Copyright (c) 2008 Gavin Ingham

One of the issues that comes up frequently when running sales training seminars is the thorny issues of goals and goal setting. In my experience, few people seem to set any goals at all and even fewer stick to them! Ever since reading Anthony Robbins in my early twenties I have been a keen goal setter… and it has worked well for me. As a salesperson they helped to keep me on track, motivated and focused. As a manager they empowered me to take action to get results. As a motivational speaker in the sales training arena they have helped to give me the edge that I need to get the results that I want.

It’s common knowledge that most successful people set goals. Most successful people know what their goals are. Most successful people are aware of the power of goals and goal setting. I have written about how important setting goals is before so today I thought we would do something different…

I have interviewed my good friend Andy Smith of Coaching Leaders about the power of goals and goal setting across your whole life not just your sales and business goals. Andy is well qualified to answer these questions: he is an NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) trainer, EI (Emotional Intelligence) expert and executive coach who is a specialist in goal setting that really works. Andy is the author of the Dorling Kindersley book Achieve Your Goals: Strategies to Transform Your Life and has been featured in many publications talking about goal setting and other personal development subjects.

1. How will people benefit when they set goals?

Apart from being much more likely to achieve the goal itself, going for goals has an effect on our happiness levels. We are biologically hard-wired to feel happier if we have some sense of control and choice over our lives, which is what setting goals and taking action gives us. We change from feeling like victims of life’s circumstances, or at best passive consumers, into someone who knows they can make a difference. We are also learning along the way – even the mistakes we make, though they aren’t enjoyable at the time, will bring us valuable wisdom if we choose to learn from them.

2. Can you give us some specific examples of goals that people you know have set and achieved and how they have benefited?

Just some examples from my clients and students: some people have used these methods to hit and maintain their target weight and fitness levels for the first time for years, some have made their transition to a new career easier, or finally got around to living in a new country after dreaming about it for years. People have also used goal-setting to cope better with the curveballs life throws at us from time to time – divorces, redundancy, getting out of debt.

In my own life, I’d say the two biggest things so far becoming a published author (by Dorling Kindersley, a ‘proper’ publisher) and rather more significantly meeting my life partner Jules. I actually did set a goal of being happily married by the end of 2000, despite there being no remotely suitable candidates around at the time – and I’m happy to report that we did just squeak it in on December 29th of that year!

3. Given that, why is it do you think that most people don’t set goals?

I think there are two things going on here. One is that in today’s busy society, they never get round to it. There is always something “urgent” clamouring for our attention, with more tasks waiting in line when that one is dealt with. If people do try to think about their goals, they may be too tired from all the busywork to do them justice. So it requires a conscious effort to step off the hamster wheel and take some time to think about what’s important to you and where you want to get to. The best advice I’ve ever been given was “plan the time to plan” – set aside some protected time so that you can think about the future. This is equally important whether you’re working for yourself or in employment.

4. Is the old story that written goals are better than non-written goals true?

There’s a famous story about the “Yale Study” in which researchers asked Yale’s graduating class of 1953 how many of them had specific goals for their future in writing. Twenty years later, the 3% who had written goals had more personal wealth than the other 97% combined!

It’s a compelling story, it’s quoted by Tony Robbins, Brian Tracy and Zig Ziglar, plus legions of other motivational speakers and it sounds as if it ought to be true – but, alas, it never happened. You’ll never see an academic reference for it, Yale have no record of it, and when ‘Fast Company’ magazine investigated the origin of the story, Robbins’ people directed them to Brian Tracy, Tracy said he heard it from Zig Ziglar, and Ziglar’s people suggested the source might be Robbins!

It’s still a good idea to write your goals down though – it’s the best way to get clear about them and keep them in the forefront of your attention.

For the rest of this interview check out part 2 or visit my website now.

