Goals do one very important thing: they force you to identify what it is you really want in life. By basic definition, a goal is something you really want to accomplish. It is something that you want to obtain in order to make your life happier and more accomplished. Goal setting gives you the opportunity to think about where you are today, where you would like to be in the future, and what obstacles you need to overcome in order to get there.

This essentially creates a path that you must follow in order to achieve the things that will make your life worthwhile. Every day is one step down that path and your goals are there to ensure you do not step off path.

Every single moment of every single day there are a variety of things that you could be spending your time on. How you know that you are doing the most productive thing possible at all times is to instill faith in the goal setting process. If something doesn’t lead up to where you ultimately want to be, then chances are high you could be spending that time doing something more productive.

Productive here means goal-focused!

We will learn in the next lesson why it is important to set long term goals and then break them up into short term goals. For now, just understand that long term aspirations keep you focused and motivated to achieve something big in your life while short term milestones make the overall job more manageable and less overwhelming.

Long term goals are important because they give your life a purpose. You have something to get up and strive for every single day. You are headed somewhere great and it is worth the fight and struggle of every day life.

Think about all the things you have ever wanted to do in your life. What has held you back? Why haven’t you accomplished them already?

In many cases, you may be held back because you feel something you want is out of your reach or too difficult to actually achieve. The process of goal setting allows you to take it apart and analyze all the possible paths to actually succeeding. Through this process you see that it may actually be possible to achieve.

If you think you can’t do something you just need to want it bad enough to take one small step in the right direction. When you succeed at that small step you will feel a small surge of determination to take another which will in turn lead to yet another. Each step is a short term goal and in the distance is your biggest ambition (your long term goal) which you are determined and destined to fulfill.

Goal setting is essential because it forces you to figure out what you really want to be doing with your life and realize your potential for actually getting there. Goals break through the self-doubt and mute everyone who has ever said you can’t make it, and allow you to build up confidence in yourself.

Goals are important because without them you won’t live up to your full potential and that would be a tragedy not only for your life, but for the rest of the world.

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Category: Self Help
Keywords: goals,goal setting,setting goal,set goals,setting goals,smart goals,achieve goals,how to set goals