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How to Map Out Concrete Goals

When you look back over the last couple of years, can you definitively state that you are happy with the results you got in each of those years? If you want 2020 to be the year when things turn around, the year when you register achievements that are beyond your wildest dreams, then you need to embrace goals mapping.

Harvard Business School conducted a study in which they discovered that a whopping 83 percent of all people don’t have goals and that another 14 percent have a vague plan of what they would like to achieve, but this plan isn’t concretized in the form of goals. Only 3 percent of the population have written goals.

What is interesting is that the 14 percent with a plan in mind were 10 times more successful than the 83 percent who don’t have goals. More amazing was the finding that the 3 percent who wrote down their goals achieved success that was three times greater than that of the 14 percent!

It, therefore, stands to reason that if you want to make 2020 your best year ever, then you need to join the ranks of the 3 percent who write down their goals and then get to work to make those goals a reality. Written goals give you a concrete map that you will follow in order to progress towards the results that you would like to achieve.

Be Sure To Grab The Goals Mapping Download Below!

This blog post is intended to help you do just that, and we recommend that you divide your goals for 2020 into 3 distinct categories, namely:

  1. Personal Growth and Contribution
  2. Achievements and Experiences
  3. Financial Freedom and Rewards

James Allen wrote a powerful book titled As a Man Thinketh. This book details how one’s thoughts determine what that person’s reality becomes, and James Allen was inspired to write the book by a Bible verse found in Proverbs 23: 7 states that “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.”

Everything around you was initially a thought, and through deliberate/conscious or unconscious effort you brought that thought into reality. In the same way, your goals are what you think (in your heart) that you need to achieve, and those goals will only become reality once you develop a plan to achieve them within the 365 days of 2020.

As you go through this process of mapping out your concrete goals, have it at the back of your mind that you are the steward of your destiny, the captain of your ship. It, therefore, helps if you aim very high because only you can put limits on how far you can go in life.

If you believe in your heart that you deserve it, then your faith, the universe and everything you believe in will give you the fuel, bring people your way and rearrange circumstances so that those things you strongly believe in your mind become a reality. Your goals should fully consume you so that you start breathing, dreaming, talking and acting on them!

SMART Goals

As you get to work mapping out your concrete goals, it is advisable to keep in mind that those goals should be SMART, meaning;

  • S-Specific. For example, I want to lose 10 pounds.
  • M-Measurable. For example, you should be able to document your progress as you lose weight over time.
  • AAction-oriented. The goal should be stated in a way that pushes you to take action. For example, your goal to have a kitchen garden can include steps like measuring out the area one day, followed by turning the soil on another day, and so on (until the overall goal is attained).
  • R-Realistic. This means that your goal should be reasonably within reach for you. For example, you could set yourself up for failure if you set a goal to become a famous college professor in a year and yet you never graduated high school.
  • T-Time bound. A smart goal should have a timeline within which it has to be attained. For example, I want to lose 10 pounds by the end of this year. 

Related: SMART GOALS – Tips For Goal Setting

As you embark on the exercise described below, make sure that your goals are SMART. Approach the exercise with the confidence of someone who knows that everything they want is within their reach. With such a mindset, the sky will not be the limit for you; it will be the beginning!

Personal Growth and Contribution

Your achievements will always be in direct proportion to how much willingness and effort you invest towards growing as an individual. Your 2020 goals, therefore, need to start indicating the specific areas in which you would like to grow as a person. For example, do you want to acquire a certain skill that will make you more competitive in your industry? What character attribute would you like to nurture so that you become a better person? How would you like to improve your health this year? Which relationship would you like to give more attention so that you can be connected more deeply with that person or entity? How would you like to contribute more to your community and to the world in general? 

Use the “Warren Buffett Method” to brainstorm as many aspects of your personal growth and contribution that you would like to register success in this year. The billionaire investor is reported to have advised his pilot to write down 25 goals he would like to achieve, and then whittle down that list to just five goals. What happens to the other 20 goals on the original list of 25? Buffett recommends that you avoid them completely until the shortlisted five have been attained. 

In the same way, you should also pick your top three goals in the area of personal growth. Focusing on just those three goals will help you to avoid being so scattered in your efforts that it becomes impossible to attain meaningful success. With just three goals to work upon, the degree of success you register will go through the roof!

Achievements and Experiences

There’s more to life than just work, so this section of your goals is devoted to identifying the top three things that would make your life more pleasurable. Life is all about balance, so don’t feel guilty about setting goals to bring more joy into your life. 

For example, is there a trip that you would like to make in order to have an experience you have always dreamed of? What would you like to do just for the sheer joy of it? Swim with dolphins? Climb a mountain in a foreign country? Spend a month with the Buddhist monks in Tibet? Whatever those achievements or experiences, capture them as SMART goals for this year.

Financial Freedom and Rewards

In this section, your attention needs to shift to your finances. What three financial goals would you be overjoyed to attain in 2020? How much money would you like to earn in 2020? What career or business growth do you want this year? What will make 2020 financially satisfying for you? Write down your top three SMART goals in this area. It has been said that money won’t buy you happiness, but it will sure make a lot of things possible in your life! You should, therefore, see no shame in trying to better yourself financially.

Start mapping your goals today using the system described above and watch how your life will be transformed. In the meantime, please share in the comments some of the mistakes you have been making when setting your goals and let us know what changes you plan to implement immediately as you seek to improve your chances of attaining your goals for this year. Be Sure To Grab The Goals Mapping Download Below!

To You Success,

Jairek Robbins

Ready to level up your coaching and leadership game? Want to make a big impact in the lives of others? Add more power to your purpose with our 12-week online Performance Coach certification course. Apply here: Course overview & Application!