May 18th, 2012
In addition, we discussed how your book should appeal to an audience (as opposed to no one, which of course means the book will never get published, let alone sell). This is all a part of the book being unique, interesting, and well-written (or, as our friend would say, singular, dynamic, and engaging). We also decided last week that you are, in fact, an amazing writer and your book already meets all of these qualifications, enabling us to scurry right along to the next step in the grand publishing scheme.
So at this point–because while I do want to help you get published, I absolutely do not want to teach you how to write a book beyond knowing the basic tenets (above)–we are going to assume that your book is just about almost close to maybe being sort of finished, and move on to what you should be doing to prepare in between reviewing your book for the six hundred and fifth time.
You need to have goals. According to a chart I saw on Google image search when looking for the motivational poster below, goals should be: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. (SMART, your goals should be smart). While that’s a bit cheesy, I suppose it’s accurate enough. In this case, though, I mean that you need to have a specific goal for your book. It could really be any goal at all, but without one, you’re not going to get anywhere. The goal might not even be attainable, but at least it gives you a place to start planning and deciding where you want to go when plying your manuscript.
Depending on your goal, you might want to go to a traditional publisher, get an agent, and take the time-honored and tediously rewarding path to getting your book published. Possibly, you could be better suited to an independent publisher that primarily focuses on niche publishing in specific genres for a specialized audience. Like thousands of writers, you may want to self-publish or find a vanity press. Below, I’ll break down the pros and cons of each type of publisher and outline which types of goals fit which group. There’s a publisher out there for everyone, much like there’s a book out there for everyone.
Let’s start with everyone’s favorite, and the most obvious: traditional publishers. There’s something known as the “big six” in the United States, which refers to the six major traditional publishers. The group includes Random House, Penguin, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, Harper Collins, and Macmillan. Most of these are either subsidiaries of media conglomerates or have large international offices, or both.When people think of being published by a traditional publisher, likely they have one of these companies in mind.
Ideally, you want to be published by a big traditional publisher if your goals are a) make a ton of money, b) get famous, or c) reach a mass audience. Not all (almost no) authors at traditional publishers do all or even one of these things, but the easiest way to have your book reach a large audience is through a traditional publisher, mostly because they only publish books they believe have this potential.
If you want to reach a niche audience, with targeted marketing, personal attention from publishing staff, and turn out a quality book–especially if you’ve already established a platform–traditional publishing is not for you. If you want your book published quickly, traditional publishing is not for you. If you want to have your hand held through the whole process, traditional publishing is not for you. And if you just really want to see something you’ve written in print, traditional publishing is not for you. That said…
The first thing you need to know about traditional publishers is that almost none of them accept unsolicited manuscripts anymore. You can read their individual policies online, but for the most part they don’t take them, which means if you send them one, it goes in the trash. If by chance they do accept them, the manuscript goes into the slush pile to be read by interns, slowly, over a period of weeks or months, depending on the size of the pile.
That means, when you send an unsolicited manuscript to a publisher, it’s going to get caught with possibly hundreds of others, and most of them won’t be good. An unpaid intern is not going to read through your entire manuscript and make a decision about whether your book is worth sending on to an editor. If you’re lucky, they’ll read more than a page, and if you’re very lucky, they might give you a chapter. But if that book doesn’t hook the reader right away, it’s out. So unless you’re extremely confident that your book could outshine hundreds of others and not accidentally get overlooked, I wouldn’t recommend the slush pile route. Not everyone can be Ms. Meyer. Please, don’t take her word for it.
That means if you’re going to be published by a traditional publisher, you need an agent. The typical process goes like this: author sends agent query; agent requests partial, then full manuscript, then signs author for 20% of advance and royalties; author sends manuscript to editors; editor gives an offer for manuscript; agent accepts offer on behalf of author; book gets published. Obviously, there are more steps than this, but first and foremost you need to grab your agent’s attention and make them love your book. The way to do that is with a query letter.
