Just like that, summer has come and gone. Fall has routinely become a great time to re-evaluate progress year and set new goals. These goals are not just financial but also your health goals, as well. Goals can become overwhelming but they don’t have to be.
In order to be successful in the world, we need to have clearly defined goals. Specifically, we need to know who we are and what we want to accomplish in our relationships, at work, and within ourselves. When we know what we want, we are more likely to change our behavior to get it; being goal-directed helps keep our behavior and choices on track.
Chunking goals down into small steps will give you an opportunity to measure your progress daily. In a successful goal-setting exercise, called the One-Page Miracle (OPM). We have found that the one thing that children and adults have in common is a sense of personal responsibility and clear goals. The OPM will help guide nearly all of your thoughts, words, and actions to help you determine whether or not your daily decisions are getting you closer to what you want in live or not. I’ve seen this exercise quickly focus and change people.
Do not try to do this exercise in your head – you MUST write it down! The act of writing it down creates a greater connection between your thinking self and doing self and makes it appear more real than if you simply think it in your head.
Here’s how to develop your own OPM. Take one sheet of paper and clearly write the following main headings and subheadings:
RELATIONSHIPS:
- Spouse/lover
- Children
- Extended family
- Friends
WORK:
- Financial goals
- Short-term goals
- Long-term goals
SELF:
- Body
- Mind
- Spirit
Next to each subheading, briefly write out what’s important to you in that area; write what you want, not what you don’t want. Be positive and use the first person. Write what you want with confidence and the expectation that you will make it happen.
After you complete this exercise put it up where you can see and read it every day. It is a great idea to start the day off each day by reading your OPM to get focused on what really matters to you. Then before you do or say something, ask yourself if your potential behavior fits your goals. In that way, you focus your eyes every day on what’s important to you. Your life becomes more conscious and you spend your energy on goals that are important to you.