For someone new to goal setting, it can be difficult to grasp why setting goals has been a point stressed by many personal development life coaches. However, there is a valid reason. As you read this article, you will come to understand why is goal setting important.
* What Is Goal Setting
Goal setting in its simplest form is having an outcome and working towards achieving it, through planned action. Why goal setting is so important is down to the fact that most people don’t set goals. So, if you do consciously set goals, and works to achieve them, then you are someone unique. Most people never consciously goal set.
* About Goal Setting
Goal setting is done by so few people or at least the personal development life coaches would like you to believe! The truth is that all people goal set. That is not the problem.
In life we go to school, grow up, and get a job. Most of the time, we do things because others have influenced us to some degree, and we are doing what others want us to do. Now there is nothing wrong with that, order is better than chaos. But, if life is not how you planned it to be, then you want to create a bit of chaos to turn life into the world you always wanted.
People are like ships without rudders, and goal setting is getting that rudder. Though all people goal set, there is a distinction between what the many do, and what we are talking about here. Setting goals consciously is what is important. A person trying to wake up on time and going to work in a timely fashion is not the type of goal setting we want. Why is that?
* Why Is Goal Setting Important?
You have a life, and you are not a machine. You may love what you do or you may not. Why is goal setting important? It is important because if you find yourself daydreaming often, if you wish for a better life, a better career, etc. Then the only way is by actually making goal setting an important part of your life.
When you goal set, you will find that you will be moving forward in life. There maybe chaos for a while, the world has to change, you have to change. When you do, you will find a world that is more of what you want. No longer are people in slavery, however, we put ourselves as slaves. We become slaves to our job, and a dream we hold inside, that is begging for life, is relegated.
You are free! You are living in a world with infinite possibilities. You can be rich or poor, wealthy and happy. Whatever you like! However, to get anywhere close to that, requires the process of goal setting, and this is why goal setting is important.

Copyright (c) 2008 Gavin Ingham

5. What sorts of goals should people set?

I would urge people to think big and set long-term goals that excite them, without worrying at first about how they are going to get there. It really is a shame when people limit their lives by telling themselves that what they really want isn’t realistic. The only way to find out what’s realistic is to go for it.

You also need short-term goals to aim at, to give you something that’s achievable and to give your unconscious mind some behavioural reinforcement when you achieve them. Psychologists have found (Ken Sheldon and Tim Kasser if you want to look them up) that people are happier when they achieve “vertical coherence” in their goal-setting – that is, when your higher-level and short-term goals are aligned so that achieving the immediate goal takes you closer to the big one. 6. How should people go about setting goals?

First, get yourself into a positive emotional state by reviewing what’s already working in your life, what you like doing, what you’ve achieved already and what you’re proud of. This will help you find your direction, get you thinking more strategically, and also help you to feel like you deserve success.

Then clarify your values – what’s important to you – in the area of your life in which you want to set goals. Typical areas might include work and career, relationships, finances, health and fitness, and personal development.

Only then, when you’re feeling good and you know what’s important to you, should you start thinking about specific goals that will satisfy your values. Get clear about what you want, get a clear sensory image of what it will look, sound and feel like, and set a specific date for it in your future.

7. What are your top 3 tips for successful goal setting?

Okay, the first one would have to be focus on what you want, not what you want to get away from. If you don’t know what you want, how will you know if you’re on the right track, or recognise when you’ve got there? It may sound a bit “cosmic ordering” to say that your unconscious mind attracts what you focus on, but it’s only another expression of that principle widely recognised in business that you are going to move in the direction of whatever targets you set. “Towards” motivation gives you a direction, it gets even stronger when you get close to achieving your goal, and you feel good when you have it. “Away from” motivation, by contrast, is undirected, it runs out when you get far enough from the thing you want to avoid, and it’s stressful.

Next, form a sensory image of your goal – what will you see, hear and feel when you have it? This is vital for motivation. Most people are familiar with the idea that goals should be SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timed – but you’ll notice there’s nothing in there about whether you care if you achieve them or not. Using your senses gives you that missing piece by providing something to engage your emotions.

Finally – put a date on your goal! Until you have put a date on your goal, it will keep getting pushed to the back of your queue of priorities. Even if you say “in a year’s time”, the goal will always remain a year ahead unless you turn that into a proper date.

Why? Your unconscious mind acts like a good and faithful servant, and it will do its best to give you whatever you ask it for. But it will always take the line of least resistance. If you don’t put a date on your goal, there will always be something more urgent to deal with. This is why important but non-urgent tasks tend to be neglected,

8. What pitfalls do people new to goal setting have to be careful of?

Three that I can think of straight away: firstly, not taking into account potentially unwanted knock-on effects of achieving the goal. If you don’t consider all the consequences of your goal – on your health, your family, your friendships, and the wider community – you may end up with something you don’t want. The smarter way to set goals is to take the consequences into account, allowing you to make changes to your goal and/or your route to achieving it. That way you stand a chance of getting the benefits of your goal while avoiding unwanted side effects.

Second, taking too much on and getting discouraged. It can be very easy to set a big, compelling goal – and then feel overwhelmed by the effort you think it will take to get there. The goal is so big, and so different from how things are now, that getting there by the deadline you have set will surely demand too much of you. And the more you think about the legwork it will take, the more discouraged you feel. The remedy is to break it down into smaller steps that feel more achievable, and recognise each step as an achievement. The key really is to get started – not necessarily to “take massive action”, but to take some action to get you going.

