3 Ways To Improve Your Goal Getting

I see you struggling with trying to move from a perpetual goal setter to a consistent goal-getter, VAL (that’s short for Valued, Amazing Lady). I’ve heard that your recent goal getting has been less than stellar lately, and I get it. Which is why I believe these 3 improvements may just be the help you need right now!

Ever hear of a goal-getting evangelist? Yeah, me either, but I’ve come to realize over the years, that’d be me 🙋‍♀️. You see, several years ago I discovered a way to improve not just how to set better goals, but actually consistently get them! That turned into creating an unexpected method that came out of just two words 👉 prioritized focus. 

Prioritized focus?

Prioritized focus is a methodology that has you working on the right things at the right time and for the right reasons. It’s about learning your best way to plan, strategize, and execute without the burnout, frustration, doubt, or fear that usually accompanies going after BIG, SCARY goals.

Check out this handy-dandy roadmap visual
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Got it! Prioritize your focus.  Sounds simple, but it’s often not easy to navigate. Especially in the midst of other’s plans, demands and expectations of you. 🙃 If it were easy, you wouldn’t be reading a post about the 3 ways to improve your not so achieve-y goal getting right now. And I wouldn’t be the goal-getting guide for other women entrepreneurs on their journey.

So let’s get to it, shall we?

3 Ways to improve your goal getting skills, habits & practices.

 

1: Identify and then integrate your core values in all that you do.

Understanding the importance of your core values is crucial to the progress of your goal getting. But before you can understand their importance, you first have to identify what they are.

The core values we’re talking about here are the ones that are uniquely important to you. Yes, we can have similar and some even the same when it comes to things that we value. Things like, faith, family, health, purpose, etc. but here we are looking to identify the ones that mean something to you. At your very core.

Core values are the personal qualities and traits that represent what fundamentally drives you, your deep beliefs, and most of all, represent your highest priorities.

Core values are how you define boundaries and guide your expectations.

Once you know (and own) your personal core values, you have identified what it takes to move you in the direction you want to go. 

Ignoring this part of the improvement process or giving it little importance will only hijack your other efforts. Yes, it’s that important.

2: Plan according to your actual reality.

Being too idealistic in planning out your goal in the first place is for sure one of the reasons your goal getting has been a bit meh.

Listen, goal setting is easy. We can do it all day long. It’s fun. Dare I say it’s even dreamy? 

We are good at imagining what we WANT to do, but often fail to factor in what we CAN do.

Sure, we can do anything, but not everything – especially at the same time.

Here are some common mistakes, see if any sound familiar or you can picture yourself in similar mindsets.

You either make the goal itself  too vague or take little to no consideration of your actual reality. You know, the responsibilities that you already have, the other people in your life  that you are committed to work with, take care of or responsible for? By the way, they also have dreams, plans, and an agenda.  

Oh, and let’s not forget expectations. Both the limiting ones you put on yourself and others. Plus the overreaching ones that you somehow miraculously think you’ll gain the instant skill, knowledge and experience needed to achieve “this” goal.

Useful idealistic examples to help you keep your goals realistic:

• Does it make sense to start your vegan/gluten/dairy-free diet plan the week of Thanksgiving? Especially knowing you’re as strong as a Muppet’s muscle when it comes to Aunt Bernice’s ah-mazing cooking. Not to mention your willpower is that of a preschooler told “don’t eat these m&m’s”…
  
  *girl, you’re either going to have to pack your own food, choose your menu options ahead of time (baby steps) and a strong accountability partner or start that plan the next week! You know, when it’s more realistic.
  
  
• Is it realistic to make a goal to start going to the gym five days a week knowing that you haven’t gone ONCE in the last two years? Sure, convince yourself “this is different, I mean it this time”, but what does your own history of discipline show  you? Perhaps, baby steps would be in order here…
  
  *I heard a great story of a man who knew he wasn’t disciplined enough to go to the gym like he wanted, so he broke this ultimate goal of going to the gym every day into steps. Step one included just getting himself there consistently. So he drove to the gym every day for two weeks. Step two he added getting out of the car, walking up to the door and going into the lobby. By month two, he was already used to the drive and the habit of “going in”, now he was ready for the next step and the ultimate goal – actually working out.
  
  

Before you plan your next goal you may want to grab this cheat sheet it will help you define your actual reality so that you can plan accordingly – without the risk of a guilt-trip. (imposed or self-inflicted 😉)

3: Raise your standards, not the timeline.

We all know the go-to formula, S.M.A.R.T. goals, and as common and helpful as that may be – to beginners, there’s a better way. One of those better ways is to have D.U.M.B. goals, but you can read about that later. 

The best way, in my opinion, is to raise your standards. You see, when the going gets tough in the pursuit of achieving our goals, we are quick to want to extend the deadline. At first this sounds harmless, helpful actually. But it’s actually counter productive to your progress.

Extending the timeline only sets you up for disappointing YOU. It has you breaking a promise/commitment that you made to yourself. That never feels very good.

By raising your standards, you become more selective, more intentional and definitely closer to the person you need to become in order to handle the goal that you’re going after in the first place!

Ask yourself, what are the standards in your current habits, associations, or thinking that need to be raised in order for you to keep your promise to you?

I know that we covered a lot and I hope that you will reference this again as many times as needed, but just in case you’re already saying, “I have to remember this”…

📌Recap & Post-It Version for the skimmers:

1. Identify your core values – these are what drive your priorities and become the filter in which you sift all decisions.
   
   
2. Clarify your actual reality, not your dreamy, imagined one. Keep existing commitments, responsibilities and expectations in mind so that you implement your strategy accordingly. This doesn’t mean letting yourself off the hook and making everything easy, it means still challenging and stretching, but reasonably.
   
   
3. Elevate your standards, not the goal or it’s timeline. Raising your standards helps you lower what you’ll tolerate in order to achieve your goal. Raising the timeline only has you lowing your standards and ultimately breaking promises to yourself. Who do you want to be looking at in the mirror at the end of your goal’s pursuit? The one who rose to the occasion!

The best way to learn is to DO!

There’s so much more we could cover and say about improving your goal getting, but this should be enough to inspire you.

Once you start implementing you’ll discover your own best practices! And you’ll be making progress from goal setter to consistent goal getter.

cheering you on in your improvement as I make mine,

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