How Do Having Written Goals Help You Succeed?

Welcome to another article in the Success Story series.  The Success Stories series provides answers to  some of the questions about what it takes to become successful. While each of us is unique in our goals and aspirations, we have things in common with others. By consulting my LinkedIn network of over  9,000,000 people, I believe I can find ideas and solutions that may help you achieve some of your goals. While I may not agree with all of the comments below, I include each and everyone that is presented coherently and may help one of my readers.< ?xml:namespace prefix = o />

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The questions have been slightly edited for grammar and presentation. Comments and Kudos, while appreciated, have been edited out.

My short answer:

Each day I read and modify my goals.

Brian Tracy suggests that reading and rewriting your written goals ensures that my subconscious works on these goals.

I continuously focus on setting and achieving my written goals.

A much longer answer and involved answer can be found at Setting and Achieving Goals

Click here to find the original question and answer on LinkedIn Answers

Success Stories are part of my Success Through Balance approach to life. I believe that Success comes from living a balanced life. You can read more about being successful and the skills required here.

Keith Bray

I am a believer in two sets of goals for my business life.

I set goals on a weekly basis and review frequently. These targets and actions are tied directly to a “long term plan” I have for my business.

To keep my life in balance, I have a consistent set of daily goals that I review each morning and check off.

Personal balance allows me to meet short and long term goals in an orderly fashion.

Not only are my business goals in writing, my staff also have copies. We review these goals and discuss trends on a monthly basis.

Finally, I generally list my goals on my blog sites.

I agree with you, having goals gives our lives a sense of meaning and purpose. Writing them down gives them a solidity which increases the likelihood of their manifestation in our lives. It activates the processes of our consciousness and unconscious minds to make them a physical reality. We can look at them, contemplate, and see where we are and realize the next steps we would like to take. Sharing this information on LinkedIn activates one of the richest and most beautiful forms of manifestation.

What greater goal, life’s purpose and source of fulfillment than to share with the intention of helping all people reach their goals and manifest their dreams !

We join together and give each other the opportunity to help each other, side by side, from all corners of the world to share experiences and wisdom to manifest our goals and dreams.

Learn new things, strive to do your best, enjoy yourself, dedicate time to friends/family, have motivation and desire to take baby-steps and do take risks!

 And ask yourself… is this the ULTIMATE happiness I can get?

 “Find a job that you love, and you won’t have to work a day in your life”

Writing down your goals helps you commit to them. Encouraging others to write down their goals where you have an interest in these, helps ensure a common understanding of what is to be achieved, as well as that additional commitment.

Goals are boxes: they limit your performance dramatically.

Think of how many times someone tells you to think outside of the box and then ask your self why you need a box? You don’t!

I love the latitude I create for me and my team by utilizing a mission statement without the need to set a goal. Instead, we keep our focus by utilizing a Mission Statement and by recognizing our guiding principles.

 Mission Statement:

ScubaBoard is a community of scuba divers whose goal is to further the knowledge and enjoyment of scuba for all divers and those interested in diving with a fun and informative approach.

 Guiding Principles:

 As the staff of ScubaBoard, our goal is to provide our users with a safe and friendly atmosphere that will bring together new friends, attract scuba diving professionals and diving legends in a way that creates “The Optimal Internet Diving Community”.

I learned a long time ago that if you focus on money it will elude you. However, put that focus on doing your best and providing the BEST in customer service, you will make money hand over fist. I truly believe that this attitude has made ScubaBoard into the LARGEST website devoted to Scuba.

 As with most things, your mileage may vary. Not everyone can deal with an amorphic system: they need those goals to define their actions.

[ZT - Nice way of integrating an answer with a Sales pitch!]

Writing, speaking, reading, feeling, hearing…are all part of how we learn and imprint. The more of these we activate, the more we will act on them, both consciously and unconsciously.

I’m not a big believer in the highly developed corporate Mission Statement, but I do believe in having a clear purpose in what we do individually and corporately. We should be able to articulate that purpose in a short, succinct, statement, i.e. At Panoptika our goal to help our clients truly understand their customers, so that they can build relationships that bring value to both.

That way, when we set our goals, or when we have to decide to do, or not to do, we can hold ourselves accountable to our purpose in order to make our decisions.