Finally – and this is the biggest pitfall of all – not knowing what you want. In the absence of some powerful external motivation, like getting yourself out of debt or meeting a deadline set by someone else, how do people motivate themselves to even think about what they want – as opposed to what they want to get away from? I’ve certainly had large periods of my life when I was more or less drifting. The way out of it is to think about what’s going well, what you are good at and what’s important to you – then it becomes easy to build a picture of where you want to go.

9. Tell us a little about your book on goal setting and how it can help people.

Well, Achieve Your Goals: Strategies to Transform Your Life (Dorling Kindersley 2006) is a step by step guide for how to determine what you want, how to set goals so they happen, and how to keep yourself motivated on the way there. It wasn’t easy to write it to fit in with the publisher’s very exacting design standards, but it’s actually come out as twice the book it would have been if I had just written it as a conventional textbook. I had to collaborate with the designers to find visual ways of getting the main points very concisely, and the result is a beautifully designed and illustrated book that is a lot easier to read for the busy person. It’s something you can work through from start to finish, or just dip into for a quick fix if you run into a specific obstacle. Judging by the number of five star reviews on Amazon (all the reviews are five star at the time of writing), it’s doing its job.

10. Is there anything else you would recommend people to do, read or look at?

It’s definitely worth taking a course like the four-day ‘Create The Life You Want’ workshop which is also the first part of the NLP Practitioner training – it’s one thing to read about goal-setting methods, but you really have to experience them in practice to get the best from them.

There’s a lot of interesting research on goals and motivation coming out of the Positive Psychology movement at the moment – you can keep up with it on my ‘Practical EQ’ blog.

And, if coming on one of our courses is not practicable for you at this time, why not get together with some of your friends and form an Achieve Your Goals book group so you can support each other as you work through the exercises? Social support is a key component of goal achievement that makes it much easier for most of us – you don’t have to do it all by yourself!

As you can see, goal setting can form a key element in keeping yourself on track and focused. If you want more from Andy we also conducted an audio interview which will be available from my shop in the next few weeks. In the meantime, why not take some time out to review and revise your goals? I look forward to hearing of your successes.

What is smart goal setting? Is it any different than simply setting goals? Is smart goal setting part of goal setting systems? How can goal setting systems help you? A lot of questions and a lot of answers! In this article, you will find the answers to your most pressing questions, about goal setting systems and working smart with goals.
As you read this article, you will find the answers to these goal setting questions:
* What Is Smart Goal Setting?
* What Is Are Goal Setting Systems?
* Are Goal Setting Systems Essential?
* What Makes A Good Goal Setting System?
* What Is Smart Goal Setting?
Working smart is a personal work ethic, and philosophy. Some people believe to achieve more, you have to put in more hours, others believe that by working smarter, you get to have more productivity in a shorter period of time.
I like the smart part! And I am sure, you do too. The problem is that a lot of people don’t set smart goals. Often, you will see this happen with New Year resolutions, and at other times. These are goals, which don’t have a system to make them work.
* What Is Are Goal Setting Systems?
If you need water to come into the home, you need a system. If you want to build a house, you need a system of planning and execution. And here is where systems become important.
Goal setting systems are exactly that. A framework, that works with all your goals. You can apply it to create projects big or small.
With a good goal setting systems, they allow you to easily go through tasks. To realize the tasks that needs to be performed. Goal setting systems also help you to find opportunities, and potential obstacles well in advance.
* Are Goal Setting Systems Essential?
Many managers and professional people will use one of the simplest systems. Today I need to do, etc. A To Do list!
Creating a list is a system; however, it is not a big system. It allows you to take thoughts out of your head, and put it to paper. But, try creating a business by simply writing down To Do’s. It can be a hard task!
* What Makes A Good Goal Setting System?
I have seen many goal setting systems that have a great functioning goal setting system; however, they often forget the KISS principle. A good goal setting system should work for big or small projects.
Any system for goal setting is going to be better than not having one at all. For people serious about taking control of their lives, and living a much better life, doing what they really want, a goal setting system becomes essential.

