3 Things to Consider to Stay Motivated When Setting Business Goals
Setting goals can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, we can aim high and set unlimited possibilities for ourselves. On the other hand, our goals can be so big that if we don’t reach them, we become discouraged, unmotivated and give up. The size of our goals isn’t necessarily the reason we might not achieve them. Rather, it is the plan and how we measure the goal that tend to determine our success in achievement Here are three things that I consider when setting business goals as well as for myself to help me maintain momentum and crush my goals all year long.
# 1 – Make them Meaningful
Simply taking the time to write out WHY achieving a goal is important to you has an impact. Do you want to have $10,000 saved by July? Or do you want to have $10,000 saved by July so that you can buy a new truck and take on bigger jobs? What will that $10,000 mean for you emotionally? Does it mean more freedom, peace of mind, or higher income?
If you place emotional value on your goals, you have a lot more invested and a lot more to look forward to by achieving the goal; this can help you stick to your plan and keep you motivated.
If you have trouble writing out specific reasons, try creating a ‘vision board’. Cut out pictures in magazines or print them off the internet and tape them to a piece of paper of what your life might look like from achieving your goals. Place it somewhere you’ll see it every day. It might sound silly, but any reminder of why you’re doing what you’re doing is motivational.
# 2 – Implement a Plan and a Tracking/Measuring System
After you’ve written out your ‘why,’ it’s time to figure out your ‘how.’ Just like you need to make an itinerary for your trip to Bali, you need an action plan for your goals.
Your action plan will have several components, for more information you can look at our blog post on creating a step-by-step action plan for your goals – but for now, just keep in mind that having an action plan will make achieving your goals much more realistic.
One of the most important components of the action plan is having a system to track your goals. When you’re able to check off milestones, big and small, you will feel good. And when we feel good, we tend to continue doing what we set out to do.
# 3 – Try Setting Business Goals for the Short-Term and the Long-Term
I know, it might sound overwhelming if you’re new to setting goals AND achieving them. Hear me out: if you only set a long-term goal, chances are you may get lost on your way to achieving it. It also is harder to track your progress towards achieving that singular goal, which may lower your motivation to keep pushing forward. Instead, try setting short-term goals that feed into the achievement of your long-term goal. This way, you will be able to see your progress, feel reassured each time you tackle a small piece of that loftier goal, AND increase your motivation by seeing your big picture goal get closer.
Let’s still pretend you want to save $10,000 by July. And the reason you want to save $10,000 by July is so that you can buy a new truck that will fit larger tools so that you can take on bigger jobs (short-term), and those bigger jobs mean that by July 2024 you will have two employees and a net income increase of $100k. To grow your business by that much in 3 years, you first need that $10k for a new truck.
So, don’t shy away from setting short-term goals that will lead to even bigger and better long-term goals.
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