Are you planning to make some new goals for next year? Do
you make New Year's Resolutions? How about setting some milestones or
objectives? Do you have a dream or is it all just a wish? Are all of these
terms about goals and goal setting the same? Let's take a look.
A wish is
something you set with no plan to get it and you do not change your behaviour
even a little bit to do anything about moving toward it. Example; you think,
"I wish I could make more money!" That is a wish if you do not begin
to do anything to move toward it.
A resolution is
something you set that you know you need to do this year but you will abandon
long before you get close to achievement. Example; you say, "This year I'm
going to lose 30 pounds so I can get into the new clothes I bought last year
that I was going to lose 30 pounds to get into."
A goal is
something you set that you actually have a plan to attain. You might even have
it written down if you are really committed to it. A goal has a definite finish
line. It is defined so well that if someone asks you if you have a goal for the
year you do not hesitate to say so. For it to qualify as a real goal it must
have a suspense date. Example; you write "I am a master class golfer by
the end of this year."
A dream is the
kind of goal that evokes emotion in a person. It's more than just a big goal;
it is life defining and something that often requires sacrifice. Example; you
dream "Within the next five years I want to wear GB&I on my back
competing in a World Championship."
All goals require milestones or objectives to be reached
along the way. Setting short term, mid and long term objectives makes the big
task manageable. We cannot always foresee the obstacles and opportunities that
lay ahead but we can get moving down the road.
