Really Simple Goal Setting

My favorite simplicity blog, Unclutterer, recently did a good post on goal-setting software called Lifetick, which is actually pretty cool. But as I was playing around with its nice little interface, I realized that for me, such a program is overkill.

I believe in keeping your goals simple, and if you do that, goal-setting and goal-management doesn’t require software.

In fact, you can do it with a single index card.

The key to simple goal setting is to not have too many goals. In fact, regular readers know that I advocate One Goal when possible. While that’s not always possible for some people, having too many goals makes things complicated and requires a more complicated system for keeping track of your goals.

Keep things as simple as possible if you can. That has the added benefit of allowing you to focus your energies on a small number of goals, making you far more effective with them.

Here’s what I recommend:

Brainstorm. If you don’t already have a list of things you’d like to accomplish, start out by making such a list. Throw anything on the list — you don’t actually have to do them. This is just to make sure you don’t miss anything.
The one thing that will change your life the most this year. Now take a look at the list and figure out which goal will change your life the most — within the next year or so. Is it something that can be accomplished in a year? It can take less than a year — one month or three or six if you like. If it will take several years, you might want to create a sub-goal that will take a year or less — any longer and it’s hard to stay motivated. Is it a goal that will really make a big difference in your life? Is it something you REALLY want to achieve? Be sure it’s something you’ll be passionate about, or you’ll lose motivation.
Create a mantra. Once you’ve chosen your goal, turn it into a personal mantra. This is an idea from Guy Kawasaki, who said that a business should abandon a mission statement (which are usually useless) and create a 2-5 word mantra instead (his was something like “empower entrepreneurs”). So use this idea for your personal mantra — how can you put your goal into 2-5 words? Write those words on an index card, or make it your desktop picture/wallpaper, or post it on the wall next to your computer. Do something to ensure that you never forget this mantra — and repeat it out loud every single day.
What can you do this month to make that happen? If your goal will take a year or so to accomplish, you’ll want to create a smaller sub-goal. Figure out a project you can do this month to get yourself a few steps closer to that goal, and focus on this project for the next month.
What can you do today? Each day when you start your day, repeat your mantra and figure out what action you can do today to make your goal closer to becoming a reality. It just has to be one thing. If you do one thing each day, you’ll reach your goal. Some days you can do two things if you like, but don’t overload yourself. Now make sure that one thing is the first thing you do today. Don’t put it off until the end of the day, when it will get pushed back until tomorrow. Do it first!

Five steps might sound like a lot, but in reality you’re just 1) choosing a goal and creating a mantra for it; and 2) focusing on shorter-term actions to make that goal a reality.

What if You Have More Than One Goal?

Many people will say that having just one goal is impossible for them. I have two possible solutions for that:

Just do one goal for now. You can still do the other goals, but put them off for a month or two. Focus on one goal for at least a month … and turn it into a habit. So if you want to run a marathon, create the habit of running each day. If you want to write a novel, create the habit of writing each morning. If you want to create a successful blog, create the habit of writing insanely useful posts each day. Once your first goal becomes a habit and is on autopilot, turn to the next goal — you don’t have to worry as much about the first goal because it has become automatic.
Do more than one goal, but keep them simple. The danger with more than one goal is that you’ll spread yourself too thin. If you have 3-4 goals, that’s doable if you don’t create half a dozen tasks you need to accomplish for each goal every week. That will lead to a lack of effectiveness. Instead, find ways to focus on one goal at a time: just focus on one of your goals this week, or just one of your goals each day, or just one of your goals in the morning and another in the afternoon, for example. This way you won’t lose effectiveness.

On Motivation

Often the problem with goals is not setting them, but sticking to them when motivation flags. For more on sticking to your goals, read my Ultimate Guide to Motivation.

How do you set and achieve your goals? I’d love to hear what works for you in the comments.

“You got to be careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there.” - Yogi Berra

Really Simple Goal Setting

I believe in keeping your goals simple, and if you do that, goal-setting and goal-management doesn’t require software.

In fact, you can do it with a single index card.

Keep things as simple as possible if you can. That has the added benefit of allowing you to focus your energies on a small number of goals, making you far more effective with them.