It’s a little known (or maybe oft ignored) fact that many agents don’t accept unsolicited manuscripts either. The difference between an agent and a publisher is that if you send a query letter to an agent and they like the sound of your book, the will ask you to send more. If you send a query letter to a publisher, it will be shredded without a second glance.
There are blogs and books and articles galore about query letter etiquette and format, so I won’t go into that here, other than to say, please, please do your homework. I used to read query letters, and I cannot tell you how many people sent in letters with stupid mistakes that blew their chances.
Here is a list of places to go to learn to write a query letter. Do not forsake this.
- The SFWA Complete Nobody’s Guide to Query Letters
- Agent Query
- Charlotte Dillon on “Writing a Query Letter”
- Fiction Writer’s Connection, “Query Dos and Don’ts”
- Query Shark (highly, highly recommended)
I mentioned last time, as a general rule, not to compare your book to major current or historical bestsellers. I’m sorry, but your book is not the next Harry Potter. It might be great, but it’s not that. Other important rules to remember include addressing your chosen agent by the correct name, not dual-querying publishers and agents, and keeping your letter to ONE PAGE. Read the above sites for more tips.
Basically, the key to getting an agent is having a killer query letter and then following it up with a killer manuscript. The rest should follow naturally, because skilled agents know how to sell books to the right publishers and they know what publishers like. End of story.
To sum up:
Pros of traditional publishers…
- your book can reach a wide audience
- they have wonderful editorial and design staff
- your book will likely get more media attention
Cons of traditional publishers…
- publishing process takes a long time
- they have a lot of authors, so you may not always get the attention you crave
- you have little to no control, editorial and otherwise
If your goals are to reach a niche audience with a publisher who focuses on a select genre and works closely with their authors through all stages of publication, independent publishers are where you should look. Some indie publishers will accept unsolicited manuscripts, some will work with agents, and some will do both. At
Cosimo , we have an online application that authors can fill out in lieu of a query letter that tells us what the book is about and what your background and platform are.
Most independent publishers focus on specific genres, like to publish books that are inspirational and uplifting, and tend to gravitate toward authors with their own platforms and backgrounds in their field. If you want personalized attention and a publisher that will get your book to the right audience, check out independent publishers. If you want your book published quickly and want editorial and design expertise, look for print on demand indie publishers (like Cosimo). For other independent publishers with similar profiles, take a look at the brand new Evolve Publishing (whose first book is on Amazon’s bestseller list, right below the horror that is the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy); Chelsea Green, who focuses on sustainable living titles; and Persea Books, an independent fiction publisher.
Pros of indie publishers…
- your book will reach a specialized audience that will love your topic
- they have wonderful editorial and design staff
- your book will get attention in your field
- Fewer authors means more specialized attention
Cons of indie publishers…
- publishing process may take longer
- you have little to no control, editorial and otherwise
- your book probably will not reach a wide audience
If you just want a book out now and you want it out fast, that’s when self-publishing comes in handy. You do have to pay to have your book published, and editorial, design, and marketing services cost extra, but from start to finish the whole publishing process may take a month. There are so many self-publishers available, from CreateSpace, to Lulu, to iUniverse, to Xulon. They’re all very similar, though some self-publishers (who also use print on demand technology) restrict themselves to a certain genre. Generally, I don’t like self-publishers, though they do work well for some people.
It’s difficult to get your book noticed by an agent or a large publisher later if you self-publish unless the book reaches acclaim through the news and Amazon. Very few self-published books get offers from large publishers or agents or earn out on royalties. But if you just need to have your book in print, or the book will serve a very specific community and you have no reason to go a more traditional route, then by all means, go for it.
Pros of self-publishing…
- your book is published quickly
- you retain editorial and design control
Cons of self-publishing…
- your book probably will not reach a wide audience
- you have to pay both to publish and for extra services
- often looks less professional than traditionally-published works
Basically, what I’m trying to say in this long ramble and review of the publishing industry, is that your book should fit your publisher and your publisher should fit your goals. Obviously, the rules can be broken for any publisher, but in general these guidelines hold true. Before sending anything out, take a careful review of what you’d like to do with your book and how best to accomplish that. Then, query away.