Goals – the smoke that many cannot grasp.

Until you write your goals down (and date them), they are Wishes. They do not have any form. Goals are the resting points in the journey of life (and business). Long term and short term goals are designed to make you stretch your skills and abilities to achieve – then to revel in that achievement. Without (written) Goals, how do you know where you are going (or aiming)?

Goals help me decide which of the dozens of things I could be working on today most deserve my time. They liberate me from distractions and trivialities. I don’t find them confining. I stay aware that I wrote the goals and I can change them. In fact, when I do change them, it makes me aware of something that’s been happening all along, that I just put into words, and that’s a great feeling! Another great feeling is being able to say, “I just took a concrete step toward one of my highest goals.” At the end of the day, week, year, and (I hope) life, I’ll be able to say I accomplished something. While being open to surprises!

I set daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, and long term goals. How do I know what to concentrate on if I don’t know where I want to end up?

The answer lies in the basic fact that ‘if you don’t know here you are going you will probably end up somewhere else’!

Business and personal goals will enable even the newest professional to keep a track to run on and also serve as a reminder of purpose when the going gets tough. They will always be a massive reason why some individuals succeed versus those that fail.

Creating goals is easy. Accomplishment is hard. Life is a giant randomizer and the devil lives in the details. It’s easy to lose track of which way you’re pointed in all the noise. The part of your head where goals originate is also where desire lives. A good idea is driven by desire, and desire is notorious for disregarding awkward things like details. But accomplishment satisfies desire and writing things down is a good way to engage your analytical head, which, although somewhat dull at parties, loves details and is good at accomplishment.

When writing down an idea you’re translating it from the secret language of your imagination to a public language of shared communication. To do so you must capture your thoughts, slow your mind down to the speed of the written word, convert ideas to statements, arrange them for the linear world and then check the results.

The results check is the most important part. By writing down your thoughts you’ve taken your ideas out into the real world. By reading those written statements and asking “does this make sense? Does it say what I’m thinking? Did I miss anything?” you’re bringing them back in through the part of your head that does the reality checking; they’re tested not just for accurate translation but also to see if the laws of nature are being broken or bent.

The end result is an external guide that you can turn your analytical head loose on to execute to. A couple of minor but significant side benefits: your analytical head is good at storage and recall, so you don’t need post-it notes everywhere to remind you what you’re trying to do, and because your goal is in a format others can understand you can enlist their assistance without having to micromanage them, thus avoiding losing as many friends as highly motivated people are known to do on the way to success. Desire loves friends.

The way I think of it has to do with being INTENTIONAL. The important things in life tend to not just happen. As others have said, accomplishing your goals takes hard work. To do that, you have to do it on purpose. These things don’t come accidentally. Creating goals and writing them down serves as a concrete reminder to do things on purpose that will get you where you want to be!

Goal setting creates a road map. Why not do all you can to help yourself get where you want to be – without drifting.

Goals are very important. They are the markers that we place ahead of ourselves so we can see where we are going.

In the short-term, they keep us on track from one day to the next. Goals are a way of making sure we remember the big picture of our lives when we are bogged in the details.

In the long-term, they help us be mindful of the roadmap of our lives. By writing down our intentions in the form of goals, we are sounding a clear bell that others will respond to.

Like any system, there are limits to what goals can do. They can’t make us take the action. They can’t make us want to get out of bed in the morning and be the person we were born to be. But they can help us stay on track.

As most everyone knows, some goals that are exciting today will be limiting tomorrow. So, to keep the fresh, review them regularly and update them as you feel led to do.

 Overall, our best use of goals is to keep them handy, keep them clear, and keep them flexible.

[ZT I disagree about the goals not making us take action. In fact, I believe by writing down the goals and reading them everyday, they create an emotional imperative for a person to act.]

I have written goals, and as you, I go over them daily. I maintain work, personal, and professional goals with short (3-6 months), mid (6 months to 2 years), and long term (2-10 years) lists.

I’m not intentionally trying to be a contrarian but I think written goals can also create tunnel vision for some people. If you have the talent and aptitude for your job, you’ll recognize what needs to be done that week / month / quarter / year and respond appropriately.

I can’t imagine any of us can consistently predict and capitalize on major events so why try that approach with your career? To me, anything more than a broad target isn’t either too limiting or ripe for error.

