When Goal Setting Advice is Too Academic – Try This
Yesterday I shared my three rules of thumb for goal setting. I wrote the post for people who are struggling with their goals with the hope of providing a process and structure to make progress more attainable.
Unfortunately, however, it appears I may have missed the mark. The feedback I got was that my three rules of thumb were too academic. I take this to mean some people view my three rules of thumb as either too complex or not practical.
With this in mind, if you find my previous goal setting suggestions too academic, then try applying this approach to your goals.
- Identify three skills you must work to improve in order to reach your goal.
- For each of those three skills, find one activity you can measure improvement in that allows you to practice that skill.
- Create a daily routine for doing those activities, tracking your consistency (streaks), and measuring your improvement.
These three steps are not academic at all. These are the exact three steps I use for all my goals and I can personally testify they work. These steps force you to focus on the process instead of the outcome. What’s more, research shows that those who pursue goals by focusing on the process instead of the outcome are much happier.
Finally, by taking the time to think through how to apply these three steps you accomplish something else as well. You find out if the goal you want fits with your personality. If you grow to enjoy doing the activities you identify in your routine, then your goal fits with your personality. On the other hand, if you dread the thought of those activities then you should seriously consider rethinking your goals.
As always, if you need help with this, let’s talk about how my coaching program can help. Contact me here.