Next week, what to expect from your publisher after you’ve been signed.
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May 18th, 2012
Setting goals and objectives is a process which has very wide application in business, and it was certainly a part of my own business training which I had to put into practice regularly in the years that followed. Some of the better businesses and organizations will also incorporate personal goal setting into staff development, as part of the personnel (human) resources routine. But what about you as an individual? Can you use goal setting as a tool to help you achieve success?
Goal setting can, indeed, be a very useful, sometimes powerful assistant to your personal success. If you incorporate goals and objectives into your personal planning, whether short or long term, then your road to success will have a better foundation.
Success? Success at what? That is entirely up to you. If there is something in life you want to succeed at, then there will no doubt be some goals you can set to help you along the way; like stepping stones across a river when success is the opposite bank. In reality, you can apply goal setting techniques to any part of your life, whether it is to do with work, personal relationships, where you want to live, or a personal hobby or interest. So long as you set realistic goals at each stage, then they can be a very strong personal incentive, which will prepare you for the next stage. Eventually you will be able to look back and see how far you have come, and you can wave goodbye to those stepping stones and go on to new ones on another journey to success.
If you settle down and think clearly about what you want to succeed in, and then what you need to achieve in order to get there, you will quite naturally give a structure to a plan which you will follow; a structure that will incorporate goals you will need to achieve along the way. As with business goals and plans, your personal goals need to be realistic. If you have never driven a car and decide you want to be a Formula One race driver, then it does not make a lot of sense to go directly to Ferrari HQ and say “Here I am, can I race for you in next week’s Grand Prix?”
If you are determined enough, you may become an F1 driver, but there are a few little goals to achieve first. That applies to just about anything. You need to pinpoint the key achievements along the way to success in whatever it is you wish to succeed in, set an appropriate series of goals, and then tick them off one by one.
It is important to think clearly about your personal goals, as they are just that, personal. They are not your husband’s goals, you parents’ goals, or your brother’s goals, they are yours. Keep focused on what you want to achieve, not what others would like you to achieve from their own viewpoint. Use the opportunity to incorporate lifestyle goals into your plan, such as living by the sea, having a nice house, anything that is important to you. Even happiness benefits from goal setting; you can think about everything that would make you happy, and then set goals to achieve each of those elements.
Having decided your goals, then put them together in a plan that is realistic, otherwise you may be despondent after missing a goal which was impossible anyway. Set a reasonable timescale, and then try to aim for it step by step. If your chosen area of success is a competitive one, then remember that most people will just give up. But you will not give up, will you?
This setting personal objective article was written by Roy Thomsitt, owner and part author of the Routes To Self Improvement website.
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May 15th, 2012
CrossFit Nor’Easter was proud to host Greg Amundson for his CrossFit Goal Setting Trainer Course. Greg started his CrossFit training in December 2001 at the original CrossFit Headquarters gym in Santa Cruz, California. As an athlete at the first CrossFit gym, Greg was coached and mentored by CrossFit Founder Coach” Greg Glassman and has been referred to as the original CrossFit “firebreather”.
Greg’s seminar focused on goal setting and positive self-talk as critical mental skills both inside the box and outside the box (no pun intended!). He argued that the mindset you develop in the box in setting and achieving goals you would have thought impossible prior to starting CrossFit can be applied just as successfully outside of the box in other areas of your life. Greg’s positive attitude and enthusiasm for the material he covered was inspiring, and although this synopsis does not do the course or Greg justice, here were the highlights:
Goal setting:
Just like each of the movements in CrossFit has specific ‘Points of Performance’ (hips fully open, chin over the bar, arms locked overhead, etc.), goal setting can be thought of as having the following specific ‘Points of Performance’:
- The goal must be specific and concise (“I want to perform 25 kipping pullups in a single set” rather than “I want to be better at pullups”)
- The goal must be expressed in the positive tense (“I want to do 10 double unders” rather than “I don’t want stop tripping up on my double unders”)
- The goal must include a time frame that is challenging yet realistic and achievable (“I will achieve my goal by the end of this month”)
- The goal must provide you with intense inspiration, motivation and direction (i.e., what do you want to do so much that you are willing to gladly put the effort into it to make it happen?)
