Every year people come up with New Year resolutions, and every year they are forgotten by February. The reason for this is that a resolution is fleeting, it is a hollow exclamation, and it has no spine! What we need to be making are GOALS!
There are as many methods for making goals as there are people writing about making goals. This is a good thing because everyone is not motivated the same way, and you have to find the best way to keep yourself on track if you are going to achieve the goals that you set for yourself. Below I have listed a few methods for setting, tracking, and accomplishing your goals for 2009.
1. The first method I discovered from the blog escapefromcubiclenation.com by way of vsellis.com. It involves funneling your goals back to a single big idea. To save digital trees, you can find the entire process here. Both the blogs credited are well worth your reading by the way.
2. The second method is the one Tim Ferriss talks about on his wildly popular blog The Four Hour Work Week. His method is called Dreamlining, and you can read all about it and find a helpful spreadsheet here.
3. The third method is my favorite. I adopted this method myself a couple years ago, and it has worked well so far. I picked it up after reading Tommy Newberry’s Success is Not an Accident. I started off by writing down my 150 life goals, my bucket list if you will. Each year I pick five of those goals to work toward. I then break the steps down into bite sized chunks, and track my progress on a monthly basis.
Something that both of these methods (and any successful method) have in common is the need to break down the goals into actionable items. Another key part of achieving your goals is motivation. As was said earlier, people have many different ways of staying motivated. You have to commit to achieving your goals on a daily basis, or they will get lost in the fray. This can be accomplished using post it notes, pictures, daily mantras, calendar entries, etc. The point is to reemphasize your goals each and every day, and accomplish something each day that moves you closer to those goals. It doesn’t have to be anything big; it could be as simple as talking to someone about the goal to increase your accountability to achieving the goal.
Whatever system you use, there is no better time to start than right now! So get busy and make 2009 your best year yet!
Gas prices are higher than ever, so you’re likely to see more advertising for “gas-saving” products. Yes, we want to improve on fuel efficiency, but are these products really helping? Or are they just taking an extra bite out of our already shrinking car budget?