Purpose Driven Goal Setting

Purpose Driven Goal Setting

Most people set the same goals year after year only to never gain any ground. One of the main reasons for this is because their goals have zero purpose. Your goals must be backed up by something meaningful to give you the power to stay the course long after your will power is gone. Purpose means discovering the “Why” behind what you say it is that you want. Goals without real meaning aren’t worth the paper they are written on! People who achieve success have something that gives power to their goals… And that something is Purpose!

“If the WHY is important enough to you then no HOW is too difficult.”

7 Steps to Purpose Driven Goals

Step 1: Ask the Right questions.

Let’s say one of your goals is to retire at 55 or lose twenty pounds or stop smoking. Ask yourself, what will it mean to you if you accomplish the goal? Don’t accomplish it? How will it make you feel if you succeed? Don’t succeed? Is it really a big deal to you? Do you truly want what you say you want?

Step 2: Link your intentions to a purpose.

"If the 'why' is important enough then no 'how' is too difficult."

In other words, very few of us would jump off a 100’ bridge for ten thousand dollars. But many would if it meant saving our children. The 'how' of creating wealth is simple to understand but not easy to implement. It takes commitment, dedication, time and effort. If your only reason is to become rich then you don't have a compelling enough 'why'. You need a purpose that motivates you when your will power is long gone. 

Step 3: Be honest with yourself

If you don't know where you are, how do you expect to get where you want to go? Sit down and be honest with yourself. You have nothing to be ashamed of!  So get real honest with yourself and your spouse!

Step 4: Formulate a specific game plan.

Your game plan should be specific steps in making your intentions come to life. Create a daily, weekly, monthly plan of action steps. Break it down into bit sized pieces. 

Step 5: Force yourself to take at least one small step each day.

Do something! Anything! One thing is better than nothing! If you only got 1% better each day, where would you be in a year? None of us do well when we feel like we have a million things to do. But we all can do 1 or 2 things that move us closer to our goals each day!

Step 6: Track your Results

This may be one of the best tactics I ever learned. Because what do we all say to ourselves? I can never live on a budget. I diet but never lose any weight. Get out a little note pad and at the top of each page write down each goal and your purpose for it. On that page track your behaviors. Every dollar you’re spending, every piece of food you eat etc. Give this a chance for 2 weeks! You’ll quickly realize why you are not getting results. What this does is makes you conscious of your behaviors and changes your habits! At least you will no longer be able to say that you do not know what is keeping you from success.

Step 7: Re-evaluate your progress and your purpose every 3 months

Something’s you will try will not work but you must know what they are so you can change course! Your core values may also change therefore changing the purpose. 

For more about me and to get my goal setting worksheet, go to www.jasonwqualls.com.