By Todd Smith
How would you like to increase the odds of achieving your goals? Whether you desire to lose weight, create financial independence, build a healthy marriage, or raise responsible children, the formula for achieving any goal is the same.
Here are 10 tips in sequential order that will help you increase the odds of achieving your goals…
1. Identify what’s
important to you! The only goals you will succeed in reaching are those
that are truly important to you. If a goal is not meaningful or significant to
you, you will quit when faced with obstacles. Take 30 minutes and make a list
of the things that are truly essential in your life; those that you highly
value. Then highlight the most important points on that list and set your
goals.
2. Learn from those
who have already achieved “your” goals. Once you are clear on what you
truly want to achieve, your next step is to learn what you need to know. The
best source of knowledge will come from those who have already reached goals
similar to yours. Identify people you respect and admire, who have achieved the
goals you desire, and learn as much as you can from them.
3. Determine
the person you need to become. Far too often people focus on what
they need to do to achieve their goals and fail to consider who they must
become. To accomplish something you have never accomplished before, you must be
willing to do what you’ve never done before; go where you’ve never been before;
become someone you’ve never been before.
As you
learn from those who have achieved “your”
goals, pay as much attention to their personal attributes and characteristics
as you do to what they did to realize their goals.
4. Put together a
plan. After learning from and studying those who have been successful in
reaching similar goals, your next step is to put together your plan. You need
to clearly outline what you need to do and when, step-by-step, and then reduce
those steps into daily activities. Knowing exactly what you need to do every
day is critical to achieving any worthwhile goal.
5. Ask,
“Am I willing to pay the price required to achieve my goal?” After you
complete your plan, be honest with yourself and determine if your goal is
important enough to you that you will discipline yourself to do what’s required
each day to achieve your goal. One of the biggest reasons people fail to reach
their goals is because they are not willing to do what’s required over a sustained
period of time. How about you.
6. Allocate
the time required. Your next step is to block out the time necessary each
day to work your plan. If you are like most people (and that includes me), you
will need to give something up that’s less important so you have the time to
achieve what’s more important. Blocking out time each day to work your plan is
vital. Success comes from consistent daily action!
7. Get
started. Once you have learned what you need to know, divided your plan
into daily activities, and blocked out time each day to do the assigned tasks,
it’s time to Work Your Plan. Start tomorrow! When the time you’ve blocked out
arrives, push yourself to do what you know you should do without any further
delay. It’s time for action. You could continue to study dozens of books,
listen to CDs, and interview successful people (all helpful), but the greatest,
most practical knowledge comes from implementing what you’ve learned.
8. Make
wise decisions. Your odds of achieving your goals dramatically improve when
you follow a logical process of making your decisions, both big and small. With
each decision you make, consider all your options; write down the pros and cons
of each option. From there, the right decision is usually obvious.
9. Refuse
to allow excuses. The No.1 reason people fail to achieve their goals is
because they allow themselves to make excuses for not doing what they know they
should do. One of the most crucial keys to success is doing what you know you
should do, every day, even when you don’t feel like doing it. This means NEVER
allowing yourself to justify not doing what you know you should do. Make a
commitment that you will not make excuses under any circumstances!
10. Strive
for excellence. The No.1 key to my success over the last 31 years is that I
have always strived (and I still strive) for excellence in whatever I do. I
analyze everything I’ve done and consider how I can do it better. As you work
your plan each day, evaluate everything you are doing and consider how you can
refine what you are doing so that your results improve. The compounding effect
of small daily improvements is powerful. The best of the best are those who
strive for constant and never-ending improvement.
If you
will take the time to study each of the above tips and the corresponding lesson
highlighted in many of them, you will significantly increase your odds of
achieving your goals. The reason many people fail to achieve their goals is
because they are unwilling to do what is necessary over the required period of time.
If you’re like most people (and that includes me), you will go through periods
of discouragement and disappointment. That’s normal.
When
you get down, remember “Quitters never win and Winners never quit.” Remind
yourself that the reason you will achieve your goals is because you are a
winner, not a quitter! Step out from the crowd and build a life for yourself
that makes you proud!
About
the Author: Todd Smith is a successful entrepreneur of 31
years and founder of Little
Things Matter. To receive Todd’s lessons, subscribe here.
All Todd’s lessons are also available on iTunes as downloadable
podcasts. (Todd’s podcasts are ranked #19 in America’s top 100
podcasts and #1 in the personal and development field.)
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