Setting and achieving goals can and should be straightforward. With a practical approach, you can make steady progress without any fancy tools. Let's look at some simple steps to help you reach your plans.
The Struggle
I used to have a bad habit of misplacing, breaking, or forgetting my school agenda. Every month, I went through at least one different agenda. I rarely jotted down assignments or test dates, even when I did bring it to school. Instead, I relied on my classmates to remind me of these things. When they didn't notify me in a timely manner, I would hold them accountable rather than myself.
Transformation
Fast forward almost ten years, and I can't imagine shifting responsibility or depending on others for my success. I've made numerous mistakes in making a plan, but through trial and error, I've developed a method that works wonders for me.
Disclaimer
To reach your goals, you don't need expensive plans, glitzy applications, or fine writing instruments. Don't bother setting notifications or alarms. The secret is knowing how to design a path so that each action makes sense in light of the previous one. Together, we can take advantage of people's propensity to take the easiest route and design a frictionless, efficient route to your objectives.
Step 1: Reflect and Set Clear Goals
At the beginning of each year, I sit down and assess the prior year. I created fresh, concrete goals for the upcoming year. If you are reading this in the middle of the year, you can complete these steps at any time. Goals should be explicit and concrete, rather to nebulous desires such as "financial freedom" or "helping others." Instead, set specific goals such as "earning €15,000 per month" or "helping 10 people." Also, establish a firm timeline. For example, reducing 10 kilograms in six months necessitates a different strategy than losing 10 kilograms in twelve months.
Step 2: Break Down the Steps
Let's take a financial goal as an example: earning €15,000 a month in 12 months. If you're selling subscriptions with an average price of €50 a month, you need 300 customers to reach your goal. Knowing that 1 in 10 prospects you contact subscribes, you'll need to approach 3,000 prospects in a year. This breaks down to 250 prospects per month or about 9 calls per day.
This strategy helps you stay focused. Instead of stressing about the next step, you simply complete your daily calls, confident that you will meet your objective in 12 months.
Step 3: Accountability and Rewards
Hold yourself accountable by setting up rewards and penalties. For instance, treat yourself to a dinner out for every successful week of calls, or plan a vacation after hitting your €15,000 goal. Make sure your goals are measurable so you can prove your progress, such as showing call data.
Summary
- Write down your goals clearly and specifically, including deadlines.
- Break down the steps into manageable tasks.
- Create an accountability structure with rewards and penalties.
If you want a deeper understanding of this concept, I recommend watching this video. It provides a clear and detailed explanation that complements the principles discussed here.
How I do it:
- Yearly Review and Goal Setting: Each year, I review the past year and set new goals in Google Docs for easy acces.
- Monthly & weekly Review and Planning: Every month and week, I review my journal, assess my progress, and plan the next month or week to correct any mistakes, also in the same Google Docs sheet for easy acces
- Weekly Planning: Every Sunday, I plan the upcoming week with the bigger goal in mind. I use a simple paper planner for this.
- Daily Task Management: Each day, I check off tasks and jot down potential new ideas for future tasks.
As for my planner, I use the simplest one I could find on AliExpress. It’s not about the planner itself, but how you use it.
By following these steps, you can create a clear, frictionless path to achieve your goals efficiently and effectively.
Personal note
By breaking down goals into small steps and staying accountable, you can achieve great things. Keep it simple and stay committed.
With gratitude and determination,
Maik Janmaat
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