For some people setting goals can be daunting, but really that is just the beginning of the journey. There is a big gap between setting goals and achieve your goals. Hopefully, you are setting goals with the intention of achieving them so you need to bridge that gap. This means that you need to find a way to follow through on your goals and below I’m sharing 4 tips to help you improve your ability to follow through on your goals.
1 – Get super clear on your WHY
A great way to increase your chances of following through on your goals is by ensuring you spend the time at the outset getting super clear on your WHY. Maybe you have set a goal to get a promotion, sign a new client in the next month, read every night or go to the gym 3 times a week? Look at your goals and then ask yourself “Why is achieving this goal important to me?”. If you are struggling to answer that question you can also try “What difference would achieving this goal make to my life?”.
Answering these questions will hopefully get you closer to understand the why behind your goal. Write down your answers so that in the dark days of the future (when you are doing the work) you can always refer back and remember the purpose behind your goal.
2 – Work out the actions you need to take to achieve your goals
Maybe the goal you have set is HUGE and the size is overwhelming. In this situation the best thing you can do is to break your goals into action steps. Now, it might be you know everything you need to do to achieve your goal, or you might only know the next step. Either way, write down the action steps so you know the direction you are heading in and what you need to do.
3 – Set aside time in your diary to take the necessary actions
One of the biggest reasons that people don’t follow through on their goals is because they don’t make the necessary time to do so. I understand that you are a busy person, but why bother setting a goal if you don’t intend on making it happen. If that is the case you might as well stop wasting your time writing down your goals.
If you are determined on achieving your goals then you need to work out the time needed to complete the actions set in step 2 and then block that time into your diary. Make an appointment that says between 2-4 on Friday I’m going to do X. Then you have to commit to sticking to that appointment in the same way you would if you were meeting someone else. Don’t let yourself down.
4 – Find a way to be held accountable
It is likely that if you are reading this blog post then you have struggled with following through in the past. In that situation, I would recommend you find a way to be held accountable. Having external accountability will mean that by not following through you aren’t just letting yourself down, but you are letting others down. I have written previously about the different ways of getting accountability here. This post shares all the ways that you have people in your life holding you accountable, but I know some people struggle with finding accountability from a person (or group of people). In that case, there is always the option of being held accountable by making a public declaration. For example, I have been doing my #MotivationalMonday emails for a few years now, because I announced online about my commitment and now with people waiting each week to receive my email I’m compelled to follow through. If you would like to join the PropelHer mailing list and receive my #MotivationalMonday emails click here.