Here’s what I recommend:

Brainstorm. If you don’t already have a list of things you’d like to accomplish, start out by making such a list. Throw anything on the list — you don’t actually have to do them. This is just to make sure you don’t miss anything.
The one thing that will change your life the most this year. Now take a look at the list and figure out which goal will change your life the most — within the next year or so. Is it something that can be accomplished in a year? It can take less than a year — one month or three or six if you like. If it will take several years, you might want to create a sub-goal that will take a year or less — any longer and it’s hard to stay motivated. Is it a goal that will really make a big difference in your life? Is it something you REALLY want to achieve? Be sure it’s something you’ll be passionate about, or you’ll lose motivation.
Create a mantra. Once you’ve chosen your goal, turn it into a personal mantra. This is an idea from Guy Kawasaki, who said that a business should abandon a mission statement (which are usually useless) and create a 2-5 word mantra instead (his was something like “empower entrepreneurs”). So use this idea for your personal mantra — how can you put your goal into 2-5 words? Write those words on an index card, or make it your desktop picture/wallpaper, or post it on the wall next to your computer. Do something to ensure that you never forget this mantra — and repeat it out loud every single day.
What can you do this month to make that happen? If your goal will take a year or so to accomplish, you’ll want to create a smaller sub-goal. Figure out a project you can do this month to get yourself a few steps closer to that goal, and focus on this project for the next month.
What can you do today? Each day when you start your day, repeat your mantra and figure out what action you can do today to make your goal closer to becoming a reality. It just has to be one thing. If you do one thing each day, you’ll reach your goal. Some days you can do two things if you like, but don’t overload yourself. Now make sure that one thing is the first thing you do today. Don’t put it off until the end of the day, when it will get pushed back until tomorrow. Do it first!

Five steps might sound like a lot, but in reality you’re just 1) choosing a goal and creating a mantra for it; and 2) focusing on shorter-term actions to make that goal a reality.

What if You Have More Than One Goal?

Many people will say that having just one goal is impossible for them. I have two possible solutions for that:

Just do one goal for now. You can still do the other goals, but put them off for a month or two. Focus on one goal for at least a month … and turn it into a habit. So if you want to run a marathon, create the habit of running each day. If you want to write a novel, create the habit of writing each morning. If you want to create a successful blog, create the habit of writing insanely useful posts each day. Once your first goal becomes a habit and is on autopilot, turn to the next goal — you don’t have to worry as much about the first goal because it has become automatic.
Do more than one goal, but keep them simple. The danger with more than one goal is that you’ll spread yourself too thin. If you have 3-4 goals, that’s doable if you don’t create half a dozen tasks you need to accomplish for each goal every week. That will lead to a lack of effectiveness. Instead, find ways to focus on one goal at a time: just focus on one of your goals this week, or just one of your goals each day, or just one of your goals in the morning and another in the afternoon, for example. This way you won’t lose effectiveness.

On Motivation

Often the problem with goals is not setting them, but sticking to them when motivation flags. For more on sticking to your goals, read my Ultimate Guide to Motivation.

How do you set and achieve your goals? I’d love to hear what works for you in the comments.

“You got to be careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there.” - Yogi Berra

Posted on 22 September 2008 in Goals |
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Comments (40)

"Motivate Thyself" Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 17:42 pm

I would definitely agree that having one main goal is key. I think we tend to mix up ‘tasks’ with goals. There’s nothing wrong with having multiple tasks in a day, but having just one, overall, goal that you are working toward is the most effective way to making real progress in life.

My mantra, by the way, is my blog name. :-)

Simple Sapien Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:01 pm

Great post! I keep track of my goals on a simple Notepad file on my desktop. It makes them easy to access, easy to edit, and easy to delete. Feels so good to delete one off of the list :)

I agree with taking on as few goals as possible at a time. It will be less overwhelming and you will do a higher quality job at what you are doing. Cheers to single tasking!

- Jack Rugile
Simple Sapien

Your Friendly Neighborhood Computer Guy Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:04 pm

I’m a really big believer in simplicity with goals. It’s okay to have many goals, but you should only be working toward one at any given time. I find value in switching goals on a weekly or monthly basis. That way, I don’t get bored or overworked by the same tasks.

I checked out Lifetick and it didn’t seem all that complex to me after viewing the walkthrough.

BTW I’m a devoted reader of unclutterer also, they’re Workspace of the Week articles are very inspiring for getting your own workspace under control.

Leo Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:18 pm

@Your Friendly: I agree … Lifetick isn’t that complex, and like I said, it’s actually pretty cool. But if you’re keeping your goals as simple as possible, you don’t even need that. Just an index card or a desktop picture or something to remind you of your mantra each day.

