In the book "Alice in Wonderland", by Lewis Carroll, a mischievous girl named (of course) Alice chases a waist-coat-wearing white rabbit down an underground burrow and ends up falling into a mysterious and confusing other world. Determined to explore her new surroundings, Alice sets out on a path of discovery. She eventually finds herself in a seemingly endless forest and loses her way entirely. Suddenly, a smiling feline face appears in the middle of the forest sky, and Alice decides to ask this freaky phantom for directions. "Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?" she asks. "That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," replies the Cheshire cat. "I don't much care where..." begins Alice. "Then it doesn't much matter which way you go."
There is wisdom in that whimsical statement. Where do we want to go this next year? Where are we headed? If we cannot answer those questions, it doesn't much matter what path we take to arrive nowhere. Often we have the urge to move forward, to change our scenery, to head off in new directions. But without understanding where we want to end up, it doesn't matter the roads we decide to travel on. Without goals, we have no direction or purpose - no sense of progress or accomplishment. Goals give us something to work for, something to strive for. They give us a sense of purpose and meaning in our lives and help us to identify what is most important to us. They give us a framework for planning and decision-making and help us to identify our priorities.
Good goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timely. Specific goals are clear, unambiguous descriptions of what we are trying to achieve. Measurable goals are ones that are quantifiable. A goal cannot be reached if it is vague or difficult to measure.
So how do you set goals that lead you to where you want to go this year?
Make them specific.
"Be more free this year" is a broad and lofty goal. It is not specific and therefore not very meaningful. A better goal would be "protect my sobriety each day." This is a much more achievable goal and one that will give your committee more focus and clarity as you work toward achieving it. Many people start off the new year with the goal to "be in better shape." But that destination is so undefined that it's impossible to know how to even get there. Spell out the details of your goal to make them real - "I will walk every day." By digging into the specifics you will uncover the ultimate goal of being healthier and in better physical shape than before.
Make it measurable.
It is impossible to know whether you have achieved your goal if there is no way to determine whether or not the goal has been met. In order to achieve a goal, it must be clearly defined so that it is measurable and can be evaluated to determine whether or not it is being achieved. Can you count the days you've been sober? Can you measure your improvement in reading? Can you list the practical changes in your emotions? Set goals that have units of progress built in. So when you do measure your movement towards your goal, you can see the improvement in real-time.
Make it realistic.
Setting an unrealistic goal is not going to help you achieve anything. Your goals should be challenging but attainable. You could set a goal of reading one book a day. But is that doable for you? If not, you will become discouraged easily with your goals and lack the motivation and discipline to stick with them. A good goal is one that pushes you outside of your current comfort zone, but doesn't require you to move mountains to accomplish it.
Make it time-bound.
Having a specific time frame for achieving your goals is essential to their success. Being determined to achieve a goal is one thing; knowing exactly when you will be able to achieve it is quite another. So give your dream a deadline. Put time constraints around your destinations - even if it one year, five years, or ten years down the road. The calendar gives weight to our goals. This year, I am committed to running a half-marathon. I signed up for a race in the middle of year. The date is circled on my calendar - which means I have to put my running shoes on each day because time is precious. My race is not "someday" "tomorrow" or "when I feel it is the right time." The date is set, and I have to train towards the goal each day. I have taken away my excuses to put running off by putting a hard deadline in place. Do the same with your goals, and see how your focus grows towards accomplishing dreams.
Goals can help you identify important aspects in your life and help you make decisions that are consistent with those aspects. By developing and regularly reviewing your goals, you can enhance your life, both professionally and personally. So where are you headed this year? Plan your paths to get there.
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