goal setting 101 - part 2

This essay is an excerpt from my book, The Way of The Karma Yogi.

An essential aspect of goal setting is that our goals should stretch us so that we are able to expand ourselves and enter new levels of success. Set up Big, Hairy and Audacious Goals — also called BHAGs — for yourself. There are different areas of our lives where we can set up goals in: Impact, Income, Relationships, Health and Fitness, Spirituality, Personal Growth, Lifestyle, Traveling and Adventure. You can start by writing goals for each of these areas. Once you’re done, the next step is picking the 3 BIG Goals that you’re truly passionate about and can impact you and/or your lifestyle dramatically. I suggest following your heart and not get blinded by shiny objects as you do this process.

Now that you have your 3 BIG Goals in place, your next step is to figure out your ‘One Thing’. As Curly in the movie, City Slickers advised: Find your ‘One Thing’ and stick to it, the rest doesn’t even matter. What is one key behavior that when cultivated will help you in accomplishing each of your 3 Goals?

Here are some examples:

• Goal: I have written a 250-page book by December 31, 20__.
  • Key behavior: Writing for 30 minutes every weekday

• Goal: I have earned $200,000 net income through my online businesses by December 31, 20__.
  • Key behavior: Market and promote my products/creations on 5 online platforms 5 days a week

• Goal: I have lost 20 pounds to attain the ideal weight of 180 by December 31, 20__.
  • Key behavior: Eating a healthy whole foods, plant-based diet 6 days a week

Now that you have identified the key behavior or the ‘One Thing’ for each of your BHAGs, you need to make sure that you carve out a place in your daily schedule to make it happen.

It’s safe to conclude that goal setting brings focus and clarity so that we make definitive progress in the most important areas of our lives. Where our attention goes energy flows; and what we focus on grows. When we devote our energies towards doing key behaviors and actions that help us progress towards our BHAGs, we minimize and eventually stop paying attention to all the bad behaviors and habits that exhaust us of our creative energies, and unlock our true potential. 

Goal setting is a great way to activate the Law of Attraction in our lives and a reliable tool that helps us perform meaningful actions. It not only improves our productivity but it keeps us intrinsically motivated and gives us a strong sense of purpose as we tread the path of our lives.

Setting goals is just one part, the next part is achieving them. Planning is good, but execution is the most important thing. 

If you’d like to know more about why most people fail at accomplishing their BHAGs and learn some foolproof strategies on how to accomplish your 3 BIG Goals in the next year, I’d encourage you to read my book The Way of the Karma Yogi. It took me two years of dedicated, painstaking work to complete this book and it has some great insights and invaluable information that will help you tap into your personal and professional prowess and live a life that reflects exceptionalism. It’s available on Amazon and all major stores.