Tabs Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:29 pm

I love the simplicity of setting one goal, I did the same a couple weeks ago and last week I started visualizing. I would create images of exactly what I want, recreate meetings in my head, and a week later I feel almost euphoric at the results I have gotten just by doing this little exercise. The key issue though is getting that one goal and going after it with gusto.

Thanks Leo,

-Tabs

Sid Savara Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:44 pm

@Eric -

Agreed. One overriding goal/purpose, and of course handle all the little things we need to do day to day.

That’s one reason I like GTD, though like everyone else I’ve modified it to suit my needs. Keep my eyes on the big picture, but make sure I don’t let the details slip through the cracks.

Kimberlee Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:53 pm

I tried out Lifetick, and it does seem pretty easy. Although I’ve been using Joe’s Goals (by your recommendation) and it works great for my needs. I find that concentrating on one goal at a time is great, but there are hectic times in life where you have to juggle a lot of different goals at once. Deadlines approach, and you have no choice but to dive in and tackle them as they come.

Kimberlee

WiseMoneyMatters Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 18:59 pm

I like step 5. For me I find that it’s hard to keep focus on my goals. For instance, my goal for this year is to write one blog post for every day of the year. I sometimes get caught up in life and wonder how I’m going to get around to it, but then I realize, “it’s only 1 post”. I don’t have to do more. I can and often do write more than 1 post per day or write for the next few days, but as long as I stay focused on today and today’s step towards reaching that goal, it’s not overwhelming.

Great post.

Ryan McLean Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 19:15 pm

I like how you talked about “what can you do this month” and “what can you do today” because so often we set goals (like new year’s resolutions) but we never even think about taking the steps to achieve them today. We just think that we can do it later.
One of my goals is to be a full time online entrepreneur. So I am working hard everyday to make that happen and I have goals I am working to. This is the thing that will change my life alot this year (as well as getting married…wooo!)
Thanks for the post

The Daily Minder Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 19:30 pm

Love it! Great post.

Ben Young Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 20:03 pm

I follow a similar system.

At the start of each year I decide what major things I would like to do in my life this year. Then build a plan of action around them. Break it down into ultra basic easy to achieve steps.

Every week on Sunday I have review/reflection to see how I can work towards achieving those goals, and quarterly I tie those into the bigger goals.

I think they key is breaking them into baby steps as you get motivated after achieving the little steps and helps you achieve the bigger picture.

Move mountains one pebble at a time.

Myrko | AwakeBlogger Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 20:24 pm

I like your ephasizing on one goal or one step at a time. It focuses the energy on on focal point which makes it more likely to achieve that goal.

I also like the idea of a mantra. I read the idea from Guy Kawasaki too. It makes good sense, keeps the focus.

The thing that I found most fascinating about using goal-setting is the extra-drive it can create, if I get a strong goal that I am passionate about. I also wrote on my blog about the process: http://www.awakeblogger.com/2008/08/the-fastest-way-to-set-motivating-goals/ It is almost like getting into a tunnel towards the result of the goal where nothing is an obstacle any more, only stepping stones to take :)

Andre Kibbe Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 21:53 pm

I’ve been fond of suggestion #3, creating a mantra, since you mentioned it in your post on quitting your day job. You said that every day prior to that, when building Zen Habits, you focused on the mantra, “Liberation.” Simply beautiful.

Mo Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 22:10 pm

One goal is best, but a second can be squeezed in if it is more of an automatic, not think much about thing. For example, you can have the major goal of eating better, which will involve shopping, finding new recipes, keeping the kitchen clean, passing the office snack machine by, and so on. A minor goal to tack on might be leaving the house at the time you should every morning. Something that you are theoretically already doing, just trying to be consistent about.

There is a difference between dynamic goals, the sort where you learn things about yourself and have to be flexible to adapt to that knowledge, and simple goals where you just need to be better about details.

Success Professor Says:

September 22nd, 2008, 22:48 pm

Leo,

Thanks for the post. There are some excellent thoughts about simplicity. I like setting goals in each main area of my life. So I have goals for my role as a husband, my role as a professor, my home business, my blog (yes, I keep them separate even though they overlap) and for professional development. I start with Covey’s idea and break it down from there.

I love how you ask the question about what is the one thing that will change your life the most in the upcoming year. I’m going to combine that question with my system, and use it to set big goals for my different roles.

Stephen - Balanced Existence Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 0:04 am

I like the five-step process you present. I also like that you mention motivation at the end. I feel motivation is a key factor to achievement. Which is why I wrote an article on my blog explaining how motivation works and demonstrating a motivational technique I’ve used to great success.