[ZT - Nathan - are the contrarian! I use to believe the same as you. But, by having goals front and center - when major events happen - we can immediately integrate them into our plans.]

I strongly believe in writing your goals down and making sure its visible all the time to you. This helps jog your memory, keeps you focused and let others in your organization (if you have a business and these are business goals) align themselves to those goals.

Be introspective to uncover the values most dear to you. From these values, form goals that will bring you closer into alignment with the values.

Make these goals specific, detailed, and deadline- driven and commit them to writing. This will transform your desires into specific, detailed plans of action. When you write down your goals, you make them important. When you write down important goals, you make your life more purposeful.

Finally enlist the help of someone close to you that will help hold you accountable to the terms of your goal. Most of us will perform much better when we know someone else is monitoring our performance.

 “Goals; Destiny is not a matter of chance it’s a matter of choice.”
Author Unknown

Yogi Berra put it this way, “If you don’t know where you are going, you might end up someplace else.”

The beauty of having written goals is that you have something to refer back to when the everyday stresses of life takes you off course. The key is to review them often and make adjustments when needed.

Easy. If you don’t have a destination (goal) how will you know when you’ve arrived (been successful)?

I think also that Goals are longer term or deeper than “To do’s” for the day, although a series of to do’s can be a part of a larger goal. I do also think that some of the comments about tunnel vision are important. Perhaps this is a result of setting goals that are too easily reached (not a “stretch”) or maybe you accomplish a goal in a shorter time frame than you thought. The threat to creativity and productivity in that case is that some people (not me, of course) might sit back and not put more effort forth to perhaps transform or augment that goal with the remaining time you have.

Written Goals often helps to stay on course and never to stray. To begin with we can break the Long Term Goals into actionable items with specific time lines. This way we can achieve our objectives.

I set weekly sub-goals to help me fulfill my long term goals. I divide my goals into different categories – work, personal development, work-out/health, and family.

Imagine you are the captain of a ship – you are sailing extremely fast, but what does it matter if you haven’t got a compass? You are surely going somewhere – but it might be in the opposite direction of what you want!

My answer to goal setting is that there are – in many ways – two kinds of people. I believe this is because the mind is a borders-creating device.

Today’s perspective is one of HOW versus WHAT.

People who define goals as WHAT, they ask themselves: what is my next step, what is my new direction.  These people have no clue about where they are going, it is the sense of being on the road (in the flow) versus being beside the road (life is difficult, I am bored, all are against me, why me, etc)

People who define goals as HOW, they ask themselves: where will I be in one week, three months, five years from now? These people have no clue about the holistic properties of the current moment, where past present and future are created by paying attention and charging with intention.

In the world of creative thinking, there is the difference between divergence, where the strict rule applies of postponing judgement in order to see, and convergence, where the strict rule applies of postponing seeing in order to judge.

Goal setters of the first kind (WHAT) are typically more happy in the divergent phase, while goal setters of the second kind (HOW) will be happy with few ideas and a plan for realization.

Overview, a need that the mind has, looks different from each of the two complementary perspectives.

For me, as a person of the former kind (creative, asking what), my goal setting happens each and every second. I will explain from the latter kind perspective (organizational, asking how).

STEP ONE: I ask myself two questions:

What is my question?

What is my first step?

STEP TWO : I notice what I think and what I do. I pay attention to what comes into my mind (thoughts, answer to the question) and what happens with my body (first step, actions that I see myself take).

I notice instead of act ; I believe that the first impulse is from my mind, so I allow myself a gap ; I call this “then seconds between receiving and passing forward” – as in football – catch the ball, look where to throw next (the pause) , then throw.

STEP THREE: this is the moment of the second impulse. I have let go of the first impulse. Now is the time to act.

STEP FOUR: go back to step one, ask the two WHAT questions

You have to set goals which are measurable otherwise they stay, as previously mentioned a puff of smoke, and very difficult to reach or tick off as Done.

Written goals utilize all three sensory representational systems; you hear it in your head, you see it externally, and you feel the process of writing it. I is also useful to be sure it’s stated in the positive, the personal, and the present.

List making, the to-do list, is another great example of goal setting.

