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Want to set clear personal SMART goals and make them happen? Well, this post is all about how to set goals for yourself in life and achieve them, using the really simple golden rule of 3.
Why is setting goals important?
Personal goal setting in life is crucial if you want to be successful. Generally, this is because having long-term and short-term personal goals help you narrow your focus and directs you to achieve specifically what you want in life. Moreover, planning and setting achievable goals in life, help you become the best version of yourself that you completely admire each day.
When setting your personal life goals, it is essential to make sure that it comes from deep within you. Yes, You! Not your friends, not Instagram BFFs, role models, etc.
For example, I can come on this platform and tell you to go to the gym, be healthy, budget, plan, be kind, etc. What a cliché, right?
We all know that those kinds of broad goals never work because we all end up not being consistent. Well, that has been me too in the past years, LOL!
But you know what! THAT IS OKAY. I am not saying that you shouldn’t have life goals. However, I think the best way to set goals in life is to:
- Be honest with yourself.
- Know that it is okay to start over.
- Have grace upon yourself.
Therefore, when creating personal goals, I believe in the power of simplicity. It means having digestible, bite-size SMART goals that lead to a bigger picture.
What are SMART goals?
1. Specific
I totally understand that you have big dreams, but your goals need as specific and narrow-focused as possible. Or else, they may not come to pass.
Specific goal example: Instead of saying, “I want to be successful in life earning 6 figures,” a specific goal would be, “I want to start a fedora hat collection business on Shopify, and earn a revenue of $150K a year to be successful in life.“
2. Measurable
It is essential to have a goal that is measurable and having a system that tracks your progress in achieving goals.
Measurable SMART goal example: I will set up a separate business bank account for my Fedora Hat collection so that I can easily track my revenue and expenses on QuickBooks.
3. Attainable
Make sure that your goal is attainable and you can achieve it by making effort within a certain period of time. Therefore, do your research to see if it is reasonable and possible. Maybe achieving $150K your first year in your fedora hat collection business is not attainable.
Attainable SMART goal example: I want to make $30K my first year selling fedora hats to women, $80K my second year, $120K my third year, and $150K my fourth year to be successful in life.
4. Relevant
You have to make sure that your goal is realistic today and relevant in the future. Therefore, find out why you really want to start selling those fedora hats and if it’s the fashion trend now or in the future? Is there demand? Will it bring sales? How much do you need to sell a hat for to reach your goal of $30K revenue first year?
Relevant SMART goal example: After trend research, I found out that there is great demand for women fedora hats every fall season. Therefore, for my first year, I will set a realistic goal to sell 600 limited edition hats for $50, by advertising on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.
5. Time Specific
It is essential to set a clear time frame to which you want to reasonably achieve the goal. Is it in a day, month, year? Be as specific as possible. You want to be time-specific so that you can create a reasonable timeline to take action.
Time-specific SMART goal example: Since I am doing the limited hat edition drop on Saturday, Sept 1st to Sunday 2rd, 20xx, here is the list of things I need to do:
- I will order my 600 fedora hats and supplies four months in advance to avoid delay.
- I will build momentum and hype on all social media platforms about my limited edition fedoras starting 2 months in advance. (7/1/20xx)
- And I will launch the limited edition product live on Instagram, and Facebook at 10 am on September 1st.
- I will express ship all beautifully packaged products to customers on Monday Sept. 3rd, so that they arrive on time.
How to Set Goals for Yourself
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The Golden Rule of 3 Goals
The golden rule of three means intentionally simplifying and setting your goals in life into small digestible bite-sized layered ideas. Noticeably, a lot of time, people get overwhelmed and burnt out because of the pressure to accomplish a million things by a certain age or time frame. (Related blog: How To Recover From Burnout Now! 8 Most Effective Tips).
However, the golden rule of three goals encourages you to take a step back, breathe in, breath out, and prioritize the only three things you need to accomplish this new year, this month, and today.
Therefore, it’s all about simplifying your life, ditching things that don’t serve you, and focusing more on yourself. (Related blog: How to Simplify Life in 8 Ways & Focus More on Yourself)
First Step: Set your new year productive smart goals
Firstly, at the beginning of the new year, write down only three SMART goals you want to achieve by the end of the year. Completely narrow down your focus to only three things that are going to move the needle forward to help you be the best version of yourself this new year. Is it travel? start a business? be more present at the moment? If you want, you may call these ideas your New year resolutions.
Also, do not be discouraged to change your goals if they are not aligning with what you want anymore. Please remember that you have the power to write, rewrite, or erase your goals because a year is just damn too long to commit. And life simply changes a lot within a year.
Second Step: Set your monthly productive SMART goals
Secondly, at the beginning of every month, think about only three actionable SMART goals that can lead you to achieve your yearly goals. Think about what steps you can take each month to help you turn your end-of-year ideas into reality. Is it reading a personal growth business book per month? Doing a workout challenge each month? Doing a social media detox to be present with family? Saving a certain amount of money for your birthday vacation? (Related blog: How To Be Productive With 9 Easy Tips)
Third Step: Set your daily productive SMART goals
Thirdly, every morning write down in your planner three productive things that you can do today to slowly lead you to accomplish your monthly goals. I fully understand that in life there are more than three things to do in a day, however, just think about what are your first top priorities, then second priorities, etc. Moreover, focus on 3 priorities at a time and your world will change forever.
You can also create a daily morning and night routine to help you be productive and accomplish a lot more. (Related blog: My Morning Routine Free Tips To Accomplish Insanely More)
Last thoughts on how to set goals for yourself in life and achieve them
I hope that this blog post has inspired you to set SMART goals for yourself in life and actually achieve them.
Lastly, if you have read this far, it is not by coincidence. I strongly believe we have been brought together for a reason. Therefore, if these success tips resonate with you, feel free to leave a comment. Aaaand! Let’s be friends because I can’t wait to chat with you more.
I love this. I was searching for an online journal download to add to my notebook app and came across your template. This led me to read your post, and it was a really good way for me to get some direction in my prayer life that I didn’t even know I needed. Some of the ideas you mentioned I feel like will help me go more in-depth in my prayer life, so thank you sister for your obedience to the Holy Spirit. I wish you a wonderful year of God’s blessings.
Hi Hannah! Oh wow! Thank you so much for taking your time to let me know how much you loved the prayer journal ideas blog post. I am so glad you have gained direction in your prayer life. I hope you continue to grow in your spiritual life. I am truly blessed and encouraged by you.