I am convinced that everyone has goals. Everyone wants to either lose weight, be healthier, make more money, gain influence, achieve a higher sense of purpose, finish a project, etc… The question I want to ask you is not…

“Do you have goals?” 

The REAL question I want to ask you is…

“Do you have a plan to accomplish your goals?”

Almost all failed goals fail because of a failure to make a plan to not fail. Did you get that? It is not a lack of desire by which we fail to reach our goal, it is the lack of an action plan that we fail to reach our goals! There is nothing magical that happens when an idea to make more money pops into our mind. Simply having a goal to make more money does nothing to get you there. It is a great start, but an idea alone won’t get you to the goal. Most people get an idea, call it a goal, and then make a few feeble attempts to accomplish it but then it eventually fades away.

How many times have you told yourself you were going to start reading more as a new goal? I bet you started off great for a few days maybe even weeks, but then what happened? You probably missed a few reading times because of an unforeseen schedule change or some circumstance that kept you from it. From here you had a hard time getting back into the routine and eventually defaulted back to the way it was before the goal was set.

You have to have an action plan that will carry you to the goal. Think of an action plan like a vehicle that gets you to where you want to go.

Without a good vehicle to reach your destination, you will stall out somewhere along your journey short of your intended goal. So how do you get a great action plan to where you want to go? Let me share with you 3 things I believe will give you an action plan…

1. Begin At The End

Dr. Stephen Covey taught us many great things, but one of his greatest teachings will always be “Start With The End In Mind.” If you do not know where you want to end up you will never get there. Author Denis Waitley said,

“The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them.”

You must be specific when you begin with your end. Don’t be vague about your intended result. Be specific and measurable about your goals. How will you know when you reached your goal if you do not know exactly what it is. Don’t say, “I want to read more.” Be specific about what books you will read and how much time per day you will read them. Don’t say, “I will make more money.” Be specific about how much money you want to realistically make.

2. Work Backwards

Once you have your clear goal begin to work your way backwards to accomplish it. If you want to lose 3o pounds for example figure out how much weight you will need to lose per week in order to reach that by a set time you want to reach it. If your goal is to lose 30 pounds in six months, that would be about 5 pounds a month, which in turn means losing a little over a pound a week. Because you know your end result you can work backwards to figure out your game plan to get there. If you want to write a 50,000 word book this year that would roughly mean you need to write a little more than 4,000 words a month. Which you could break down into about 1,ooo words a week. Break that down even more would mean 140 words a day (This blog post you are reading is 920 words just to give you an idea).

3. Make It Visual

Now that you have your calculated game plan for reaching your goals make sure you write it down into a checklist or to do list. The important thing here is that it is visually in front of you somehow someway. It is vital for your eyes to see the goal clearly in order for your brain to comprehend it. Motivational Speaker Mark Victor Hansen said,

“By recording your dreams and goals on paper, you set in motion the process of becoming the person you most want to be. Put your future in good hands — your own.”

Keep your goal in front of you visually. Find something that will remind you of the result you are looking for. Some people put an old picture of themselves at the desire weight they want to be back at. Others will put up a picture that inspires them of the lifestyle they want financially. Some put an object on their desk such as a plaque, mock award, or anything that reminds them of their destination. I put up a large abstract picture I painted that had the title of my first book (The Worship Revolution) over my desk so that while I was writing it I would be reminded of the goal to finish. Make sure whatever you do that you make your goal visual so that you are inspired each day to accomplish it.