7 Effective Goal-Setting Strategies Osose Christabel Monday 30.09.2024 As a member of the writing and content-creating community who's dabbling with forex trading tutorials, strategy is a word I've heard quite a lot. A strategy is simply a plan. Your game plan. Random person: So, how do you plan to become a better person? You: I will practice generosity, smile often, and not say the mean things that flash through my mind. Well, those things form your strategy and if you do go on to implement it, you'll know if it works or not. In this article, we’ll discuss goal-setting strategies and how we can journey in the right direction with 7 great ones. What are Goal-Setting Strategies? Goal-setting strategies are a series of plans with actionable steps designed to achieve the desirable outcome its creator has in mind. Building and implementing a detailed yet specific strategy applies to any kind of goal or desirable outcome. Type of Goals Let’s look at a few ways we can categorize goals: Short-term & long-term Goals are either short or long-term depending on how much time it requires. For instance, if you're a student, it'll take you about 3 to 4 months to prepare for a semester's exams so this it’s a short-term goal. As a business owner, you may have yearly goals for your business and some for the next 5 years. Those qualify as long-term goals. Personal & organizational Personal goals are the desires you're driven to satisfy in your life as relating to your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and even professional life. Setting personal goals allows you to take an active approach to defining the quality of your life from an immaterial to a material standpoint. When people come together united by blood, work, values, or interests, they also share similar or organizational goals. It’s a set of objectives people agree to achieve together. Whether it’s a religious, educational, business, or non-profit organization, every institution has goals that they’re looking to achieve as a team. Material & immaterial I’d also like to classify goals as material or immaterial. It’s easy to see the results of certain goals from physical manifestations like weight loss or an increase in revenue. But, what we see with the eyes isn’t all there is. There are experiences, soft skills, or abilities you grow through experience and relationships. Things like being a better communicator, learning patience, practicing generosity, and so on. A behavior change could be a goal for you, but people will only notice such progress as they interact and relate with you. Now, these goal categories may overlap, but you get the whole point. No? Read it over again. Yes? Let’s go! Examples of Goal-Setting Strategies Goal setting for the future requires you to craft a plan. I mean, what exactly are you doing without a system in place? Here are some strategies to consider: SMART Goals First, we have the famous SMART goals and it’s well-known for good reason. Let’s go over what the acronym means and how we can apply it. Specific I want to be a world-renowned painter isn’t specific enough for a goal. It’s a dream at best and self-delusion at worst. So, be more specific.” I’d love to learn how to paint” or go even deeper (some research will help with this) “I want to learn portrait painting”. Having a specific goal gives you a point of action. Measurable Can you measure how good of a painter you are? Absolutely! When you make it through 50 paintings and watch your progress with each one, maybe seek feedback too, you’ll tell how better of a painter you are becoming. Actionable When you set your goal, do you define action steps to take immediately? You should. For the wanna-be painter, that may include taking painting lessons, watching helpful content, and most importantly setting time out to practice and hone the skill. Rewarding What’s your goal set to achieve? Are there any benefits associated with it? Well, following our example, you’ll become a skilled painter. That’s the reward you’re going for. Time-specific Every goal or plan needs time for execution. Depending on the magnitude of your goal, it could require weeks, months, or years. Even when you aren’t sure how long it’ll take, work with a reasonable estimate. PACT Method The PACT method is similar to the SMART goals. Here’s what the acronym stands for: Purposeful Define the purpose of your goal. For instance, I want a highly profitable skill set. A goal’s purpose acts as motivation to keep you going even when you encounter challenges. Actionable Define realistic steps that’ll help you achieve desirable results. Following our example above, that could look like- Do some research to find the top 10 most profitable skills Choose your favorite two and do more research to select which best suits you eg Copywriting Take some free courses on copywriting Connect with copywriters to learn about their experience and potential opportunities available And so on… Continuous Is your goal sustainable? Is it something that you’re able to put in the effort for as long as it’ll take to get the rewards? When setting goals, consider their feasibility and whether the efforts they require are currently realistic for you. Trackable How will you know you’re on the right track if you don’t measure your progress? Define the metrics for tracking your goals. Note what you’re looking to achieve within a set time frame so you can effectively measure your progress. Writing “Write the vision, make it plain”. Even the Bible agrees it’s a good idea to write out your goals. Sometimes, you need a reminder of what exactly you’re supposed to be working towards. You can get a journal for writing out your goals, use good old Google Docs, your phone’s notes app, or any other convenient digital option. Just get it out of your head, okay? Okay! New Habits For long-term or lifetime goals, you’ll need to learn some new habits. If you’re serious about becoming an athlete, a writer, or a painter, you’ll need to incorporate regular practice, writing, or painting as part of your routine. When you plan your week or month, decide on specific time frames to perform the activities that’ll be instrumental to your goals. Mini Goals Let’s face it, some goals are really big. I mean, if you want to be a rich and famous painter recognized globally, where should you start from? Have smaller goals. Let’s set a few - complete so-and-so painting class. Paint 4 landscape images each month. Start uploading painting videos online. Upload videos once a week for the next 6 months. Split your large main goal into smaller time-sensitive goals with a deadline to get started. Accountability Having someone or people to keep us accountable is a big plus to your goal setting so it should be part of a fool-proof strategy. Inform your mentor, a close friend or a colleague who you trust to form an accountability alliance with you. That means you should both keep yourselves in check with your goals and see how well you’re progressing. Seek support/help for community Sometimes, you’ll hit a roadblock. Let’s say you’re self-learning software development as part of a goal. You could get stuck one day and need external intervention, hence the importance of having a community whether it’s online or offline. Having people with similar goals or skills who can answer your questions and provide necessary support will facilitate your progress as opposed to trying to figure everything out by yourself. I mean, let’s be honest, nobody, no literal body figures anything out alone even in an intimate relationship like marriage. Sometimes, you just gotta speak with some experts or those further ahead and draw from their insight. Systems over outcomes We want to know exactly how things will turn out. If I do, A and B, surely I’ll get to C in no time. But, uncertainty is the spice of life. You’ll never know for sure until you go all in. Focus on learning the habits and adopting the lifestyle that’ll make your dreams highly probable while accepting that you don’t own the universe and things may not always turn out the way you imagine. Sometimes, you need persistence. Other times, a change in strategy is wise. There’ll also be times when you meet and even exceed your expectations, but you always want to be the person who prioritizes systems and processes over outcomes with strategic goal setting.