How to set goals? 8 useful tips

Do you have goals? Do you have goals? What do you dream of? Probably all of us, at some point in our long or short lives, have stopped to think about the future.

This future can be full of many things, but what is usually present when we think about the future, are the future objectives that we want to achieve. In this article we will address the issue of how to set goals, what are the most common objectives grouped by categories, and much more!

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How to set goals on a day-to-day basis?

Before explaining how to set goals, let's specify what they consist of. Goals are ends to which our actions, wishes or concerns are directed. The objectives can be passionate, work, work development, social, family ...

There are as many goals as there are types of desires people haveWhether to achieve them or not will depend on several factors; motivation, effort, perseverance, coherence.

In this article, we'll look at the most common goals and review a number of helpful techniques to learn how to effectively set goals.

The most common goals

As has already been advanced, there are as many types of goals as there are types of desires. Here you will find some more common specific objectives, classified by categories, which can help us think about how to set goals.

1. Health goals

• Do more exercise
• Lose X kg of weight
• Eat healthier
• Have less stress
• Meditate every day
• Taking care of yourself and pampering your body more
• Have more time for yourself
• Run a marathon once in your life
• Have lower cholesterol and sugar level

2. Family goals

• See my family more often
• Relying less on my family
• Get my children to have a good education
• Improve relationships with family members
• Educate with values ​​to
• Have a pet

3. Objectives of meaning and satisfaction

• Write a book
• Feeling more fulfilled with life
• Live every detail fully
• Enjoy more of everything I do
• Have more fun and worry less
• Relativize things more
• Travel more
• Do the Camino de Santiago
• Don't boycott yourself
• Have more self-esteem
• Write a book
• Work in an NGO
• Spend less time on social media

4. Money goals

• Save money
• Saving to pay the entrance to a flat in X years
• Buy only what is necessary
• Earn more money
• Spend my money more consciously
• List the expenses and income
• Have a retirement plan
• Achieve financial stability

5. Personal development goals

• Don't get angry so often
• Have more confidence in yourself
• Keep a journal and write every day
• Know how to manage emotions a little more
• Know how to empathize more
• Sign up for a personal growth and emotional intelligence course
• Read more

6. Couple goals / affective environment

• Finding the better half
• Spend more time together (with partner or romance)
• Improve your relationship with your partner
• Have a passing adventure
• Speak confidently about my sexual identity
• Experimenting more in sex
• Have more regular sex
• Form a family

7. Social development goals

• Have more friends
• Meet people
• Hang out with friends more often
• Get friends together more often
• Take a great trip with a great friend

8. Professional development goals

• Make a master
• Learn a language
• Obtain degree X
• Change jobs for another that you are more passionate about
• Get out before work
• Learn to use a computer program X
• Being able to manage time
• Create your own business
• Get along better with peers
• Learn to lead
• Have more vacations and free time
• Increase profits
• Increase staff motivation
• Reduce conflicts
• Reduce stress
• Think less about work
• Improve the way the company operates
• Ascend

9. Domestic goals

• Move out of flat
• Buy a plot to build on it
• Make the reform of the bathroom or kitchen
• Buy a mountain bike
• Putting parquet on the floor
• Recycle more
• Change city or country

Techniques to know how to set goals effectively

Before you stop to think about how to set goals, The essential thing is to think about whether there really is a real motivation to achieve those goals.

It must be borne in mind that there are a series of characteristics that are important for the objectives that we set for ourselves.

Thus, to develop a list of concrete objectives, it is important that these are clear and specific. If these are also measurable, it is a positive constant, since this allows quantifying the level of achievement and thus when want to measure that objective, you will be able to know if you are on the right track and thus obtain positive feedback to continue working On it.

What's more, the objectives should be, as far as possible, achievable. They must have a high part of realism and there must be a part of real possibility to achieve them - that fit our capacities and limitations -.

And lastly, it is important that the objectives we set are, to a certain extent, temporary. That is, they are limited to a certain period. Setting a temporary goal increases the motivation to achieve it.

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Steps to follow when setting goals

But how do you set goals in a more practical way? Here you can see a series of steps to do it.

1. Make a detailed list of objectives

In every aspect of life you can set goals. A good idea is to write a list with everything you want to add, change or modulate in your life, and have it visually.

2. Establish a certain period of time to achieve the objectives

Setting a certain deadline is important to continue not to dilute that goal and focus as much as possible on it, knowing that it has an ‘expiration date’.

3. Specify and clarify the objectives as much as possible

As we have already seen, it is important to limit the times of the objectives that you want to achieve. For example: “I want to study French four days a week”, “I want to go to the gym from 8 to 9 every day”.

The fact of specifying favors the acquisition of the habit, because you know exactly what you want: how much, where and when. In addition, it is important to stop generalities: "I want to improve in my professional career", "I want to eat healthier" and focus on specific aspects; “I want to do this master's degree”, “I want to eat vegetables five days a week”.

4. Identify the purposes that support the objectives

Another step to follow on how to set goals is to identify the purposes on which they are based. A) Yes, It is essential to think about and remember the reasons that led to this goal. The fact of having reasons that support the pursuit of the objective is very important.

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5. Break down each objective into tasks to perform

Designing a plan to follow to achieve this objective is in itself very motivating to continue with the mission, since you can go evaluating your degree of pursuit of the objective.

For example: to get in shape and lose extra pounds, you should:

• Find information and sign up for a gym that suits your needs (time, location ...)
• Select the classes or machines that best suit you
• Go regularly
• Substituting certain foods for more energetic ones

6. Take action immediately:

After searching within yourself what motivates you, what you dream about, and why, it's time to take action. Focus on what you want, internalize it, and start acting!

7. Do something each day that brings the objectives closer

The next step in relation to how to set goals is to do something every day that brings us closer to them.

In this way, a good way to get closer to your goals is through discipline.: do something every day that guides you towards your goals and allows you to maintain that initial momentum. Periodic action increases determination and energy.

8. Think about goals daily and track progress periodically

It is important to be fully aware of what your goals are. Think about them, and the positive consequences they can derive from those goals, and doing it periodically, is an undeniable encouragement not to abandon your conquest process.

In addition, it is known that the subconscious is programmed automatically when you think about something repeatedly, intentionally and if it is with high doses of emotion, the better.

Bibliographic references:

• Marinak, Barbara A.; Gambrell, Linda B. (2008). "Intrinsic Motivation and Rewards: What Sustains Young Children's Engagement with Text?". Literacy Research and Instruction. 47: 9–26.
• Zeus, P. and Skiffington, S. (2002). Complete guide to coaching at work. Madrid: Mc Graw Hill.