Have you ever struggled with figuring out how to accomplish goals?
If you spend much time in life improvement circles, then you’ve probably heard this advice a million times.
Set some goals.
Well, it’s really good advice.
Turning your dreams into goals, and then setting yourself to the task of accomplishing those goals, is literally a proven method for creating a roadmap to success.
However, one big question remains.
How do you actually accomplish goals?
See, this is the hard part.
Conceiving a goal in your mind is one thing.
But manifesting those results in the real world is quite another.
Well, not to worry. In this post, you’re going to learn 14 steps for how to accomplish goals like an absolute champion.
Follow these steps, and you’ll be sure to start checking goals off of that to-do sheet like a true boss.
14 Steps For How To Accomplish Goals
1. Visualize It
Whenever you set your mind to a task, it’s important to visualize yourself as already successful.
Imagine how good it’ll feel to accomplish the thing you’re striving to accomplish.
Imagine how proud you’ll feel, and how successful you’ll be while manifesting it.
Imagining how good it’ll be when accomplished is one surefire step to keeping yourself motivated to succeed.
2. Commit To It
You’re far more likely to accomplish your goals if you diligently commit to them.
Some people allow doubt to creep into their minds and negate their faith that the goal can be achieved.
But it’s so important to remember that you’re capable of doing this.
So if it means enough to you that you’ve made it a goal, try committing to it with your whole heart and soul.
Be willing to do whatever it takes to make it happen.
If you can find it within yourself to commit to your goals with this kind of fervor, you’re much more likely to succeed.
3. Break It Down Into Smaller Goals
Here’s the problem with big goals.
At first glance, they can often seem overwhelming.
To help combat this, it’s definitely in your best interest to break larger, more overwhelming goals down into a series of smaller, more manageable goals—and then to start checking these smaller goals off of your list one at a time.
How do you know if you should break a goal down into smaller steps?
Well, if you look at the goal and think to yourself:
“Wow, that’s a lot. That seems kind of overwhelming.”
Then you should definitely go ahead and break it down into smaller, more manageable steps.
This will not only give you more confidence, but it’ll help to keep you emotionally motivated as well.
4. Believe In It
Do you believe in this goal?
- Do you believe that accomplishing this goal will make your life better?
- Will it make life better for your family?
- Will it make you a better person?
- Will it make the world a better place?
These are important questions, and answering them can help you to determine if it’s truly worthwhile.
It really comes down to this:
Is your heart in it?
Or, are you doing it for a more surface-level reason?
Here’s the thing.
If you believe in it enough that you engage your passion, then you’re far more likely to make it a success.
But if you don’t actually believe in it, you’ll find that you’ll struggle to stay motivated and inspired.
For this reason, I highly encourage you to set goals that you actually believe in.
This is so helpful, and so powerful.
5. Speak Positive Words Of Affirmation
As you work to accomplish your goal, you’re likely going to face all kinds of challenges, problems, and setbacks. You’re also probably going to face a few uphill battles along the way.
Of course, you’ll also experience victories.
There’ll be happy moments that’ll serve to remind you of why you decided to pursue this goal in the first place.
In other words, you’ll experience a huge range of emotions.
But through this entire process, it’ll be vitally important for you to continue to speak positive words of affirmation into yourself and into the efforts you’re putting toward the goal.
If you succumb to the negativity and you start to speak negative words into yourself or into your life, you’ll run the risk of discouraging yourself.
If you keep your language positive, and you keep your thoughts balanced with a ‘glass half full’ mentality, you’ll be that much more likely to stay the course and see it through to the end.
Tip: When you wake up in the morning, say this to yourself out loud before you even get out of bed.
“I can do this. I can (speak your goal). I’m going to win. I will be successful.”
6. Spend Time With People Who’ve Already Done It
When striving to achieve a goal, it’s important to look to people who’ve already accomplished similar goals for guidance, motivation, and wisdom.
If possible, spend some time around people who are already where you want to be in life.
If you don’t know anyone like that, then get on the internet and watch some videos, read some blog posts, or read books created by these types of people.
For example, one of my students really wanted to learn how to grow his business to the next level.
So to prepare for accomplishing that big goal, he started reading biographies of business people who had already achieved that level of success.
This helped him to get into that mindset and learn what he needed to learn to really attack the goal with everything he had.
Plus, don’t forget the age-old wisdom passed down to us by Jim Rohn:
“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”
If you want to do big things, it’s in your best interest to spend time around people who are also doing big things.
(Do you need some more information about dreaming big? Read this guide: Dream – Dream – Dream | The Secret To Dreaming Big.)
7. If You Fall Down, Get Back Up
You’ll definitely get knocked down on your journey toward success.
This is just part of the game.
But it’s also important to understand that this doesn’t mean you’re a failure.
The true mark of a winner isn’t that they never get knocked down, but that they always get back up afterward.
In the words of an ancient Japanese proverb about resilience:
“Fall down seven times, get up eight.”
