Set goals: Are there desires and goals in your life that have been there for a long time but that you never tackle? Do you fantasise about a wonderful future once you have achieved your goals? It has been shown that the longer you fantasise about the future after achieving your goals, the less likely it is that you will actually achieve them. Being clear about the consequences and benefits of achieving goals is of course important, but if this becomes the primary focus, effective goal formulation and actual action planning will not occur.
To give you an example: You want to find a more balanced relationship with your partner. This is of course a comprehensive goal, and a sub-goal could be to behave in a more attentive way towards your partner.
Another example could be that you want to set yourself the goal of living healthier. This is also a comprehensive goal that can encompass several facets, and one aspect of this could be regular exercise.
Setting SMART goals
Setting smart goals means that your goals are specific, motivated by your values, adaptive, realistic and time-framed. Using the example of the goals you have set yourself to behave more towards your partner and to exercise regularly, the goal formulation could look like this:
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Specific: Make your goal as specific as possible and formulate it positively.
For example: I give my partner my undivided attention for 10 minutes every evening after dinner and ask her how her day has gone and how she is doing. Or: I go jogging once a week for at least 30 minutes.
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Motivated by your values: Your goals should always be in line with your values. Both goals could be based on the value of caring - once towards a partner, once towards ones own body and health.
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Adaptive: Your goal should improve your life in some way. In the first example, it is a sub-goal to find a more balanced relationship, in the second example, it is a sub-goal to find a healthier lifestyle. Both should most likely have a positive effect on your life in general 🙂
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Realistic: Your goal should be achievable with the resources you have. These resources can relate to time, money, skills, knowledge, physical condition, social support or other things. If this is not the case for a set goal, a sub-goal could be set in order to obtain the necessary resources.
So if, for example, your time resources do not currently allow for the targeted 10 minutes after dinner, you need to consider how you can find them. Perhaps you should start preparing dinner earlier or push back your plan for the evening by 10 minutes. Perhaps attention is also a resource that is in short supply at this time, and maybe switching your mobile phone to flight mode will be enough. It can be similar with the goal of going jogging for 30 minutes once a week. If you have severe knee problems, for example, and jogging aggravates them, you should change your goal - instead of jogging, plan fast walking, cycling or swimming.
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Time-framed: Setting smart goals always means setting a specific day and time at which you take the targeted measures. In the first case, for example, Monday to Friday, around 7.30 pm, when dinner is finished. Going jogging once a week is still a rather vague goal - better: I go jogging every Saturday morning around 10:00 a.m. after breakfast for at least 30 minutes.
Setting big goals: So that you don't feel like you're up against the wall when it comes to big goals, it's important to break these big goals down into sub-goals. The bigger and more challenging the goal, the more sub-goals you should formulate. It is also important to consider what could prevent you from achieving your goals. What internal and external hurdles need to be overcome and how will you react to them when they arise? It is also helpful to communicate your goals to others. It has been scientifically proven , that sharing your goals with at least one other person increases the likelihood that you will commit to achieving them.
Are there any wishes in your life that you would like to turn into concrete goals? Feel free to share them in the comments.