Four keys to setting — and achieving — your goals

Editor's note: The following article originally appeared in the July 2004 edition of the Tennessee CPA Journal, published by the Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants. It is reprinted here with permission.

By Roy Chitwood

Imagine you were standing at a busy intersection downtown right now and asked people passing by:

"Can you predict how much money you'll have five years from today?"
"Can you tell me what job you'll be working 10 years from today?"
"Can you describe the home where you'll be living in 15 years?"
"Can you predict the savings you will have when you retire?"

You likely would find that most people don't have a clue.

A major university conducted a research project a number of years ago in which it took a class of graduating students and followed them for 20 years. The study found that only 3 percent of the class had set goals, put them in writing and adjusted them over that 20-year period. The study also found that same 3 percent had accomplished more materially than the other 97 percent of the graduates combined.

Is it possible there's a correlation between those who don't have goals and those who don't go anywhere?

The truth is, if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there. Most people don't have goals. As a result, most people don't make it — even after spending 40 to 45 years in the working world.

A goal has to be something you really want. If it's not, you won't do what's necessary to reach it. Maybe your goal is a better job, to earn more money, to give your family a better life, to take the vacations you want, to have savings in the bank or to own your own business.

As this year reaches its peak, set aside a few hours to think about what you'd like to accomplish — not only this year or next, but throughout your life. Then set yourself some goals. The time you spend in this process will be one of the most meaningful time investments of your life.

There are four important things to remember when setting your goals.

The first is that a goal has to be big. It's difficult to get excited about something as mundane as making next month's car payment. Therefore, when you set your goals, make them what your heart truly desires so they'll be worth working for. Shoot for the stars. Design your goals around the things you really want, the things that you most wish for that would make you sincerely happy.

Second, your goal has to be long-term — at least five years or more. Since you'll need time to accomplish a large goal, working toward it will give you long-term direction and structure. Admittedly, adhering to a structure can seem arduous day to day. However, if you make the commitment to always work within that structure, when you have a bad day, week, month or even a bad year, you'll have ample time to make up for it and still remain on track toward your goal.

Boxing great Rocky Marciano once said, "It's not how many times you get knocked down that counts; it's how many times you get up." When you get knocked down along the path to your goal — and you will — it's imperative to get up, brush yourself off and go at it again. Understand that you will get knocked down again and again until you learn to develop effective ways to get around the obstacles that block your way. After all, there has to be some means of separating those 97 percent who don't make it from the 3 percent who do — that thinning of the herd will come in the form of the trials that befall you. Your ability to survive these trials, to get up one more time than you get knocked down, will ultimately determine which category you belong in. These challenges will show you what you're really made of.

The third requirement is that your long-term goals should also be viewed in terms of tasks you're accomplishing in the short term. Like a garden, it is essential that you tend to the growth of your goal every day, lest it wither from neglect. You cannot expect to be where you want to be in five years if you don't nurture your goal today.

Further, in achieving your goals, there's no such thing as a cram session the night before the test. If you haven't worked methodically toward what you want on a daily basis, you will never be able to make up the lost time.

A successful life is comprised of successful years, months, weeks, days and even hours. Cynics may see this as nothing more than motivational hype, but some of the most successful people in the world believe and practice these principles. Choose to take your advice from these people rather than cynical know-it-alls. Cynics only seek to drag you down to their level of mediocrity as a means to soothe their envy of your success, while they attempt to justify their lack of it. Believe in your own potential and in your ability to create the life you deserve.

The fourth essential consideration in setting your goals is that they absolutely must be put in writing. Something profound happens when you put your goals in writing. They are no longer wishful thinking. Instead, they become a commitment, a contract you make with yourself. Write your goals down and you will see that they will become exponentially more meaningful in your life. Your goals will begin to drive your life the moment they are put on paper.

The rewards of goal setting are available to you regardless of your age, race, sex or level of education. Success is never a matter of luck, background or magic. Success happens because you set the goals you truly want to accomplish and through your commitment, focus and discipline, you make them reality. Let go of your fears, self-doubt and uncertainties. Be brave. Dare to stretch yourself, to focus wholeheartedly on and pursue relentlessly that which you truly want from this life. Set your sights unapologetically high and never stop until you reach your star. You can do it. You can make it happen.

I am confident that you will come to find that goal-setting works and will soon become a way of life for you. Start setting your goals today. There isn't a minute to delay. The success you want is out there waiting for you.

Roy Chitwood is the president of Max Sacks International in Seattle, Wash. He can be reached at (800) 488-4629.

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