Tips For Setting Realistic Goals

Setting unrealistic goals not only harms your self-esteem, but it also affects your judgement and performance.

Therefore setting goals which are realistic in terms of their achievement, is always the best course of action.

In order to set achieveable and realistic goals, you will find some valuable and tested tips and ideas on goal setting in this article.

(This article was written by Kim)

What Is A Realistic Goal?

Goal setting should always involve realistic goals.

A realistic goal is a personal goal which can be measured in terms of achievement and performance, and for which we possess sufficient abilities.

Suppose there is a goal for which we find that we do not have enough abilities to achieve. In this case, first achieving those abilities should become our primary realistic goal.

If we keep trying to achieve a goal for which we lack some abilities, it will be unrealistic and a self-deception.

This is something you definitely want to avoid during goal setting, because it can put you off setting goals for good because you feel as though you never achieve anything.

How To Identify Realistic Goal Setting

To identify a realistic goal, first you need to recognize what abilities you possess and lack in context to that goal.

For example, you want to take admission in Cambridge University and it is your dream to be a regular student over there. So you begin the goal setting process.

First, you need to evaluate yourself to determine if you qualify to enter into Cambridge or not? Do you possess enough qualifications to enter and can you mange to live all on your own?

This is the most important stage of goal setting, because the answers you get from your evaluation will determine whether your goals are realistic or not.

If the majority of answers are negative, it means you are setting an unrealistic goal. However, if the answers are mostly positive, then it is a realistic goal, which can be achieved through hard work and dedication.

So realistic goal setting is all about making an honest assessment of yourself, and then using the skills you have to achieve what you want.

The best way to do this goal setting evaluation is through writing. Take a piece of paper and write down all of your abilities and skills in one column, and all the required abilities for your goal in next column.

Then match the requirements and abilities and the result will be in front of you. However, it is very important to be honest to yourself, and do not write those abilities which you think are still developing or not present at all.

Remember, the idea of goal setting is to set realistic goals because those will be the goals you will have the most chance of achieving.

So don’t try and trick yourself during the goal setting evaluation process, otherwise you will do yourself more harm than good.

Yes My Goal Is Realistic

Half of the work is done when you decide if the goal is realistic or not. In the case that you find your goal is realistic, then there should be no excuses for the failure.

The next goal setting step is to strengthen your current abilities, or you may say charging up your abilities, to start working for that goal.

For example, you want to teach English language and you know you can do it easily because you did it in the past as well.

However, because it was a long time since you last used this ability, it is now best to first review some grammar books and teaching methods before going to teach the students.

Similarly, for every realistic goal, the second step is to strengthen those abilities which are required to achieve that goal. This is like a warm up activity, and is very beneficial in the long run.

Motivation And Inspiration

Before you start working on your goal, it is best to read about people which have had similar types of goals.

Knowing that many people are also trying to achieve the same goal as yours not only motivates you, but also makes it realistic to achieve.

The Internet is the best place to read and share your questions or experiences with other people. This has proven to be a very supportive factor and can be used effectively to accelerate your performance.

Another advantage is, you can read about people who used wrong goal setting strategies or could not make timely decisions and thus faced a failure.

In this way, we can learn form the mistakes of others and achieve our realistic goals successfully, while avoiding those mistakes.

However, because we tend to forget many things, it is also best to write those factors about which you feel you should be very cautious and the wrong decisions which should be avoided.

Preparing A Realistic Goal Worksheet

Combining all the above goal setting tips and advice, I suggest that it is best to make a worksheet for your realistic goal.

In the worksheet, first you should write if your goal is realistic or not. This can be done by evaluating our abilities and the goal requirements.

Secondly, write down those abilities which you think you do possess but you need to refresh them.

Finally, read about the mistakes of other people and note down in your worksheet the decisions which are dangerous to be taken, and the strategies which failed for other people to achieve similar goals.

Keep this statement in a place where you can often see it regularly. If you write it in a computer, make sure you get a print of it because reading on a paper has more powerful effects as compared to reading on a screen.

Setting and achieving realistic goals is not impossible at all, however it needs time, devotion, and a self-commitment.

Those people never fail who show patience and persistence, and the Universe always assists them to be successful.

(This article was written by Kim)

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