Greg also had three ‘rules’ that he believed applied to goal setting:
- What we focus our attention on will increase in our lives
- Our thoughts and our words will be the primary factor in focusing our attention
- We can learn to use our thoughts and our words to create goals
Goals are a way to keep your eyes focused on the direction you want to go, regardless of the direction you may be currently going. Greg believes that once you set a goal and commit to it, fate and providence will rise in your favor. He encouraged us to believe in ourselves and commit to our goals!
Positive self-talk:
Greg emphasized the power of positive self-talk in setting ourselves up for success as athletes and in other areas of our lives. He made the point that just as we need to eat healthy nutritious food to fuel our physical self, we need to feed our mind with healthy, positive thoughts. In particular, he discussed the use of mantras and triggers:
1. Mantras: specific phrases that have personal meaning that remind of us a previous success or previous positive experience (examples: “Yes, I can” or “Breathe and fire!”). According to Greg, the most effective times to use mantras or other positive affirmations are either in the 30 minutes prior to a workout, during the workout itself, or in the 10 minutes or so after a WOD when your mind is clear and receptive to positive thoughts.
2. Triggers: a particular physical motion that triggers you to move ahead (a fist pump, clapping your hands – any particular move that reminds you of a positive memory and serves as your cue to get back on the bar and get going).
Greg made the analogy that just as you would replace a bad rep on an exercise with a good one to have it count (like getting your chin over the bar for a pullup to count), if a negative thought creeps in or someone gives you negative words, you replace them with positive thoughts/words. He gave a great example of the negative effect it had on him when someone told him that the next miles in a long-distance run he was doing were going to the be hardest yet (bad rep!), and the positive effect it had on him when his wife jumped in and told him instead that the hardest part was behind him and that he was going to fly over the next miles (good rep!).
Greg shared some great stories about experiences he had had that showed the power of the mind to affect an athlete’s performance. If you get the chance, collar one of the people that attended the seminar and ask about ‘the big guy (“I know I will get hurt”) and the little guy (“I can do it”)’, ‘the 50 mile mark’, and ‘finding your direction in a spinout’. He encouraged us to develop the spirit of Kaizen – a japanese word from the samurai that means to try and be a little better each day than you were the day before.
After the course, there was a group WOD involving one of our favorites – burpees! After the group burpee WOD, Greg and a few of the hardier souls were seen to be doing L-sit rope climbs, handstand walks and even some pistols on top of kettlebells. A good time as had by all – highly recommended!
Special thanks to Steve for writing this up!
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May 15th, 2012
Goals are funny things…. When we set them we subconsciously think to ourselves, l really want to achieve this; I will be very disappointed if I don’t hit the mark. I often wonder if in our subconscious thoughts we set goals that are too achievable, for fear of losing our motivation, for fear of failure.
The fear of failure is one of the greatest fears that people have, it leads to a fear of criticism and fear of rejection. I believe that successful people overcome their fear of failure. Fear incapacitates unsuccessful people and causes them to self-limit themselves. I believe that most people do not achieve a fraction of what they are capable of achieving because they are afraid to try because they are afraid they will fail.
12WBT is a prime example of this, Mish tackled it in the excuses preseason task, and again in the goal setting task. We were told to write down our excuses, and what we are going to do about them, and then to set what we what to achieve, our goals for the next 12 weeks.
