How to set life goals, in 4 steps

One of the most difficult things to accept is that life has the meaning that we want to give it. And even more difficult than that is to take the step and give ourselves a meaning to our existence.

In this article we will see several tips about how to set life goals, based on simple guidelines that we can develop by changing our daily habits.

• Related article: "Personal growth: how to transform your life in 6 steps"

How to set life goals, step by step

Our existence does not obey a predetermined objective, we ourselves must be able to transform our personal growth in a coherent and meaningful project (or at least, a chain of projects with sense). But this is not an easy thing to do. We often feel lost or stuck., and as much as we fantasize about a world in which it is always very clear what to do, the truth is that these kinds of decisions are up to us to make. Now… how to do it? How to begin to order our priorities and establish in a concrete way those objectives to be achieved? Let's see it.

1. Define your values

In the first place, it is necessary to take into account which are the values ​​that are most important to you and that on a day-to-day basis shape what you consider important. In this way, you will have an outline about what is the "skeleton" of those things that you value and want in your life, and of those things that you want to avoid.

To do this, write on a sheet of paper a set of abstract character concepts that account for the things that matter to you: friendship, environment, strong emotions, etc. Then, make a selection of about 8 or 9 elements and order them by placing the values ​​that are most important to you in the first positions.

2. Make a list of attainable long-term goals

Long-term goals are those that only make sense to consider them as objectives to be achieved in the future. a matter of years, or that although they may never be fully achieved, they help us to establish routines. For example, learning languages, getting fit, meeting more people, traveling, etc. So, make a list of about 5 or 6 long-term goals, those that make you most excited, so that from this scheme you can later decide in an easier way what to do.

3. Concrete your plans

In this step to establish life goals you must operationalize the way in which you will achieve those goals, considering realistic ways to achieve it, on the one hand, and that this way of achieving them does not come into direct conflict with your values. For example, if one of your goals is to travel but one of your most important values ​​is the protection of the environment environment, it is worth considering how to travel without using the plane, given that this means of transport pollutes much. To do this, establish a strategy about traveling by hitchhiking, for example, or by bicycle, train, etc.

• You may be interested: "Types of motivation: the 8 motivational sources"

4. Break your goals down into short-term goals

You cannot live only on long-term goals; It is important to divide them into shorter time frames to be excited about the results that we are achieving week after week.

Therefore, based on those goals that you have set for yourself in the long term, segment small wins that get you closer to them a month from now. Keep in mind that this step is only for realizing your progress, and you shouldn't obsess over it. Finally, with these short-term goals you can create calendars about what your progress should be over time, so that you make a commitment to yourself and don't throw in the towel easily. This calendar will help you have control over whether you are achieving your goals or not.

5. Review your life goals

We all change over time, and a life goal may become unimportant or meaningless to you after a while. This is normal and is part of the process of growth and psychological evolution. For this reason, you must monitor your progress and see if what you do continues to motivate you and awaken enthusiasm in you. If he doesn't, abandon those goals without judging yourself, since that in and of itself isn't bad.

Bibliographic references:

• Bandura, A. (1998). Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control, W.H. Freeman and Company, New York.
• Grant, A. M.; O'Hara, B. (2006). "The self-presentation of commercial Australian life coaching schools: Cause for concern?". International Coaching Psychology Review. Leicester: The British Psychological Society. 1 (2): 21–33 [29].
• Ventegodt, S.; Joav M.; Niels Jorgen A. (2003). "Quality of Life Theory III. Maslow Revisited". TheScientificWorldJournal. Finland: Corpus Alienum Oy (3): 1050–1057.