How to Set Goals and Get What You Want
Written by Colleen Kettenhofen
“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts,
liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes.”
Andrew Carnegie
The following techniques when consistently applied are guaranteed to create your dreams and build the life you’ve always wanted. Be specific and realistic. These are the same principles I applied in early 1995 when I desired to enter the speaking business. At the time, I was a bit skeptical and wondered if these techniques would really work. By 1996 I was traveling to Ireland, England, Scotland, and Wales as an international speaker. The point here is not to brag. My point is that if you will diligently practice the following affirmations, visualizations, and action steps… you can achieve your dreams. The first step is to believe. Believe that you can do it.
When writing down affirmations for your goals, start with different colored index cards. Green for career and financial, yellow for health and fitness, pink for relationships, and blue for spiritual goals. Using different colors sends a signal to your brain that you’re setting goals in various areas of your life. Do not have more than nine affirmations or goals for all categories total at any given time. You don’t want to become overloaded and give up before you’ve begun.
On the front of each index card, write the 2 words “I am.” These are the 2 most important words in the English language when writing affirmations. Make certain each affirmation incorporates the “3 P’s.”
You want your affirmations to apply to only you because you cannot change others. Thus, you would not have an affirmation stating, “I am enjoying my daughter’s clean room.” You don’t know if your child will clean it to your specifications. You could write, however, “I am enjoying that my bed is made and my room is clean every morning.” You have control over making your bed and cleaning your room every morning. Also, make them in the present tense.
How would it feel to already have accomplished that goal? By keeping it positive, you also give your mind a “steering wheel” for the direction you want to go in. For example, you would not want to write, “I am enjoying no longer eating desserts.” What you could write, however, is “I am enjoying eating one dark green salad per day.” Or, “I am happily enjoying drinking eight glasses of water a day.” Your mind now has direction.
After starting with “I am,” include a “feeling” word and an “action” word or verb. This is vitally important as the feeling generated helps you achieve your goals faster. Examples of feeling words include happily, easily, peacefully, joyfully. My affirmation in 1995 for getting into the speaking business was, “I am happily conducting seminars all over the world.” The action word “conducting” in the present tense assisted me in how it felt to already be doing that activity.
Be specific with your goals and include action steps. Also write a deadline under each affirmation. By what month and what year do you want to have achieved that goal? On the front of the index card below the affirmation I also wrote, “England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas” because these were the places where I wanted to speak! I kept these green index cards on my nightstand, in my wallet and on my bathroom mirror. The reason…your subconscious mind is most amenable to suggestion first thing in the morning, and last hour before going to bed. I would see this positive message first thing upon awakening and last thing before retiring at night. After a week, my mind started coming up with “action steps” for how to achieve these goals. These steps were written down on the back of the card. I began to take action steps, such as producing a training video speaking in front of a group, and visualizing success. By December 1999, I had conducted seminars and breakout sessions for conferences in all these locations. Six countries to be exact.
Look at your affirmations and goals at least twice a day. Close your eyes and visualize them as having already happened. What would it feel like to already be successful at having your own business? What would it feel like to look out at St. Martin from your balcony on a Caribbean cruise? How would you feel as you’re walking down the aisle to your soul mate?
Have the right attitude. Believe that you can achieve your goals. Hold yourself accountable and get rid of excuses for why you can’t accomplish something. A word of caution here: be careful with whom you share your aspirations and dreams. The key is to surround yourself with supportive people. Lastly, have an action plan and take action. Goals are nothing without action.
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Colleen Kettenhofen is a Phoenix, Arizona motivational speaker, trainer, & co-author of “The Masters of Success ,” featured on NBC’s Today Show, along with Ken Blanchard and Jack Canfield. For free articles, video clips, and e-newsletter, visit http://www.ColleenSpeaks.com. Colleen’s area of expertise are leadership, managing people, life balance, difficult people, presentation skills. Colleen is available for keynotes, breakout sessions and seminars.
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