10 Rules On How To Set Goals And Achieve Them in Reality

Setting goals is an important skill both inside and outside of the workplace. Knowing how to set goals and then taking the actions to follow through with it can increase your overall productivity and progress.

In a business setting, setting goals can help both you and your team advance in your careers and boost efficiency

To learn how to set goals first you need to find your north star, your life's purpose, determine your vision, and clarify what your true needs and desires are, you have to convert them into specific, measurable goals and objectives and then act on them with the certainty that you will achieve them.

Experts on the science of success know the brain is a goal-seeking organism. Whatever goal you give to your subconscious mind, it will work night and day to achieve.

In this article, we will define goal setting habits, explain its importance, describe how to set goals and review what to do once you achieve those goals.

#1. When It Comes to Setting Goals Decide How Much You Want, by When?

To make sure a goal unleashes the power of your subconscious mind, it must meet two criteria. It must be stated in a way that you and anybody else could measure it.

I will lose 10 pounds is not as powerful as I will weigh 135 pounds by 5 PM on June 30.

The second is clearer, because anybody can show up at 5 o’clock on June 30 and look at the reading on your scale. It will either be 135 pounds or less or not.

Notice that the two criteria are how much (some measurable quantity such as pages, pounds, dollars, square feet, or points) and by when (a specific time and date).

Be as specific as possible with all aspects of your goals—include the make, model, color, year, and features…the size, weight, shape, and form…and any other details.

Remember, vague goals produce vague results

#2. Write Your Goals in Detail.

One of the best ways to get clarity and specificity on your goals is to write them out in detail—as if you were writing specifications for a work order.

Think of it as a request to God or to the universal mind. Include every possible detail. This is a perfect goal setting habit to accomplish your dreams and desires.

If there is a certain house you want to own, write down its specifics in vivid colorful detail—the location, landscaping, furniture, artwork, sound system, and floor plan.

If a picture of the house is available, get a copy of it. If it’s an ideal fantasy, take the time to close your eyes and fill in all of the details. Then provide a date by which you expect to own it.

When you write it all down, your subconscious mind will know what to work on. It will know which opportunities to hone in on to help you reach your goal.

#3. You Need To Be Setting Goals that Stretch You.

When you create your goals, be sure to write down some big ones that will stretch you. It pays to have goals that will require you to grow to achieve them.

It’s a good thing to have some goals that make you a little uncomfortable. Why?

Because the ultimate goal, in addition to achieving your material goals, is to become a master at life.

And to do this, you will need to learn new skills, expand your vision of what’s possible, build new relationships, and learn to overcome your fears, considerations, and roadblocks.

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#4. Create a Breakthrough Goal.

In addition to turning every aspect of your vision into a measurable goal, and all the quarterly and weekly and daily goals that you routinely set, I also encourage you to set what I call a breakthrough goal that would represent a quantum leap for you and your career.

Most goals represent incremental improvements in our life. They are like plays that gain you 4 yards in the game of football. But what if you could come out on the first play of the game and throw a 50-yard pass?

That would be a quantum leap in your progress. Just as there are plays in football that move you far up the field in one move, there are plays in life that will do the same thing.

They include things such as losing 60 pounds, writing a book, publishing an article, getting on Oprah, winning a gold medal at the Olympics, creating a killer Web site, getting your master’s or doctoral degree, getting licensed, opening your own spa, getting elected president of your union or professional association, or hosting your own radio show. 

The achievement of that one goal would change everything. Wouldn’t that be a goal worth pursuing with passion? Wouldn’t that be something to focus on a little each day until you achieved it?

If you were an independent sales professional and knew you could get a better territory, a substantial bonus commission, and maybe even a promotion once you landed a certain number of customers, wouldn’t you work day and night to achieve that goal?

If you were a stay-at-home mom whose entire lifestyle and finances would change if you earned an extra $1,000 a month through participating in a network marketing company, wouldn’t you pursue every possible opportunity until you achieved that goal? 

That’s what I mean by a breakthrough goal. Something that changes your life, brings you new opportunities, gets you in front of the right people, and takes every activity, relationship, or group you’re involved in to a higher level. What would a breakthrough goal be for you?

#5. Reread Your Goals Three Times a Day.