We were told make our goals SMART – (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely) so I thought I did… but one thing they don’t tell us to do is to make them STRETCH…
I honestly believe that we need to learn to set a goal and the add say 5% to it, make it just a little bit less attainable… make it something that you have to WORK for. I have tried to do this when I was setting my goals below. I can’t think of anything more stretching than my 3 months Mega Milestone goal of running a half marathon.
I expect that I will be reassessing these goals as the program progresses.
Image from here
1 month goals
- Lose 4kgs (that’s 500g per week & will bring me very close to my end goal weight
- Do 20 push ups on knees
- To exercise 4 times per week, at least 30 minutes each time
- To make eating healthy a NORMAL activity, every meal.
- Increase running until I can run 10 km without stopping
2 month goals
- Lose an additional 3 kgs (on top of the 4 I will lose in the first month). This will bring me to my goal weight of 63kgs
- Increase running until I can run for 90minutes without stopping
- To hold a proper plank position for 1 minutes.
- Do 10 pushups on toes, Do 30 pushups on knees
3 month goals
- Mega Milestone – Blackmores half marathon Sydney 15th September.
- To hold a proper plank position for 2 minutes.
- Do 15 push ups on toes Do 50 push ups on knees
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May 12th, 2012
Many people feel that they are actually working hard without attaining a single thing or perhaps getting anywhere worthwhile. They feel adrift in their life as they didn’t really found what they really want in life. They have never really set themselves any kind of formal goals that can result in their feeling successful within their lives.
Almost all goal setting techniques allows you to choose what you really want in your own life. You need to understand properly the things you like to attain, know which areas in life you should concentrate on, and even find out how to locate interruptions which may lead you easily astray from your own objectives.
Setting desired goals together with a huge as well as proper coverage of all vital aspects as well as sticking to them, are the keys to success in life. Profession, financial, education as well as your family are simply some of the aspects of life you can actually plan goals on. Set up the best, long-term goals and also set smaller goals that may help you reach your planned destination. Set goals that are realistic as well as performance oriented. All these desired goals are usually more fulfilling and more likely to inspire you to stick to them.
There are actually life coaches who can help you in determining all your goals in life. They can possibly walk you through identifying what you must do and also in which you have to give attention to obtain those goals. Getting some life coaching help allows you to learn what is truly vital to you in your life. Also, you’ll know how to produce a plan to accomplish whatever your goals are. Some life coachers will also assist you to get rid of boundaries that stand in your way.
In case you decide to not get life coaching and choose to go through the goal setting process by yourself, set SMART goals, and also consider online life coaching. SMART means Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and then Time-bound. Along with the right preparations ahead of time, these types of goals can be simply achieved.
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May 12th, 2012
Everyone needs improvement in every aspect all life. People will be in the constant process of undertaking major changes to improve our life structures in an attempt to survive in a changing and competitive environment.
Most people would like to know how they are performing, whether they are improving in their performance or not. They want to know if they are doing any mistakes and how they should rectify them. Members of organizations should receive periodic performance evaluation so that they will know if their efforts are satisfactory for those superior to them.
You can be able to develop an efficient system that will measure your performance level in your organization.
Performance consists of effectiveness and efficiency with efficiency being the ability to choose appropriate goals and achieve them.
Most managers believe that the only factor that holds back the growth of a company is the ability to hire a good working staff. But hiring them is only the first part. Sometimes you can begin a job with fervor and slowly the burning desire to work dies down.
Setting performance goal is an objective oriented, formal and participative planning and review process for staff empowerment. It is a chance given by an organization for its members to perform better in an open and constructive environment which will improve the entire company altogether.
Setting performance goal across the entire organization will help staff on seeing their work goals and objectives clearly. The measurement of their achievement over a period of time and the identification of their professional improvement are also given value. Setting performance goals will remind organizations to review the staff’s progress on the overall goals and plans of the organization.
Setting performance goal provides impact on the action area of supervision among managers, evaluation and planned individual development, further professional development, and career path taking for all the other members. Together with the house rules of the organization, setting performance goals also helps in the development of the behavior and attitudes of the staff members towards work and each other. Staff development on responsibility, honesty and loyalty, accountability and altruistic vision is given proper time and attention.
