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Personal Development Burst 2nd edition

6 Secrets of Personal Goal Setting

Why do we need goals to achieve anything in our life? The answer is as simple as allowing our imagination to pave the way of our success. What do I mean by that? Simply put, our imagination needs to have an end result in order for us to be able to imagine ways to get to that result. Let’s do a simple exercise. In your mind try to trace the route of getting somewhere, but do not think of a specific destination. Imagine different streets you might take, or different roads. Having trouble? Your mind needs that destination if you are going to think of how to get there, doesn’t it? Otherwise there are simply too many options to choose from, your mind can’t sort through all of them, it needs to choose one. Goals work very similarly. In order for us to accomplish anything, first we need to envision what is it we want to accomplish, before we can commit to action.

So why is it that it is so hard for us to both set goals and stick to them until we accomplish them? A couple of the biggest reasons are the way we set goals and the way we think about them. This can fall into two categories: we might be setting goals that are unrealistic, or we start thinking of goals as set in stone. Either way, when we do not accomplish them right away we get disappointed and end up abandoning them all together.

To help us make goals that are both realistic and easy to achieve here are a few tips:

- We need to be specific about the goal that we are setting. So “I want to loose 30 pounds” is better then “I want to loose weight”.
- Second, we need to know the time frame of our goal. So if it is something like “I want to develop a successful consulting business”, and we know that this will not happen right away, we should put it in the long term goal category.
- If our goal is big like the developing a successful business example, we also need to break it down into smaller, shorter term goals that you will accomplish first before getting to the final destination. Like “I want to make a business plan for my new venture” or “I want to find partners that will help me accomplish what I set out to do”.
- We also need to know when we will achieve this goal. So if we look at the business example, it can be something like “I will have a successful business when I will be able to cover all my living expenses from the profits of the business, while working only 30 hours per week” It is something very precise that will signal to us that we have achieved a desired goal.
- Here are also other questions we should ask our selves when setting a goal. Is your goal achievable and realistic? Is the time frame for achieving your goal acceptable to you? Are the costs and consequences of achieving your goal acceptable? Do you have all the resources you need to achieve your goal and do you know where to get them if you do not?

Another very important point about goal setting is that goals are meant to be constantly adjusted! If you think of goals as a guideline that highly depends on the circumstances surrounding it, you are on the right track. Situations in our lives change all the time. This is the primary reason why we need to constantly adjust our goal to make them fit into the new situations life presents to us. All we really have to do is monitor how we are doing with our goals from time to time. Make sure that these goals still correspond to our desires, and if they no longer do, adjust them or set new ones.

Is There Such a Thing as Getting Rich Quick

Knowing HOW to get rich is easy; knowing WHY you don’t just get up and DO IT is the hard part. Advice on how to get rich is everywhere. So how do we separate what is real from what isn’t? Is there such thing as getting rich quick? The truth is probably that there is. Like everything in life, it is only available to the lucky few. People who have brilliant ideas, at the right time, that have the right attitude and do what ever needs to be done to succeed. Even, when these kinds of right circumstances do exist, the path of getting rich can be full of hard work and sacrifice.

Here is the recipe on how to get rich:
Find something you love to do. Find a system of making money with it. Do it until you will be successful.

Sounds over simplistic? It is. Knowing HOW to get rich is easy, it is doing everything you need to do to get rich that’s hard. There is a chapter in Donald Trumps book “How to Get Rich” where we follow Trump with his 24/7 schedule for one week. You think you work hard to earn a living? Try being “on” all the time like most business people are.

Let’s look at some of the areas where people make a lot of money.

Business

You can definitely make your self rich by developing a successful business. Relatively speaking that method can be very quick. Ultimately whatever way of getting rich you would choose, be it real estate investing or online trading or marketing, it will boil down to developing a business. All successful businesses have systems that they follow to make money, and those systems are the key behind their success.

There is two ways of developing a business system. One you can do it your self. This way is long and painful most of the time and is the reason why 3 out of 4 businesses fail in the first 3 years of operation. Two you can buy a system from someone who “cracked the code” for you. In other words get someone who is already successful to teach you what they know. This way is faster and increases you chances of success dramatically. To put it simply, you will not be able to succeed unless you educate your self.

Investing

Just like in business, in the area of investing most people loose money. The reason most investing is so risky is as simple as lack of knowledge and sophistication on the part of the investor. There is definitely a way to make it big in investing. The success just like in business depends on the systems you employ in your investment strategy. And here again you can either develop the systems your self, or find someone who is already successful and get them to teach you what they know. The difference between investing and business is that you can’t build a successful investment strategy with sweat equity like in business. You can loose a lot of money in learning how to invest, so I suggest the “leaning from someone who knows what they are doing” route.

Winning a lottery

You can. But let’s face it, what’s a bigger chance – you winning a lottery or building a successful business with hard work?

Working hard for someone else

… is not a way to become financially wealthy. People might disagree. But to become truly wealthy, where all your financial needs are met for the rest of your and your children’s life, is pretty much impossible while working for someone else. This method of saving pennies has to be combined with some form of investing or business to attain true wealth.

So should we forget about getting rich quick? No not at all, as long as we also keep in mind that becoming a millionaire is a process, unless of course, you are born a Paris Hilton. Most of us, however, do not have that privilege and have to make sacrifices on the road to success. Hard work and education are two keys that will ensure success in both finances and personal development.