On Goal Setting

I think goal setting may be one of the most important topics I could discuss on the subject of success. There are two books that I recommend reading at the beginning of one’s learning in this area of success. If the first book to read about success and wealth building is The Richest Man In Babylon, by George Clason, then the second and more important book is Think and Grow Rich. In this latter book by Napoleon Hill, we are taught the value of setting goals.

Amongst people who study and apply the principles of success, it is well known that people achieve much more when they organize their efforts to set and achieve goals. The basic ingredients are as follows: First, set a specific goal that you believe is realistic and achievable and write it down. Second, decide what you are willing to give or pay in order to achieve the goal. Third, determine that you will attain the goal on a specific date. Fourth, create a plan of action, which will be an ongoing creative process. Lastly, commit to the goal. Having followed this specific process of goal setting, keep it in the forefront of your mind by reading it with passion and committing to it twice every day.

I love the concept of keeping one’s goal in the “forefront” of the mind, lest one tend to forget about it or allow more urgent matters to replace it as first priority. From a psychological perspective and from personal experience, I can testify that it works. Using this process, I set a goal to achieve a financial goal within five years, and the pressure is on to make it happen. What is happening is much more than would be the case had I not set a goal and kept it in mind for most of the last 2 years. (I wish I had learned about this when I was your age.) The process works because when a goal is set and the commitment is there, I cannot let myself down. I believe it can happen and feel the need to make it happen, every day, with persistence and dedication, driven by the vision of what is being achieved and what does exist with the passage of time.

Brian Tracy, a current and well known speaker and author on the topic of achievement, recommends going over one’s goals every morning as a way of starting the day with those goals in mind. Notice the concept of goal setting has moved from one primary goal to a higher number of goals that one might have in all aspects of one’s life.

Study and apply the principles of goal setting. It is what all successful people do.