I once heard it said that you can’t get anything done in a world without rules.While this is true in a broader sense, I like to say that an individual can’t get anything done without setting their own rules.Since rules need to be followed and discipline must be developed in order to follow the rules we set for ourselves, I equate this rule setting activity to the process of goal setting.A rule in its most basic form is actually a goal that we strive to achieve.  We do not always follow the rules, even though that is the goal and this is evident by the number of penal institutions we have in North America and the number of otherwise good people who are incarcerated for petty crimes each year.Many cases of poor goal setting and non-conformance to the rules go unnoticed every day and those people who are responsible for the errant actions end up living with the guilt of not having lived up to their own internal expectations.  Most people could avoid this kind of disappointment in life if they only had better information in their hands on the characteristics of good goal setting.Should you decide that your goal setting skills are not up to par and you would like to improve your methods and corresponding results, the following list may be helpful.  Good goals must be:

Specific Goals

Before deciding on any goal make sure to take some time to think about what you really want.  The more specific you can be when defining your goal, the better.  For example, if your goal is to have a new car, make sure to define for yourself exactly what make and model of car you want.  What color will it be?  What options will it have?  Being as specific as possible about every little detail will make the goal more real to you.

Attainable Goals

Although it is good to aim high, some goals are so big that they need to be broken down into smaller, more manageable goals.  If you have a goal in your mind that you think you will never be able to achieve, divide it into smaller steps that don’t seem quite so intimidating and can be undertaken one at a time.  Track your progress in achieving the smaller goals that will lead you to your original goal.

Written Goals

If you have a goal that is not written down then it is not really a goal.  Take the time to write down any goal you have serious aspirations of achieving.  We tend to forget about things we do not write down because of our busy schedules, so by writing your goals down, you will have a better chance of following through.

Visible GoalsOnce you have made a written list of all the goals you would like to accomplish, make sure to put the list in a highly visible place where you will see it each day.  I recommend making multiple copies of your goal list and putting a copy in each room of your house.  Put the list on mirrors, on your fridge, by your computer and in any other high traffic area of your home where you are sure to see it each day.  One of the most inventive places to place your goal list is on the toilet seat, or directly across from the toilet.

Time Sensitive GoalsA goal is not a goal unless you set a specific time period within which the goal must be accomplished.  Being as detailed as possible in describing your goals is not enough on its own.  If you do not set a deadline for achieving a goal, you will procrastinate and most likely never complete your task.  So instead of saying you will lose 20 lbs, say you will lose 20 lbs in 5 weeks, or whatever time period you choose.

Planned GoalsYou can have every intention of accomplishing multiple tasks and have set time periods within which to achieve them, but it is highly unlikely that you will succeed without a plan.  For each goal you intend to accomplish, make up a list of activities that if implemented, will bring your goal closer to fruition.  Then, make sure to complete the smaller activities at set intervals in order to see the eventual completion of your goal.

Researched GoalsIf you have set goals that require expertise that falls outside your areas of knowledge, then you have two choices.  Either seek out the information you need to become better informed about the topic at hand, or find someone else who knows what you need to know and pick their brain for ideas.  You can even hire someone with a specific area of knowledge if necessary.  Henry Ford was once brought to trial by his peers and accused of incompetence.  He responded by saying that it was not necessary for him to know how to do things that he could hire others to do for him.

Emotional GoalsWhen deciding to chase any goal, it is best to have an emotional reason for doing so. Particularly in cases where we need to motivate ourselves to complete tasks that we find undesirable, emotion helps us to maintain our focus and follow through on our commitments.  Instead of focusing on the tasks that need to be completed for your goal to be realized, keep your mind on why you want to accomplish your goal and its fulfillment will seem to happen effortlessly.

Supported GoalsIf you are trying hard to accomplish any goal, it never hurts to have a great support system around you.  If necessary, get rid of negative people and influences in your life that do not support you or further your advancement towards your goals.  We become like the people we hang around with and I for one would prefer to only hang around with positive people with a can-do attitude.

Broadcast GoalsOne of the best ways to see any goal through to completion or attainment is by shooting your mouth off about what you intend to do.  We tend to become lazy when we are only accountable to ourselves, but develop a keener sense of urgency when accountable to others.  Tell as many people as possible what your intentions are.  Brag about what you intend to do.  Speak out loud to yourself in the mirror too.  I have found that it is easier to live with a goal attained than to live with the shame of having bragged about what I intended to do while actually accomplishing nothing.To summarize, 10 characteristics of good goal setting can be found in goals that are specific, attainable, written, visible, time sensitive, planned, researched, emotional, supported and broadcast.  If you have anything in your life that you have meant to accomplish but have not made any headway on in some time, apply the principles mentioned above and get the feeling of guilt off your back for good.  Apply these 10 characteristics of good goal setting to any area of life that seems to be mired in the mud of procrastination and quick results are sure to follow.