Unleashing Your Potential: Goal Achievement Hacks for Success

1. Setting Clear and Meaningful Goals

It is widely accepted in the literature that setting goals is an effective way to support people in making positive changes in their lives. This is also a common observation in the practical world. Many who talk about effective goal setting stress the importance of setting specific and measurable goals. It is much easier to judge the progress of a goal if you can measure the outcomes. In this view, if the goal is a long-term goal, it is useful to break the goal into smaller goals or objectives. This will help in keeping focused and it also provides some indication of progress over time. This process of breaking goals down into smaller targets or steps is known as the system approach. Systems are the best way to progress, hands down. When we think about improving, often we think about the destination. We want to be at point X rather than point Y. But goals can be deceiving because of its self-centered mindsets. On the other hand, systems are about the process that eventually leads to the desired outcome. If we focus on the progress, then our systems help us make continuous improvement. And the good news is that once the system starts to give you the desired outcome, there is no longer needed maintained discipline. Because as the progress becomes more enjoyable, you will be more attached to the systems rather than the objective. Therefore, the focus on long-term success requires mastering the art of the approach. And this will not only accelerate the progress because this can be sustained over the long run. It’s time for us to jump into a simple process for setting and achieving goals. The first step is to consider what you want to achieve and make sure it is something you need, not just for satisfying others. Then, identify what you need to do to achieve the goal. Break the goal into smaller goals or objectives. Finally, review and update the goal if needed. Setting goals is deeply personal. But to be successful, any goal should mirror the inner value. By paying time for self-reflection and finding a goal that fits with your values and big priorities in life, you are more likely to be successful and devote the intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is the driving force of success. Research has pointed out that people who are intrinsically motivated are more likely to take on challenges and improve their overall capacity, compared with people who are extrinsically motivated, which means engaging in activities for the purpose of getting some type of reward. Also, goals can be long-term, short-term, or personal values. They can be achieved either by yourself or through teamwork. Different types of goals require different types of approaches. And this is the first step of unleashing the potential of goal setting. Well begun is half done. Through this process, you would not only get clear about what you want to achieve but also equip yourself with a sound and deliberate approach to success. When we are actively focused on a goal, it is hard to be strategic, to find the most effective ways to reach our goal. However, self-monitoring goal progress has been found to be a critical factor in goal attainment. Because not only can self-monitoring assist us in being more conscious of our goal-directed behaviors, but it can also bring new awareness about the goal, such as opportunities for personal change and growth. And self-monitoring, which involves tracking and reflecting on personal goals, is a basic principle of behavioral change as well. Over time, research has concluded that there is a significant effect of goal progress and changes in symptoms and depression over time for people with significant depression. Also, self-monitoring goal progress exhibits the largest moderating effect. On the other hand, goals were found to increase in difficulty over time and result in less weight loss, or no significant relationship between goal progress and weight loss.

2. Developing Effective Habits for Success

Laughter. As odd as this may seem, experts say that laughing and using humor actually can help in the formation of good habits. When someone laughs there is something called the bigger picture effect in which the person is automatically put into a mindset of seeing the world from a wider view and becoming less focused on individual stressors. So developing and maintaining good habits can be and is difficult. However, it is these good habits that will help lead us to success and these very habits give us the tools to find the bravery to overcome fear and the obstacles we are faced with.

There are no concrete steps to “making” a habit. However, we do know that there are some activities that lend themselves to the process. For example, visualization is a major tool that is used in the habit-forming process. As you begin to create a mental picture of your ideal self engaging in the positive behavior, the mind begins to accept this image and it begins to replay it over and over again. The mind does not proffer change based on feelings, it begins to adjust and grow based on what is being fed to it, and visualization is an effective way to feed the mind a positive image.

First, determine and set your goals. In this case, the goal is to develop good habits. This involves setting small obtainable goals for yourself, ticking off some quick wins and building on them, and understanding that it is going to take time. Experts say that it takes about 21 days for a new activity, such as daily exercise, to become a habit, and six months for it to become a part of your personality. The reward you will reap while engaging in the process of creating a good habit is personal growth and satisfaction.

Success in any endeavor does not happen by chance, it happens by design. We are all creatures of habit. While some of our habits may serve us, and some may not, we are still the product of our habits. Successful people have learned over the years how to develop good habits and let go of bad ones. This is not to say that you will not face challenges or have to make decisions that may be difficult or even stressful. However, a life filled with mindful, good habits takes much of the stress and decision-making out of the daily routine. By developing and maintaining good habits, you not only set yourself up for success, you shape your life and create your destiny.

