Focus On Goals

Friends, I need you to give me your full attention for just a moment. I need you to focus on the topic at hand. I want to talk about our ability to focus on goals.

Do you ever feel like this poor guy? Too many “balls in the air” at any given time?
I think one thing many people have difficulty with is finding the time to focus on goals. Having goals, and pursuing them, is great. However, if you cannot focus on one or a small group of goals at a time, you will not likely achieve them all. When setting goals, you must have a series of goals in mind, and then arrange them in order of relevance. As always, I suggest writing them down – along with a proposed time-frame to completion.

I have narrowed down the list to 6 key time frames and types of goals, and how to focus on goals ranging from today to lifetime.

1. Lifetime
2. 5 – 10 Year
3. Current Calendar Year
4. Monthly
5. Weekly
6. Daily

The trick is to focus on goals on all levels at once, yet still keep focus on short-term goals in the forefront of your mind. I find the easiest way to do this is to write down goals for all levels, then number the list in terms of my value or importance for each. This way, I can assess the list and set priorities. Once I see where my highest priorities are, I can focus on achieving those goals which are most relevant, and not focus on things that may be of lesser importance in the grand scheme of things.

#1. Lifetime
This is the ultra-long term goals you may have. In order to focus on goals at this level, we must be looking way out into the future. This may include things such as retirement, or traveling to certain places in the world, or other related lifetime achievements. These should always be in the back of your mind, so you do not do things to sabotage them with current efforts.

#2. 5 – 10 Year
This should be a bit more measurable in terms of goals. This is where you will think about things such as starting a business, buying a new home or property, or other things that are not immediately achievable. These should be a little closer to the forefront of your mind. Once again, you need to have these on your mind so you can work towards them, such as a weekly savings plans that will ultimately help in buying big ticket items down the road.

#3. Current Calendar Year
Focusing on the year ahead is of greater importance. This is how you will accomplish things that are a bit closer at hand. Perhaps you have a goal of saving a certain amount of money, or losing a certain amount of weight by December 31st. or getting a promotion at work. This type of goal is one you whittle away at every day, slowly but surely being able to find a bit more progress. Ideally, this goal would be set on January 1st, however it is never too late to start!

#4. Monthly
These goals are the ones you wish to achieve this calendar month. It is a bit easier to focus on goals at this level, as it is a bit closer to our current reality. This one should be set at the beginning of the month if possible, however you can set this goal at any time in the month. I like to think of these types of goals as being more immediately measurable. Maybe your goal is to donate one Saturday a month to volunteer for a local charity, or perhaps you wish to donate 10% of your paycheck on a certain month to a specific cause. This gives you a measurable goal to work towards all month, and the results will be measurable fairly quickly.

#6. Daily
These goals have the quickest, and most immediately visible, return on investment. It is much easier to focus on goals at this level. When I wake up each day, I compile a list of proposed tasks that should be done. I then ask myself “Out of all these tasks, if I can only complete 3 of them, which will they be?”. This allows me to focus very closely on those that are obviously most important to me. Since I have them all on a list, I can them number them in terms of importance, and ensure I focus specifically on the top 2 or 3 that I consider most important. Once I complete a goal, I mark it off the list and work on the next one on the list. You will be surprised at how many of them you can really accomplish. If you focus only on accomplishing goal #1 first, then work on #2, and down the list, you will see that you get more done than you thought you could. You will also notice that each one is achieved with higher quality than if you multi-tasked on each one and only half-heartedly worked on each goal.

Once you have identified these goals, written them down, and numbered the lists in order of importance, then you can begin to focus on goals with vigor. One other important aspect to remember is this: Be sure to do periodic assessments of your goals, and be flexible enough to change them with the changing times. Nothing in life is static, except change. You have to be able to roll with the punches, and readjust your goals as conditions around you change. Look at the list often, and make necessary changes as conditions call for it. If you don’t you will find yourself chasing a goal that is either no longer possible, no longer probable, or no longer relevant.