Once you’ve written down all your goals, both large and small, the next step on your journey to success is to activate the creative powers of your subconscious mind by reviewing your list two or three times every day. Take time to read your list of goals.

Read the list (out loud with passion and enthusiasm if you are in an appropriate place) one goal at a time. Close your eyes and picture each goal as if it were already accomplished.

Take a few more seconds to feel what you would feel if you had already accomplished each goal.

Following this daily discipline of success will activate the power of your desire. It increases what psychologists refer to as “structural tension” in your brain. Your brain wants to close the gap between your current reality and the vision of your goal.

By constantly repeating and visualizing your goal as already achieved, you will be increasing this structural tension.

This will increase your motivation, stimulate your creativity, and heighten your awareness of resources that can help you achieve your goal.

Make sure to review your goals at least twice a day—in the morning upon awakening, and again at night before going to bed. I write each of mine on a 3″ × 5″ index card.

I keep the pack of cards next to my bed and then I go through the cards one at a time in the morning and again at night. When I travel, I take them with me.

#6. Create a Goals Book.

Another powerful way on how to set goals and speed up the achievement of your goals is to create a Goals Book. Buy a three-ring binder, a scrapbook or an 8½″ × 11″ journal.

Then create a separate page for each of your goals. Write the goal at the top of the page and then illustrate it with pictures, words, and phrases that you cut out of magazines, catalogues, and travel brochures that depict your goal as already achieved.

As new goals and desires emerge, simply add them to your list and your Goals Book. Review the pages of your Goals Book every day.

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#7. Carry Your Most Important Goal in Your Wallet. (This Goal Setting Habit is One I Love The Most)

When I first started reading W. Clement Stone, books in one of his books he suggested to write your most important goal on the back of your business card and carry it in your wallet at all times. 

I tried this goal setting habit and every time I would open my wallet, I would be reminded of my most important goals.

You can do the same too.

#8. Example of Bruce Lee’s Letter.

Bruce Lee, arguably the greatest martial artist to have ever lived, also understood the power of declaring a goal.

If you ever get a chance to visit Planet Hollywood in New York City, look for the letter hanging on the wall that Bruce Lee wrote to himself. It is dated January 9, 1970, and it is stamped “Secret.”

Bruce wrote, “By 1980 I will be the best known Oriental movie star in the United States and will have secured $10 million dollars.

And in return I will give the very best acting I could possibly give every single time I am in front of the camera and I will live in peace and harmony.”

Bruce made three films, and then in 1973 filmed Enter the Dragon, which was released that same year after his untimely death at age 33.

The movie was a huge success and achieved worldwide fame for Bruce Lee.

#9. Write Yourself a Check Like Jim Carrey. (True Power of Goal Setting)

Around 1990, when Jim Carrey was a struggling young Canadian comic trying to make his way in Los Angeles, he drove his old Toyota up to Mulholland Drive. 

While sitting there looking at the city below and dreaming of his future, he wrote himself a check for $10 million, dated it Thanksgiving 1995, added the notation “for acting services rendered,” and carried it in his wallet from that day forth.

The rest, as they say, is history. Carrey’s optimism and tenacity eventually paid off, and by 1995, after the huge box office success of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Mask, and Dumb & Dumber, his asking price had risen to $20 million per picture.

When Carrey’s father died in 1994, he placed the $10 million check into his father’s coffin as a tribute to the man who had both started and nurtured his dreams of being a star.

#10. Do It Now.

Now that you know how to set goals take the time to make a list of goals you want to accomplish.

Make sure you have measurable (how much, by when) goals for every aspect of your vision. Then decide on a breakthrough goal, write it on the back of a business card, and put it in your wallet.

And then create a list of 101 goals you want to achieve before you die. Being clear about your purpose, vision, and goals will put you in the top 3% of the world’s achievers. To move into the top 1% of achievers, all you have to do is write down some specific action steps that will help you accomplish your goals on your daily to-do list.

Then make sure to take those actions. Think of it this way. If you are clear where you are going (goals) and you take several steps in that direction every day, you eventually have to get there.

If I head north out of Santa Barbara and take five steps a day, eventually I have to end up in San Francisco.

So decide what you want, write it down, review it constantly, and each day do something that moves you toward those goals.