3. Overcoming Obstacles and Challenges

The journey to achieving your dreams and becoming successful is never easy. No matter how well you plan or how far-sighted you are, there are always obstacles and challenges that stand in the way of your progress. It is very easy to feel overwhelmed and daunted by such challenges. That is exactly what this section is for – to help you understand and develop strategies for overcoming these challenges in their various forms. Firstly, we will be considering the different types of challenge that you may face – particularly as they are often interlinked. I will talk through finding the root cause of your obstacles because, as with processes used in manufacturing, the more ‘waste’ you can eliminate the better the process will become. We will discuss the idea of ‘Smart Goals’ and how focusing on a few well-constructed targets can help us focus and reduce the stress we feel when faced with numerous challenges. Also, ‘resilience’, the ability to bounce back from setbacks quickly and stronger than before, will be explored in more depth; we will consider how resilience is not just an inbuilt personality trait everyone is lucky – or unlucky – enough to have but a set of learnable behaviors that we can all benefit from. Throughout this section, there are many opportunities for self-reflection and group discussion – so don’t forget to engage with the content. After all, the power of talking through challenges as a team can never be underestimated!

4. Maximizing Productivity and Time Management

Organizing your time As we all have the same 24 hours in a day, learning how to manage time effectively can greatly help achieve goals. First of all, record the time spent on activities for a few days, so to identify the best time for getting things done and to develop the best-working schedule. Also, it is important to prioritize and not indulge in the habit of doing things that are ‘not important’. When scheduling tasks, allow more time blocks for high priority items. Set a specific time for most tasks and that will help in avoiding traffic jams and backlogs. However, it is necessary to expect the unexpected, to be flexible, and to allow some time for interruptions. Remember it is important to remain focused with a set time and duration, so as to finish a task as planned. To get motivated in time management, make a to-do list for the day as it will give a better overview of the tasks, increase focus and reduce anxiety. However, make sure that the list is achievable and set the essential and priority ones for the day at the first. Tasks should be completed one by one and do not do other things in the middle which can make time scheduling upset, especially when there was an unplanned work in and further delay the completion and progress. When new activity or a new habit first starts, it is important to remember that it takes time to develop. So a good suggestion is to stick to the new activity in a specific time at some days and after a few weeks, that time can be extended. In fact, we may find a great improvement in later time and we just need to stay disciplined and keep account of the time spent in the activities. By managing time well and making good use of time, we will no longer suffer from sleep deficit or feel stressful when an examination is coming. I hope these tips will lead to a more successful time management and improve our life. And one more thing to remember is that we should not plan to ‘pack’ our life too much as it can cause stress if a plan is delayed. Life is to enjoy and to live positively; it is not a matter to race through it. We should manage our time with wisdom and pursue the study in a progressive manner. By doing so, we can develop healthy habits, attitudes and skills which can help enhance personal growth and make a positive difference in our life.

5. Sustaining Motivation and Achieving Long-Term Success

Sustaining motivation and achieving long-term success is not an easy feat. Like a good friend, we need to constantly nurture our motivation in order to reach our goals. As mentioned by Mary Ryan, Ph.D. in her article “Sustaining Motivation and Achieving Goals,” we need to maintain a balance in our life. Looking through the leverage at the positive aspects of our life is just as important as addressing negative aspects. Mary suggested that we should also learn to take care of ourselves, take time for ourselves, learn to say “no,” and reward ourselves. I totally agree with her. When we pay attention to our physical and mental health by practicing the balance self-care, we will have the resources to maintain enthusiasm and drive throughout the journey towards reaching our goals. Also, by taking small intervals for ourselves, we are more likely to stay focused on the bigger picture in spite of the everyday routine that we may find mundane. I believe that celebrate accomplishments, no matter however small they are, is also equally important strategy to keep up our motivation for work. As suggested by Ms. Remez Sasson, the founder of the SuccessConsciousness.com, in his article “Motivation – How to Stay Motivated,” celebrate not only the end results, but also each step of our effort. Every little thing we have achieved deserves to be celebrated. When we begin to feel frustrated, tired and uninspired, we can look back to the accomplishments that we have made and take pride in it. Right now, let’s think about rewarding ourselves for making through these great strategies by maintaining motivation. Let’s go catching a movie, having a scoop of ice cream, or buying some nice presents for ourselves. And let’s not forget: Never, never give up on ourselves. So, remember to hold on to our motivation for work and come to this article again whenever we are feeling down. Let’s make our achievement happen and concrete our success from now on. Start with small goals using the S.M.A.R.T. strategy and continuously reward ourselves throughout the journey and we will reach our goals in no time! We have the power within ourselves to make our dreams come true. Work on our motivation today and make our dreams a reality!