If we are busy, it’s easy to forget.

I know that writing your goals and facing them every day is a very good way to stick to them.

Anyway, personally I think about my goals before going to bed and try to make new strategies to get to them or to see how far I am with them.

At work, I have a print page with my business goal on my desk and always something to motivate me such as the picture of my Irish friends with a note about paying them a visit

It works, yes.

When I think about setting and having GOALS, I can relate it to the feeling of being lost in a vast desert. You can choose to wander around aimlessly in the hot sun and hope to escape, or you can pick a landmark and focus on reaching the desired point. In this way, the landmark keeps you going when you might otherwise be tempted to give up. Furthermore, it ensures that you are travelling in the right direction, so that at anytime you can KNOW where you are in your travels in relation to the GOALS you have set. Finally, it gives you a cause for celebration and a feeling of accomplishment that adds value to our lives when the goal is reached.

You do need to write your goals down or as was mentioned they are just wishes. There is a power behind writing your goals. You convince your subconscious to accept the goal as a reality and that way it makes it easier to attain. There are countless books on the subject, the most famous being Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. 

[ZT As regular readers of this site know - I am a full believer in Napoleon Hill - by the way there is a LinkedIn Group about Napoleon Hill - Join the group here]

Based on your question, I feel compelled to advise you of a website that may help you not only “write your goals,” but reinforce your goals through visualization (you can actually put a slideshow together, complete with unlimited number of uploaded photos) and being thankful to those who’ve helped your success so far. The website is www.uBoodle.com. Check it out.

Being clear about what results you want to create (they have to be specific) and being intentional in trying to create them, helps you accomplish more. There is a lot of research in the Industrial/Organizational Psychology literature (one author is Ed Lawler) that shows that people who have specific goals get more accomplished then those who don’t.

 In management circles there is an acronym floating around today that many organizations have adopted. It is S.M.A.R.T. Goals should be:

S = Specific

M = Measurable (you need a tangible measure like what day will the result happen, how much will it cost, How long will it take to complete, what standard of quality, etc)

A = Achievable. Goals should be achievable — not easy. If the goal is ONLY achievable by a person who walks on water you are setting yourself up for failure.

R = Reasonable. Goals should be reasonable, or realistic, i.e., they should be tied to the results that you want to create.

T = Timely. They should be time-bound, i.e., have a specific timeframe for starting them and completing them.

 This helps me write and manage goals when I am working on a project.

Writing clear, concise, reasonable, and measurable goals, with a target completion date, for yourself allows you to have a clearly defined target that can be measured over time. This allows you to measure your progress and allows you to increase or maintain your effort, thereby facilitating the attainment of your goal by the target due date.

I’m much more proficient in writing professional goals than personal goals, something I need to work on; however, it is my opinion that having written goals serves as a reminder of what you’d like to accomplish. Rather than being vocalized or spoken softly in your head, there is concrete proof that you have set change for yourself to improve.

I believe writing goals down helps to clarify what it is that we want to accomplish. Along with writing goals down, there should also be a plan in place on how those goals will be successfully accomplished. I believe that it is not only important to write goals down, but to keep those goals in front of you. One of the first things you should see when you awake in the morning is a copy of your goals. Having a copy of your goals in front of you will help to remind you of what it is that you want to accomplish as well as how you are doing with keeping on track with your goals.

By the way, I started the year off right when I realized one of my goals for 2008. I have resolved to become more involved in volunteerism. Although I do a great deal of volunteerism, I want to continue my work with various organizations. As such, I volunteered my time at the start of the year when I delivered a workshop on goal setting and leadership for young girls of a non profit organization.

If you need to adjust your goals each day then I would suggest it’s called ‘To Do List’. For my mind a goal is an objective I set out to achieve, it takes visualizing, planning, preparing and execution and reviewing. If the goal is too short term then it doesn’t necessarily stretch me or it is simply a milestone on the way the real goal.

I get hung up about this concept of having analyze everything you do in life – it takes a way the fun of experience and encourages less flair and risk taking. If you have to refer to goals each day then you are less likely to make on the ground decisions, think creatively and inspire people around you.

That is not the same as asking a salesman – what did you sell today? That’s just a milestone on the way to a goal.