In the words of Sidney A. Friedman:

“You can achieve anything you want in life if you have the courage to dream it, the intelligence to make a realistic plan, and the will to see that plan through to the end.”

J.D. Meier Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 1:17 am

I like your approach of eating the elephant a bite at a time.

I’m a fan of monthly, weekly, daily rhythms. I like to sweep periodically — out with the old, in with the new, so each month/week, I do a brief review of my results.

A month is a great checkpoint. I summarize my monthly results, and do a short list of what I accomplished.

Each week, I do a simple pattern - “Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection”. A week is a nice slice where the horizon is not too far away, and Monday’s a great time to say — hey, if it were Friday, what do I want to look on and be proud of?

Each day — I start from scratch. I pick 3 things that are the most valuable to accomplish. These are my MUSTs. I then add the rest of my SHOULDs/COULDs, but my MUST list keeps me focused.

Fiction Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 2:08 am

You’re website is great! And this post is awesome.
One of my main problems in life is focus. I’m nearly 30 and while I’ve got so much potential and good smarts, I feel like I have never really accomplished anything in my life, and that is because I have such trouble focusing on what I want to do. I want it all. I want to be a writer and an artist and travel the world, and build buildings, and design things…I’m constantly coming up with new and great ideas…
I especially found the part in this post about choosing something that will change your life to be important, because really, I think that’s what motivates us to do things. When something will truly change our life then we believe it is worth pursuing. I am going to take a look at ALL of my goals and really try to narrow things down by following that principle. Also I love the part about making your goal your mantra…something easy to remember, something you can meditate on and allow it to sink into you.
Way to keep it simple.
Peace.

nudgeme Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 5:28 am

Enjoyed this post Leo and reading about the different ways people set their goals, and keep motivated. I particularly like your question about what’s one goal that will change your life the most as this is such a good way to quickly see the wood from the trees, and thus focus on what’s really important to you. So often people can set isolated goals that they think they ’should’ achieve (equals not goals they’re passionate about) without first establishing why and where those goals fit in the bigger picture, which can quickly lead to a loss of interest and motivation. So although I agree on focusing on one goal at a time, it’s also important to work out where that goal fits in terms of your priorities across all the important areas of your life. Once you know what really matters to you in the bigger picture it becomes much easier to simplify and achieve your goals.

Castle Steps Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 9:37 am

I am currently working for a hotel in Prague, and I have found that this works well even for setting smaller or short-term goals. Everyday when I come into work I set a goal of what I can accomplish in the day, and this usually helps me to focus on the tasks at hand and helps me make sure that I am not constantly getting distracted by smaller projects.

Andrew Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 9:47 am

Great post. But did you notice, that there are only 3 (with this one) comments, that do not come from other bloggers? People are turning your comments into an advertisment board.

Dan Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 11:45 am

I use http://www.gtdagenda.com for my goals, and it seems to follow the steps you describe.

You can brainstorm and make a list of all the goals you want.
Then you can choose the one you want to work on, and make it priority 1, and the rest other priorities. It will stay clear separated from the rest with a thick “prioriy 1″ line.

Then I create in it projects or smaller sub-goals, and in these, the tasks or actions that you will do each day.

And I also have them on the mobile.

Tess Marshall Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 12:30 pm

Leo,
I’ve been reading your blog for about 8 months now and you have inspired me to begin one about living bold. As of yesterday there were 100 days left of 2008. I have small but powerful goals for the next 99 days to get it up and running successfully

I’m a mom of four and grandmother of 3. I enjoy reading about your family. It’s clear how much you love your kids.
You’re in for a real treat when your grandchildren come.

You’re the best! Thanks for the work you do.
Tess Marshall

Chris Bradley Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 13:44 pm

This is what I used to do for goal-setting: On a single sheet of paper, I put one long-term goal (example: get through grad school). Under the long-term goal, I put several sub-goals or sub-habits I needed to do.

The sheet of paper was tacked on corkboard above my computer, where I sat everyday and worked on my tasks. I had a daily reminder of my long-term goal and the things I need to do broken down into easily digestible bits. It kept me focused and helped me complete my goal of getting through school.

Now that I am working as a copy editor in the real world, I don’t do this anymore, but I’ve been reading Zen Habits and other personal development blogs to come up with a new and simple way to set goals. Since I’ve been into voluntary simplicity (see author Duane Elgin’s books) I admire simple methods of goal setting.

EscapeVelocity Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 14:06 pm

@Andrew–they’re all procrastinating working on their blogs :).

