You’re going to need to build the bridge to get to where your heart desires. Knowing what you want is great, now you’veve got to plan how you’re going to achieve it.
You’ve decided what you want, you’ve got a newfound sense of energy and motivation. In fact, you’re excited and realise you haven’t felt this way in a long time. That’s fantastic! BUT… Before the momentum stops, it’s time to set up some achievable ways of getting you what you want. It’s time to turn that awareness into action. It’s important to note, that the actions we take should feel aligned to your values and not forced. Forcing action will quickly zap your motivation and enjoyment and you’ll lose sight of what you want to achieve. If you’re feeling like you should be doing these actions, ask yourself if it’s because it’s what you want, or is this goal something you feel you should want? Again, if your heart isn’t in it, you’ll self-sabotage, procrastinate and return back to the cycle you’re desperately trying to break free from.
The goals you make may very well be hard to achieve, and may require a little effort to get you there. But here’s the difference in feeling hard and feeling forced – are you excited to get start, and proud of yourself at the end of each stepping stone? If you’re waking yourself every morning at 5am to go for a walk before work – are you looking forward to it? or are you dreading every step? Maybe it’s not the right path, and that’s okay..
Long-term consistency relies heavily on your desire to continue doing something. You need to believe in what you’re doing, and why you’re doing it. Meaningful goals are easier to stick to, especially when life gets a little messy. Take this chance to check in with your goals. Think about what it’s going to take to achieve them. Decide if these are really your goals, or do they need more thought? And you know, if you start to feel less excited as you’re working towards them, check in again and re-assess.
With clear goals, it’s time to develop your plan. Think about both short -term and long-term satisfaction. Some goals can take an extended amount of time to achieve – and your motivation can wear thin when there’s very little gratification coming from your actions. If your long-term goal is something that is going to take a lot of dedicated (and not so fun) time, set yourself some small wins too – to get that rush of reward in-between.
Here’s an example of how a long-term goal can start to feel like a burden – I decided to go back to university a few years ago. I went in knowing it wasn’t going to be easy. Balancing a full-time job and a young family is hard in itself. And I threw in a degree as well. Three years in, and I’ve still got at least two to go, and honestly, there are plenty of days in between where I want to give up, where I melt down and tell myself (and hubby) I’m just not cut out to handle everything. How do I combat it? Small wins and friendly reminders. I make meaningful family time (because that brings me happiness in the moment, and the thing I feel like I’m giving up to study). Planned weekends once a month give me the feel-good vibes I crave, and something to look forward to while I’m putting in the hard yards. I remind myself the hard work I’ve already put in, and acknowledge I’m not ready to walk away from that – even though I might want to in the moment. I focus on what I want to do with my degree once I’m done – and there’s an opportunity cost of what I’d be giving up if I didn’t keep going.
But without those small wins – like weekends devoted to enjoying time with my kids – I’d burn out quickly and would struggle to find the motivation to keep going. Short-term goals are important – whether they’re stepping stones to your next big goal, or whether they’re completely unrelated but you know they will hit the spot of satisfaction.
Long-term goals;
- Give you direction and purpose – make sure they’re meaningful – do you want to lose 10kg or do you want to feel stronger or be more body-confident? (and is this achieved by only losing 10kg or by encompassing a wider mindset on what feeling stronger and confident looks like).
- Big goals keep you grounded, resilient when short-term problems arise.
- They bring you fulfilment and contemned. Having a long-term goal stops you from getting stuck in life.
- These goals make you stretch, evolve and grow . Think about the future, not just today.
Short term goals;
- Keep you energised and build momentum. Aim for quick wins.
- Allow you to keep focus during times of chaos. Reduce the overwhelming nature of big goals.
- Life happens, our paths change direction. Short-term goals are flexible without losing the big picture.
- Every little win gives you confidence that you can do this! You can follow through on your big ideas.
Why do you need both? Short term goals (from now to a couple of months from now), can add like stepping stones, getting you to your long-term destination (Long term goals). They make your goals look and feel achievable when broken down into small chunks. They create a space for momentum, to help us slowly progress. Break down your long-term goals into smaller pieces – instead of ‘becocoming fit’, create half a dozen small, progressive goals of ‘walk three times a week’, ‘eat five healthy meals’, ‘only eat take-out once a month’. By achieving all of the small goals, the big goals almost take care of themselves.
When designing your goals, always consider the SMART strategy;
Specific – be clear, concise and absolute on what you want to achieve. “Get fit” is ambiguous. What does that even look like? Do you actually want to feel stronger? The goal is specific when it becomes “be able to lift 100kg”, with a series of short-term goals of “go to the gym five days a week”, “learn how to use the weight-lifting machines”, “Do 5 sets of 20kg lifts”.
Measurable – How are you going to track your progress? You’ve got clear goals on how you’re going to save $20k to go on holiday, and you’re working towards that. But how much have you actually saved? You need to be able to keep track of how much you’re saving, and at what rate so you know whether you’re going to meet your deadline.
Achievable – we love a challenge, but just make sure it’s not setting you up for disappointment. Being able to run 5km tomorrow isn’t realistic if you aren’t already doing it.
Relevant – Is the goal related to your bigger picture, to your values and what drives you? Or is it something you think you should do? If your sole purpose in life is to eat every sweet thing in existence, is putting yourself on a strict no sugar diet really what you want to do?
Time- everyone plans to do something ‘someday’, you need a clear timeline, or a deadline. But remember to keep it realistic!
This is a great moment to remind you that these goals can be whatever you want them to be. There is no wrong answer. There’s successful framework that will help you get there, but your goals, especially your short-term goals can be whatever you make them. I recommend using micro-productivity, especially if you are just starting out – they make everything super achievable. Check out the post on micro-productivity here. Short -term goals are about setting yourself up for success. If you want to become healthier (however you’ve defined the goal), the very first short -term goal could be ‘buying proper joggers’, ‘getting dressed in gym clothes’, ‘making a gym playlist’, ‘signing up to the gym’, ‘meeting my trainer’, ‘doing my first workout’. See how these are all super small goals, but are getting you to where you want to be by creating momentum?
What if you derail?
You probably will. And that’s ok, and expected. Life happens, and we pivot. Sometimes we just really want to eat a piece of cake. But after we eat it, we refocus, adjust our timeline or goals and keep moving forward. Progress isn’t linear, and we might not feel like we’re moving any closer to our goals at times – which is why it’s important to celebrate and reflect on our small wins. Every day is an opportunity for growth, not failure.
What are you achieving today?
Break down your long-term goals into short-term wins. Utilise the template for breaking down a long-term goal here.