I do agree if you don’t write them down or read them regularly then you will lose sight and many do. But that is not the same as modifying them each day – if it has to be modified regularly then the goal was either wrong to start with or you’re cheating!

It works. It’s been proven time & time again. What mystifies me, in this climate of ever increasing competition, is why those of us who DO, keep trying to convert those of them who DON’T.

 They won’t do it – we do do it. We’ll dominate the world. QED

 Anyone want to start a Goal Setters Group intent on World Domination?

Well we have a structured system of goal setting at our workplace. At the beginning of each year, goals are set, be they in terms of achieving revenue targets, learning new skills, retaining employees etc. These goals are reviewed by the immediate two superiors. Then at mid term employees are expected to review their goals and see what they have achieved. If necessary, counselling is provided. At the year end performance is measured against goals.
Guess goal setting works. Be it done voluntarily or in a formal setting.

The act of writing them is useful in that it helps you to see what you are thinking. (“How can I know what I mean until I see what I say?”)

But don’t forget the next step: posting them, in a conspicuous place, so that you see them every day.

That becomes a reminder to nudge and nag you.

[ZT – Post-It notes are me best friend.]

Writing down one’s goals and objectives helps one reconfirm the level of commitment towards the same, and also makes it a more concrete decision to achieve those goals. It helps one stay on track and correct oneself in case of deviations/interruptions/confusions.

I don’t write down my goals as much as I write down my alternatives. This helps me compare the pros and cons of each and finally arrive at the best possible option. Setting an agenda for the day and writing it down clarifies my POA for the day and makes me feel more organized and in-control.

Written goals help me for all aspects of life–changing nagging habits, business and career goals, and goals for my hobbies. Writing them down makes them tangible, easy to remember and provides a form of accountability. If you change your goals, you know what you are changing from and what you’ve changed to.

I agree with your concepts of Goals 100%. That is exactly how I achieved my goals to date, and continue to do so. However, these goals must be attainable, realistic, and risks, as well as known benefits must be evaluated. Umpteen examples are available upon request.

[ZT - I disagree. They don't need to be realistic. Ford wanted an automobile in every driveway. Edison wanted to create light. Gates wanted a computer on every desktop. Unrealistic goals are only unrealistic until they are accomplished.]

I have met many successful business owners who haven’t created plans. However, every time I hear them speak, when someone asks “what’s the one thing you would have done differently,” the answer is ‘create a plan.’

Vague goals without a means of taking action to achieve them, are as one respondent noted, nothing more than wishes. I’m a firm proponent of strategic planning where goals are set, subdivided into a number of objectives to be met by each goal, and strategies and tactics that are time sensitive and quantifiable to move me in the direction of achieving the goals. Simply writing down the ‘big picture’ goal doesn’t get you into the end zone.

After drifting through my 20s, I landed in the recruiting business where I learned how to work with goals and planning. The training I received at that time gave me solid tools that I continue to use today.

If it isn’t written, is isn’t real.

I keep a set of written goals on a whiteboard at home. Reviewing them twice-yearly with my whole family helps knits us together, and gives the kids an adult sense of inclusion.

Regarding the goals, I set daily goals each morning both for personal development and related tasks I wish to complete at work. On the end of each workday I go through the tasks and cross some off while updating others. I do the same on a weekly and monthly basis for work, while personal goals are set in a different and often less quantifiable way and therefore receive a different treatment.

 Currently, I’m also trying out a few online task management systems, which I have found being a great help in organizing.

We all have different goals at different times and stages of our life. Some goals remain steady till achieved while others change or simply turn into some other aspiration. It is very important to make a note of these goals as they help you map your own road to them. Also by writing things down things are clearer.

I waited for seven years to get married to man who belonged to a different religion. I was torn between choosing my on religious sentiments over my love for him. I was finding it difficult till one day my then boyfriend now husband suggested that I write down the pros & cons of being married to him without being emotional about it. I did that and today I am happy that I could take the right decision in life.

We have made it a practice to make notes of our goals just like our daily tasks at work or home and we review how far we are to achieving these goals. It helps tremendously. Also it us keep a perspective on whether we are going where we want to in life.

I have now become a firm believer in the written word and urge those ho have not tried to do so and see the difference.

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Tagged as: Brian Tracy, Goals, Stories Of Success