Developing a Clear Direction

In life and at work it is very easy to just take each day as it comes, to go with the flow, see what happens. However, if we are going to take ownership of our life, be the master of our destiny, then we have to start making plans. We need to think about what it is we want in life. Where we are going, what outcomes are we looking for. To develop a clear direction of our plans we actually need to set goals.

As individuals we actually set goals all the time such as:

• I have 1 hour to do the grocery shopping
• Today, I will get the washing done
• I will go for a 5 km walk
• I will eat 3 pieces of fruit

But we want to set goals that give us long-term direction, focus, and motivation to keep going, move forward, and persevere.

Once you have established your goals, the next action to successful goal setting is working out how to achieve your goal. A great place to start is to make notes on paper, drawing a road map to your success.

If you don't know where you are going,
you'll end up someplace else.
Yogi Berra

Goals provide us with a focus for our activities and give us direction, helping to keep our ‘eye on the prize.’

At any one time we have family members, work colleagues, and friends  all wanting us to spend time with them, there are tasks that needs to be done, things we would like to do if only we had the time; however, when we know our goals, we have focus and direction – it makes decision making easier. We understand where our priorities and focus need to be.

So if goal setting is so important and we know from history that the people who have been very successful often have a strong focus and direction, why is it that the majority of people do not set life goals?

It takes time, it takes thought, it means a commitment, it means we may feel disappointed if we don’t succeed. It can even be fear – fear of the unknown. Fear around what if I am that good, what if …

At the end of the day, they are all “what-if’s”. It is important to be the master of our own life, to take time to create the life we want. To step up and make some decisions. Some will be easy, some will be tough, but it is in this that we grow to be the person we want to be - that we grow to live the life we aspire to live.

It’s time, it's time to get excited about your own life. Do those things you have always dreamed of doing. Just imagine for a while your ideal life, then break it down in what are the steps you need to take to get there. What is the first thing you need to do?

Think about what it is you want to achieve and take that first step.