Goal Setting

"The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don't define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them.”

-Denis Waitley
Author, The Psychology of Winning

Do you want to take control of your life? Start by setting personal goals. Athletes, businessmen, and any top achiever in a particular field has set a goal for themselves and worked hard to achieve them and now it is time for you to set goals that you can achieve. Take an hour out of your day and think about what your dreams used to be and if those dreams continue to hold true. Determine what you currently want to do with your life and what you want to accomplish and write it down. Write it down to clarify your personal, financial, educational, career or any other goals you may have. When writing your goals form them into positive statements. There should be no negativity surrounding your goals. After you have created your goals, post your goals in a place where you will see them and be motivated by them daily. Setting concrete goals and creating a plan will help increase your ambition, raise your self-confidence and fill you with pride.

Next, take your ultimate goal and break it down into smaller goals that can be completed daily, weekly, or monthly. For example, the task of saving money may appear unattainable at first, but break it down into smaller goals. If you decide that your goal is to be rich, decide how much money it will take for you to feel rich. After you determine a set amount of money decide on how you are going to begin working towards your goal of being rich. How much money can you reasonably put away each week?

Do not set a goal so low that you know you can achieve it easily. You are going to have to work hard in order to achieve your goal and you are going to need to feel motivated. If you can easily afford to save $5 per week, make your goal to save $10 per week. If you cannot afford to save $5 per week, start with a smaller goal. It is easy to be overwhelmed when you determine your ultimate goal and estimate how long it will take you to accomplish, but be excited that you are taking control of your life ambitions! You have the ability to accomplish all of your goals, but you have to start small in order to win big.

Once you have set your goals, share your goals with your friends and family. You need to surround yourself with a supportive network of people that will encourage, motivate, and support you. You can even inspire them to sit down and set concrete goals for themselves.

Reward yourself each time you fulfill one of your dreams you have worked hard to achieve even if it is something simple. You deserve to celebrate your hard work, but don’t stop there…Set another attainable goal for yourself!

Achieving your goals will be a long and hard process, but your sense of accomplishment will be well worth it when you are able to say “I did it!”

There are many resources out there that want to help you achieve your goals. Look to your local library, the internet, and DCC. We’re all here to help. If you have any questions or need some advice or assistance setting concrete goals, please call one of our certified credit counselors at no obligation.

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