A Simple Exercise to Start Setting Goals

Recently, I was in a mentorship group led by Jim Wideman. He is a children’s pastor who served here in the late 80′s and is mostly known for running Willie George’s children’s ministry during is atmospheric growth. During one of his teaching sessions, Jim taught us a quick and easy exercise to set goals and keep them.

1. Pick 3 goals. We’ve talked about the different types of goals here, and how to set huge goals here. However these need to be small and easily attainable. I made the mistake of setting long reaching goals that were difficult to maintain and easy to get behind. Sadly, I failed the three during this exercise, but that hasn’t stopped me from setting new ones.
2. Set a deadline. A goal without a deadline is simply a want, and unfortunately will never happen. This is why teachers give due dates for those dreaded book reports. If they never told you when it was due, you’d never turn that thing in. It’s the same here. Figure out a reasonable timeline to accomplish your goal and write it down on a calendar. This was my mistake. I set a deadline, but it was a year away and far too easy to dismiss. I should have broken it down into a smaller goal with a shorter deadline.
3. Tell someone about it. It doesn’t have to be the world, but you should tell someone your goals. It can be your spouse, a close friend, your coworker. Just tell someone about it. Just by saying out loud, you are much more likely to achieve your goal because now you are accountable, which leads us to our next step.
4. Get someone to keep you accountable. You know why Weight Watchers works? You have to stand in front of someone on a scale and they tell you whether you’ve lost or gained. If you were good that week, it’s cause for celebration. If not, it’s excruciating. Having someone keep you accountable, keeps you on your toes. You have that nagging feeling when you start to fail, or the exhilaration when you succeed. It just makes it easier.
5. Do it. A wise gargoyle from The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Disney once said,

“If watching is all you’re going to do, then you’re going to watch your life go by without you.” – Laverne, The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Don’t just sit there and wait for things to come your way. Get out there and get them. That’s what goal setting is all about. Realizing what you want and going for it. Once you do you’re life will be fuller, relationships will be richer, and success will be sweeter.

It’s your choice. What will you do?