to college. This means they have to choose being a mother rather than pursuing a career. When the child gets older, only then can they consider going back to school so they are able to complete a goal that was set aside for awhile.
When you set goals, you have to think which ones of these are short term and those that are long term. If you want to get good grades in school that is the short term goal because the long term goal is getting into the college of your choice and finding work.
It would be a good idea to write these down and then put subtasks underneath so you can plan how this can be achieved. You can write down how many hours you plan to study daily then when the SAT’s are coming, you can countdown how many days there are left until the big day that will give you enough time to prepare for each of the subjects on the test.
If you got into the college of your choice or graduated already, naturally you cross out these old goals and then put new ones. If you loaned money for college, you have to figure out how to pay it off by knowing how much you should pay monthly.
It is not always a straight path to achieve your goals. Setbacks do happen and we have to adapt with the situation and change some of them. For instance, if you are no longer happy with your career, you will most likely want to shift to another one.
Does this affect the long term goal? Not really but it will just delay the time that it will take you to achieve it.
One thing you should consider when setting goals is not only thinking about yourself but others as well and this happens when you have your own family. Yes you may be bringing home the bacon but does this reduce the amount of time you spend with your spouse or your kids? A lot of experts have said that there must be a balance but some people find it easier said than done.
What if your job requires you to move? Can you and they handle it? Most of the time, they will be supportive especially if you are the breadwinner in the family. But the cost of course is them leaving their friends behind which is very difficult for the kids. The point is as head of the household, you have to get them also involved in the process of setting goals.
Setting goals are easy when this is written on paper. The challenge will be achieving it. If you are almost there, don’t give up and hold out as long as you can. If the plans you have set are not working, step back and see what is wrong because sometimes another approach is necessary.