The achievement of performance goals also provide a good and solid foundation for their career success as individuals. So there is the need for them to bring about their inner motivation in the work area.
Performance checking on a departmental level is based on measures of performance such as productivity, output, customer satisfaction and human resources concerns such as tardiness and absenteeism. Team-based goal setting, on the other hand, is concerned with the objectives for development for a group of employee working together for a specific goal. Lastly, individual goal setting focuses on employee performance qualitatively and/or quantitatively.
Steps in setting performance goal include the following:
- goal setting for the following year
– goals and outcomes review
– recap of past performance
– open discussion and recommendations regarding development area and career direction
– among others.
The results of each performance goals should be written down and recorded. This will allow the individuals in the organization to follow up by working on those functions and activities that need improvement.
Setting performance goals help clear up any misunderstandings about job content that will arise. This is also very helpful in the work area.
Effective implementation of performance goals is a complicated task that involves organizational culture, effective goal setting, leadership, merits for good performance, performance assessment, evaluation and training.
However, setting performance goals will enable each member of the staff to understand their true value to the company which will increase their ability to add more of their contribution to the success of the organization.
Related posts:
- How to Set Goals in a Public Sector Organization
- Setting Your Life Goals
- Common Mistakes Made By Those Looking to Dress for Success
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May 9th, 2012
Everyone’s been told the concrete benefits associated with goal setting. That it’ll impart us with drive, that it contains the benefit to alter the surroundings of each of our day-to-day lives. In this spirit let us discuss 6 additional fantastic elements to help you appreciate goal setting – and, if you haven’t already – to take into consideration applying objectives the next time you want to attain some thing awesome.
1. It is the plan for the life you want to live. It needs to be considerably strengthening to have capacity to glance at the life layed out in front of you, close at hand. It should be calming and funnily powerful to become qualified to look out there at whatever you intend on accomplishing down the road. A number of people possess crystal balls or psychic lines; you’ve got your main aim positioning plan.
2. Intentions supply you with a booming sensation of concentration. When you’re inside the ‘zone’, when you’re investing ones resources and effort to something that you care about sincerely and quickly, you cannot be troubled by possible disruptions and also the small grievances of everyday life. When almost everything revolves about the couple issues you care most concerning, the remainder tumbles to your way-side.
3. It might feel pretty darn good. Experiencing drive, and standing on a road on the way to your hopes, gaining ever closer with each passing day, will feel amazing. Realizing that you accomplishing a little something helpful each and every day in the direction of realizing something which will mean the whole world to you fills anyone with optimism of the extraordinary moment when you can actually point out, “I accomplished that.”
4. Accomplishing things you make an effort to do provokes you to achieve even bigger stuff. After we set and after that thoroughly destroy those first few goals, we all glance back and imagine, “Well, that was less than horrible.” From this thought we begin to think of even bigger and much better things that we would like for ourselves, and even while contemplating these particular superb things, we understand these are practical, because we now have verified the capacity to obtain the elements we all wish for with a process that works.
5. You learn the training of by no means waiting. When you grab that practice of not holding out to get items accomplished, of not really ready on other folks, of not really waiting around for anything or anybody, you pick up a immensely robust talent — self-reliance. Anyone don’t simply begin relying on yourself to get more, you will not wait on other folks to make it happen for you. You actually squander a shorter time, have got significantly less effort for those who would rather view you flounder, and tighten up your grasp on your success.
6. You speedily learn who may have your best interests in your mind. Once you get cozy in talking about your purpose along with ones fellow workers, relatives and buddies, you are likely to have your ambition belittled by way of a pair people that consider they’re doing a favor by exposing your goals as mad, moot or simply foolish. They may practice it within the guise of simply being ones good friend, or doing it for your own personal good, although what they’re accomplishing is revealing an unsightly percentage of jealousy or lack of education.