Ann at One Bag Nation Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 15:39 pm

I use index cards all the time, I love the size and shape (these things are important to a visual person).

I’ve come to realize that I’m not an electronic calendar person and I don’t want to use the computer for goal-setting either (since one of my goals is less screen time!).

I LOVE the mantra idea and I’m going to suggest it to the organization I work for; we really need to boil down what we do to its essence; a mission statement is too bulky.

Thanks for the post - it’s generated lots of ideas for me!

Jeannie Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 16:22 pm

Wow…. this is going to be hard for all those with world peace, raising super humans and such as their goals in a recent post.

Chris Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 17:13 pm

My comments don’t show up. Did I do something wrong? I took the URL out for my blog, so that’s not there anymore - no more self-promotion.

Michael Moniz Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 19:00 pm

I so agree! One main goal at a time. My coaching clients will come to me with a giant list of goals they want to achieve. They always want to know the first step.

The first step is simple, commit to one goal. Work on the one main goal and when you complete it, move to the next. Make it simple.

Ecko Says:

September 23rd, 2008, 20:48 pm

What a great post! If you don’t mind, I would like to translate this post into Indonesian for my Indonesian blog. But, if you do mind, I think reading it will affect a positive effect for me. Thanks.

FrugalNYC Says:

September 24th, 2008, 0:15 am

Thanks for such an inspiring post Leo. Definitely worth saving this post for myself, for when I need to clear my mind and remember the One goal that would change my life this year.

One question I have is, What about those who do not have a goal they believe in or want to pursue? What about someone who is lost and need more direction than motivation? Sorry I guess that’s two questions now.

Spark Victory Says:

September 24th, 2008, 14:33 pm

Point #2 “The one thing that will change your life the most this year” This is excellent, puts into perspective in terms of the maximum return of time and effort….of course, the best goals are the ones that make the most impact.

Rahul Says:

September 24th, 2008, 14:46 pm

I think that this is what i should be following. cause, i try to do a lot of work sometimes around 5 different tasks at the same time and it consumes a lot of my time and all of them gets delayed. Just another day @ the ofic, and always.

Daphne Lim Says:

September 25th, 2008, 8:47 am

I just found ZenHabits and really like this blog! The design and content are awesome.

What I do for goals is have little cards with my goal for the month stuck on a card holder on my desk next to my PC. I see this everyday and it usually takes a month or two to get that goal done. Then I start a new card.

So I agree with Leo that it’s easiest to stick to one goal at a time. My goal for this month is “Love like it’s never going to hurt.”

Tracy Says:

September 25th, 2008, 11:15 am

This was a very thought provoking post for me, I tend to be a person who wants to accomplish 99 things before sundown and wind up getting frustrated and unable to do anything.
I am going to digest this and see what I can come up with for myself.

Frank Meeuwsen Says:

September 26th, 2008, 17:51 pm

Hey Leo

Your post made me think back about a little word of wisdom I once heard David Allen say “There are only two problems in life: You know what you want, but you don’t know how to get there. Or you don’t know what you want. So there you have it: You make it up, and you make it happen”
If all was just so simple :-)

Nick Says:

September 29th, 2008, 4:40 am

Just taking the time to really consider your future and goals is a big part of it. I have found that once I come up with a good goal and put it on paper, it is quite achievable.

CrackingDays Says:

September 29th, 2008, 10:38 am

I learned this from Brian Tracy. He said that when you have your goal, you should know why you want to have it. You should list down the reasons and the benefits of finally achieving that goal. Once you do so, then the desire (and therefore, the possibility) to reach that goal will be greater.

Elderbear Says:

September 30th, 2008, 1:00 am

Or 43 goals … the site 43things.com allows one to work with others and to track progress on up to 43 goals. Inevitably, one discovers which goals are really important and which were window dressing. One can cheer others on, join teams, post goal related pics and comments. And yes, it can take on a life of its own.

jessi Says:

September 30th, 2008, 14:21 pm

I just found this website and I very much enjoyed this post. It’s very inspiring to me.

I don’t know if it’s okay to mention a book or author here, but since you asked what works for us…
I found GREAT inspiration towards finding my goal in the book ‘Liberating your Magnificence’ by Scott and Shannon Peck.
They offer very good and very simple exercises on becoming aware of your ’substance’ and your Life Message. I read many books of this type but the simplicity and effectiveness of their exercises really blew me away.
After doing them I could actually FEEL (not just know) that all I have to do is focus on that one goal.

Thank you for your great post…

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