We talk about goal setting, making sure you are setting S.M.A.R.T goals and being realistic in achieving them. I thought it would be good to talk about goal-planning. This is much more than setting a great goal. it is about planning how you will get there. With goal-planing, you are much more likely to get to THE BIG THING!
Once you have decided on something you want to achieve – this is the BIG GOAL the THING. Maybe it feels a little out of reach – that’s ok I like it when you reach far. You are more capable than you give yourself credit for – I promise
So here is the deal – When trying to accomplish something we start at opposite ends. Planning Begins at the end, and Action Begins at the beginning. Have I confused you yet??
Check out this awesome diagram I made
(5 min in Word …ooooohhh and awwww people)
Making more sense? Yeah, I thought that would help.
So, what does this mean? Megan, How do I begin?
Goal-Planning
First, I want you to sit down and DREAM BIG! What do you want to accomplish? Where do you want to be in 1, 5, or 10 years? What is the one thing that you haven’t yet done that you want to do? You can have more that one BIG thing you are looking to accomplish and work toward.
Remember in Setting and Celebrating Milestones I talked about choosing goals (or milestones) that align with your value system. This way you choose a path that you are truly happy with and is authentic to you. This is an important decision, choose wisely.
Now, that you have THE BIG THING worked out – Write it at the top of a page. your next step is setting the MILESTONES. This is where we begin goal-planning. Ask yourself, What has to happen in order for me to reach this goal? Health-related milestones may be Distance you can run, body fat percentage lost, muscle gained? So break down the BIG THING into parts and assign a goal date. Be realistic here. Leaving space for your action steps, fill in your milestones down the page.
Lastly, you break each of your milestones into small doable action steps. In order for you to meet your milestone, what actions do you need to take to make it a reality? You might have 3 action steps you might have 10. Whatever you need to have on your plan to keep yourself accountable and accomplish each milestone. Goal-planning from formulating THE BIG THING, setting milestones, and planning down to what you need to take action on starting today is your recipe for success.
That’s it for the planning phase! Waahoo! That’s the easy part. Next up: The doing.