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May 9th, 2012
Goals like those are indicative of a fixed mindset which seeks to validate intelligence by achieving noteworthy scores. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to do well in a class, research suggests that a more growth oriented mindset has many advantages (see info graphic above).
So, as educators who work with students to set and attain goals, it helps to recognize these goals as opportunities to coach students to a better understanding of growth mindsets.
Here are some tips to help you use goal setting as a means to adjust mindsets.
1. Recognize that making good grades IS important. Do not try to convince the student that their goal to “make an A” is a “bad” goal.
2. Focus the student on “what” she needs to do in order to achieve that result. This will begin to introduce reality and potential roadblocks into the conversation, which is a good thing if you want to help the student. Using the example of “getting an A” the components uncovered in the “what” conversation may include items such as high scores on tests and quizzes, turning in all homework on time and complete, attending extra help sessions, etc.
3. After breaking down the goal into the various components, now work on “how” the student needs to approach each component. This is where the student begins to understand the mental approach/attitude she must take in order to address each component. The “how’s” will spotlight one’s effort, attention to detail, doing one’s best with each opportunity presented, etc.
Now, look back on these steps. You should see how a savvy teacher can use goal setting as a means to help students move from a fixed mindset about results to a growth mindset focused on effort and development.
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May 6th, 2012
Most people go panic once they realized the day ended with them doing nothing productive. Time seems to fly so quickly for some of us.
All our effort, time and energy are constantly challenged in this busy world. The reality is that there is simply not enough time to do everything that we want to do.
With goal setting techniques, we can maximize the use of our time. The goal setting techniques outlined below are so can guide you through the basics.
1. Evaluate
What do I really want? Where do I want to go? What do I want to do now?
This is a goal setting technique that demands a lot of reflection from your part.
Go forward and visualize your dreams then slowly trace it backwards to the present and evaluate on what you need to do to achieve that dream.
Review the past to see if there are hidden motives that you have yet to consider. Sometimes the past has its ways of getting in the way to your goals.
2. Get Real
We have dreams to reach, yes. But we can’t have everything we dreamed of in a snap of a finger.
Know when a dream is attainable; learn to accept and let go of it when you realized it is not.
Know your strengths and weaknesses. Identify what are the things that does not support your long-term goals; this is a way of filtering out what are distractions and what is necessary.
3. Plan
Identify your Key Action Steps. Ask yourself, how will I go about this? What schedule or strategy should I focus on?
Planning is an important goal setting technique. An effective plan is somthing that can successfully identify the interconnections between the short-term and the long-term goals.
Planning forms ideas in our heads and is a powerful goal setting technique. Remember that “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
4. Focus
Sometimes, we get overwhelmed with planning and as a consequence, lose our focus. One goal setting technique to avoid losing focus is to aim for one goal at a time.
If you dream to be a successful novelist, painter or a photographer, can you aim for it all at the same time?
The answer is yes, you can.
You won’t lose focus if you know which of your goals deserve your utmost attention and extra time. If being a novelist topped the list, you can still do painting and photography at the side, more like a hobby. Just remember, don’t let these hobby eat out your time for novel writing.
5. Monitor and Re-evaluate
In evaluating goal setting techniques, ask yourself the following: Am I doing just fine? Am I on the right track? Am I on time? On cue? What strategies are working? What are not? Can I streamline my processes?
We have outlined some action steps during our planning. But we rarely take the time to think thoroughly what actions are actually needed. By re-evaluating, we are actually identifying those actions that are not needed.
A Goal, a Dream
By observing the goal setting techniques cited above, our dreams is just a step away from us. But oftentimes the goals we set for ourselves remain an unattainable dream. We became a victim of our own actions: procrastinating in the middle of the journey, or losing interest altogether although the finish line is just a few meters ahead. The motivation to do another step must come from us, from within. We must not expect our loved ones or friends to push our backs just to make that big step.
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May 6th, 2012
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