8. Educate Yourself
It’s always in your best interest to learn as much as possible about the goal you’re trying to achieve.
For example, if you’re trying to lose 30 pounds, it might be helpful to read some books about health, fitness, diet, and wellness.
If you’re trying to write a song, it may help you to take a course about songwriting.
Whatever the goal is, rest assured that there’s probably some awesome information out there that could help you to accomplish it.
All you have to do is seek it out and consume it.
And this will give you a powerful advantage as you move forward toward success.
9. Write It Down
This may be the most powerful piece of advice that you could ever take to heart as you seek to accomplish your goal.
Write it down!
Need some help with this step?
Download my free weekly goal setting sheet.
You can also sign up for my email list to get my free Goal-Setting Essentials Starter Kit.
Writing down your goals is extremely powerful.
This is the beginning of the manifestation of your dreams, where you take the vision out of your brain and you begin to manifest it in the real world.
It may not seem like it would be that important, but it is.
In fact, you’re scientifically more likely to succeed if you write down your goals.
Write em down. It matters.
10. Be Specific: Set Details And A Date
It’s important to be specific with your goals.
The more clarity you have, the more you’ll tend to believe that the goal is doable.
But you’ll also find that being specific helps you to stay more motivated, and gives you that drive you’ll need to accomplish it.
For example, if you set a goal that says:
“I’m going to lose weight.”
That’s not specific.
Instead, try this:
“I’m going to lose 2 pounds in the next 30 days.”
Now that is a goal that you can map out specifically, and accomplish!
11. Review It Every Day
Once you write down a goal, you might be tempted to just put the paper aside and move on.
But here’s the next most important, crucial thing to remember.
Once you write down a goal, you should make sure to revisit it every single day.
In fact, the best thing to do is to not just write your goal down once, but to literally write it down every single day.
When you get into the habit of writing down your goals every single day, they stay fresh in your memory.
It’s like a compass, pointing you toward the path that’ll lead you to success.
Without this compass, you’ll run the risk of running off course and getting lost.
For best results, write down those goals every day to remind yourself exactly which direction to travel in.
12. Find An Accountability Partner
Sometimes, goals require a significant amount of discipline.
And let’s face it…
Humans aren’t always good at staying disciplined.
I had one student who was struggling to keep up with his weight loss goals.
He had a workout plan that he was supposed to follow every day. And yet, more often than not, she simply lacked the discipline to follow through.
So he ended up enlisting the help of a friend to help keep him accountable.
Every morning, his friend would text himーreminding him that today, he needed to work out.
Guess what? It really worked.
Knowing that his friend would know if he dropped the ball, he got more serious about his workouts and started doing them every day.
Accountability can be very powerful for helping to keep us on track.
So if you’re struggling with discipline, think about finding a friend, colleague, or loved one to help keep you accountable and motivated.
13. Review, Revise, Go
As you move toward your goals, you may learn new things or come to new understandings that cause you to slightly shift or change your goals.
This is actually a very natural process.
In fact, this is called adaptation.
And it’s a necessary step on the path to success.
Every once in a while, review your goals and make sure that they still represent what you want.
If the goal in question doesn’t quite fit with your vision anymore, feel free to adjust it a little bit so that it aligns with your life’s purpose. Then, get back on the horse and keep going.
Want to learn more about living life on purpose? Read this guide: How To Live Your Life On Purpose – 11 Steps.
14. Don’t Give Up
It’s very tempting to give up, especially if you’re facing a long-term goal or if you run into a significant number of difficulties along the way.
But it’s also crucial to keep in mind that failure is only possible if you decide to give up on your dreams.
Getting knocked down isn’t failure. It’s a lessonーa lesson that will help you to become better and to increase your odds of succeeding later on.
(If you’ve been tempted to give up on your goals lately, read this guide: 3 Things To Do When Achieving Goals Isn’t So Easy.)
So when you face hard times, remember to look back and remember why you set the goal to begin with.
- Is it still worth it?
- Does this still matter to you?
- Would you still love to see it come to fruition?
If so, then don’t give up on it.
Sometimes, you have to recalibrate.
Sometimes, you have to adjust your level of effort or investment.
Sometimes, you may even need to pull back a little bit and regroup before attacking the goal again.
But if it’s worth it, and if you believe in it, and if it’s worth committing to, then I highly encourage you not to give up.
Some of the most successful people in the world were literally at their wit’s end when they finally achieved success.
Take Thomas Edison, for example.
He literally failed 10,000 times before he found the winning design for the light bulb.
Rest assured, he probably felt like giving up more than once.
But had he not stuck with it, he wouldn’t have made his dreams come true.
So stick with it. If you believe in the goal, it’s worth it.
Conclusion – How To Accomplish Goals
There you have it.
14 steps for how to accomplish goals.
Now you have everything you need to give yourself your best odds of accomplishing your objective and moving forward toward success.
All that’s left now is to get to work.
I believe in you.
You’ve got this.
Now just get out there and make it happen.
Best wishes,
Jay O’Donnell