“Goals are dreams with deadlines”

In my opinion, this quote by Diana Scharf implies that you CAN achieve your dreams .  The catch is that you need to put deadlines on your dreams and then commit to them.

So what is it you crave?  How do you dream your life could be different?  Here are a few examples of goals my clients and workshop participants are aiming for.

• Have less stress, anxiety and chaos in my life
• Get more rest
• Improve my physical health and stay consistent (ie. feel stronger, leaner and healthier)
• Create more time for me without feeling guilty
• Improve my self care: eat healthy, meditate, exercise, spend time with friends and family

“If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time”

This quote by Zig Ziglar makes me smile because it carries so much truth.  Goals enable you to start living a more fulfilling life.  Be prepared to put some thought into them though.  Your goals need to be specific.  Instead of saying, “I want to become more fit” you might say, “I want to lose 15 lbs.”  To really make your goal powerful, don’t stop there.

You need to attach a deadline to your goal.  So, you want to lose 15 lbs.  Great!  How will you do that, when will you start and at what point do you want to have achieved your goal?  Try this goal on for size.  “I want to lose 15 lbs by October 1st, 2013.  I will do this by exercising 3 x week and cutting down on my sugar intake.”

Tell the World

Get your friends and family on board for support.  Tell people your goals and you will be much more likely to follow through on them.  Making your goals (and thus dreams) public allows you to own them and take responsibility for what you say.

“It takes a great support network to reach a goal”

Once you tell people, they can support you when the going gets tough, because it will!  You can even ask them to prod you along and check in to find out how you are progressing.

Self -Care Strategy

You want to change your life or you wouldn’t be reading this.  Whether you want to decrease your stress, have more rest, more time for yourself or get into better shape, you need to have a strategy.  When you become intentional about your life and take the drivers seat, you are going to start noticing great results.

Sometimes making a list and checking off the days you met your goal just doesn’t cut it.  Here’s another strategy you can use to get creative about meeting your goals and turning your life around.  Sound exciting?  Well, hold on to your seat because it is.  What I’m talking about is mind mapping.  This is not a new technique but it’s a good one.  It gets you out of the normal way of thinking and into a creative, idea generating space.

Here is an article that lists several online mind mapping sites for you to use.  Or, you could do this exercise the old fashioned way with pencil and paper.

www.lifehack.org/articles/technology/11-free-mind-mapping-applications-web-services.html

Time To Get Started!

Get a piece of paper.  In the center draw a bubble with your goal inside.  Surrounding the bubble draw smaller bubbles containing ideas that will help you reach your goal.  Remember to include deadlines/timelines.  For example, you could list:

1. All of the ways you enjoy being active (This gives you options to choose from)
2. When the best time for you to exercise would be
3. When you could start creating more time in your day to pursue your goal (wake up earlier/take lunch off)
4. Who will support you
5. What the benefits of losing the 15 lbs will be
6. How you will celebrate certain milestones and meeting your end goal
7. How you will sustain your fitness goals

Desiring personal change and believing you will one day have what you desire is not enough.  Create goals that are specific and include deadlines and tell a few (or a lot) of people so they can support you.  Today you can start shifting from exhausted to energetic or from flabby to fit.  Let me know about one of your specific goals in the comments below or on my facebook page!  I’d love to support you.

“The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.  The second best time is now.” ~Chinese Proverb

Amy