When you do the things you need to do, when you need to do them, the day will come when you can do the things you want to do, when you want to do them.
American author, motivational speaker and leading authority on human potential, Zig Ziglar shared some great strategies for goal achievement in his book “Goals Take You to The Top!: How to Get What You Want”. As Ziglar often said “You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want.” Here are some of the tools, tips and strategies that he encouraged for goal attainment:
“If you aim at nothing you will hit it every time!” —Zig Ziglar
Tips for goal achievement
- Identify your wants, set your goals and write them down.
- List the benefits you will get from achieving the goals.
- Identify the obstacles to your goals (Do you have enough skill and knowledge to achieve it?)
- Make a plan of action (identify the individuals, groups and organizations to work with)
- Set a completion date.
The Ziglar Goal Setting System
Action Step 1
On your Dream List, let your imagination run wild and print everything you want to be, do or have. (When you print, your concentration is greater and you burn the idea more indelibly into your subconscious mind.)
Action Step 2
Wait twenty-four to forty-eight hours then answer the question “why?” for each item you have printed on your Dream List.
Action Step 3
“Ask these five questions, all of which must have a “yes” answer:
Is it really my goal? (If you’re a minor living at home, an employee or a team member, some of your goals will be set by the coach, director, parent or employer.)
Is it morally right and fair to everyone concerned?
Is it consistent with my other goals?
Can I emotionally commit myself to finish this goal?
Can I “see” myself reaching this goal?
Action Step 4
After each remaining dream ask yourself these questions:
Will reaching this goal make me happier?
Will reaching this goal make me healthier?
Will reaching this goal make me more prosperous?
Will reaching this goal win me more friends?
Will reaching this goal give me peace of mind?
Will reaching this goal make me more secure?
Will reaching this goal improve my relationships with others?
If you can’t answer “yes” to at least one of these questions eliminate that item from your list of dreams. Careful: Don’t confuse pleasure with happiness. Be sure to consider your family when you answer these questions.
Action Step 5
Divide the remaining goals into three categories:
Short range (1 month or less)
Intermediate (1 month to 1 year); Long-range (1 year or more), and mark them SR (short range), I (intermediate) or LR (long-range) on your Things I Really Want To Be, Do or Have sheet.
Action Step 6
From the remaining goals, prayerfully choose the four goals (remember, balance is the key) which are the most important things you need to work on right now and record them.
Action Step 7
Record these four goals (at least the ones that are Intermediate and Long-Range) on a General Goals Procedure Chart, and work each one of them through the process as shown in the examples.
Action Step 8
Take the additional goals you have listed on your Things I Really Want To Be, Do or Have sheet and record each on a General Goals Procedure Chart. Work each goal through the process as you did in Action Step VII.
Other tips for reaching your goals
- Make the commitment to reach your goal.
“One person with a commitment is worth a hundred who only have an interest.” —Mary Crowley
- Commit yourself to detailed accountability. Record your weekly activities and list the six most important things, in the order of their importance, which you need to do tomorrow. Daily discipline is the key to reaching your goals.
- Build your life on a solid foundation of honesty, character, faith, integrity, love and loyalty. This foundation will give you an honest shot at reaching any goal you have properly set.
- Break your Intermediate and Long-Range goals into increments. Examples: I lost 37 pounds by losing 3.7 pounds each month for 10 months, or just 1.9 ounces per day. I wrote See You at the Top (348 pages) by writing 1.26 pages per day, every day, for 10 months. (By the mile it’s a trial, by the inch it’s a cinch!)
- Shape up mentally, physically and spiritually. It takes energy, mental toughness and spiritual reinforcement to successfully deal with life’s opportunities, and to reach your objectives.
- Motivation is the key and a positive attitude is a must, so on a daily basis you should feed your mind with good, clean, pure, powerful and positive material by reading good books and listening to motivational, educational and inspirational recordings. Regularly attend personal growth seminars or industry related training lectures and training programs. Remember, what you do off the job is going to be a determining factor in how far you go on the job.
- Take care of your physical health—proper diet, reasonable sleep, exercise, and eliminate the poisons (alcohol, drugs and tobacco).
- Don’t let others rain on your parade—or don’t be a SNIOP (Susceptible to the Negative Influence of Other People).
- Be prepared to change. You can’t control the weather, inflation, interest rates, Wall Street, etc. Just remember that, at this point, your goals have been carefully (and, I hope, prayerfully) set, so change your decision to go, carefully, but be willing to change your direction to get there as conditions and circumstances demand.
- Share your “give-up” goals (give up smoking, being rude, procrastination, being late, eating too much, etc.) with many people. Chances are excellent they are going to encourage you. Share your “go up” goals (be #1 producer, write a book, graduate with honors and be the class valedictorian, etc.) only with those rare people you strongly feel will give you support and encouragement.
Share your “give-up” goals (give up smoking, being rude, procrastination, being late, eating too much, etc.) with many people and Share your “go up” goals (be #1 producer, write a book, graduate with honors and be the class valedictorian, etc.) only with those rare people you strongly feel will give you support and encouragement.
- Become a team player. Learn to work with a team, such as your family, corporate associates, etc. Remember, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.
- See the reaching. In your imagination, see yourself receiving that diploma, getting that job or promotion, making that speech, moving into the home of your dreams, achieving that weight loss goal, building that financial nest egg, etc.
- Each time you reach a goal, your confidence will grow that you can do bigger and better things. After accomplishing the goal, record the event and cross it off your Things I Really Want to Be, Do or Have sheet.
- Remember that what you get by reaching your destination is not nearly so important as what you will become by reaching your goals, because what you will become is the winner you were born to be.
All the best in your quest to get better. Don’t Settle: Live with Passion.
