Another year, another chance for us to make it our best one yet. It’s a great time to take a look back on what you tried to achieve over the past year and assess the outcomes as you continue striving to push yourself in the pursuit of greater heights.
Unfortunately, achieving a goal is challenging; sometimes even seemingly impossible. But with the right attitude and determination, you have the opportunity to achieve a great deal before 2017 passes us by.
Struggling for motivation to keep yourself accountable to all that you want to achieve over the year ahead? Let’s explore some meaningful strategies to beat the procrastination below.
Assess yourself
Everything starts with you! Here’s the thing, you will never achieve something if you don’t see the purpose of it. Think of something that you are most passionate about like Megan Dalla-Camina, who we featured recently. Megan isn’t afraid of dreaming big and just like her you need to determine what you value most and chase that dream! Do not fall into the trap of being guided entirely by those around you.
Set a deadline
Chop your long term goals into little pieces and go over them one piece at a time. For example, you are aiming to read a book by the end of the year. A 400-page book might seem like an impossible task to tackle when you have all the time in the world. Small and achievable goals such as one chapter a week can make a world of difference! Once you’re happily achieving minor goals, up the ante and slowly turn up the pace.
Deadlines are one hell of a motivator. Remember rushing out assignments at University in record time thanks to that impending (or long overdue) deadline? Seemingly impossible tasks are easy to master when you do away with the constant distractions around you.
Set a target date to complete your goals and enjoy the pressure. Of all the people you don’t want to disappoint when you don’t meet your deadlines, you mostly don’t want to disappoint yourself.
Improve your professional qualifications
You may have already completed a degree and completed a number of qualifications though your professional qualifications know no bounds. Find ways to sharpen your mind and extend what you know already. There are a lot of workshops, seminars, and short courses you can take that’ll be beneficial to your professional growth. The key is finding something that fits you.
A site such as training.com.au is a great place to start, as they feature study options that cover both online and in-class training. Through partnerships with Australia’s leading education providers, they provide the most comprehensive course comparison service in Australia.
With over 300,000 users monthly, they are well placed to assist you with your professional qualification or study enquiry. Have you spent any time in 2017 considering where the gaps in your professional qualifications exist? Might be a good time to consider them.
Remember, the world is rapidly changing and professional qualifications are key to staying ahead of the curve! No matter who you are or what your position in the company, it is essential to keep your skills and knowledge up-to-date at all times.
Focus on one skill at a time
Wouldn’t it be nice if we were brought into this world armed with a set of skills that we can utilise straight away? But the thing is, no one is born an expert and everything must be learned. Being an expert takes a lot of practice, a lot of mistakes, and a lot of learning. Think of the goal you want to achieve and reflect on the skills you need in order to achieve it!
So you want to be a writer? You can’t be an award-winning writer like Charlotte Wood overnight. Why not focus on perfecting your grammar and spelling before jumping into writing a book? What skill will you focus on acing this month? Is it dancing, singing, or acting? Take your time. Break down your goal. This way, your goal will look more realistic and less intimidating which will make it easier for you to achieve it.
Let people know about your goals
It may be uncomfortable to talk about though share your goals with those around you. Some may think that you’re overly ambitious though where’s the harm in that?
Talking about your goals can benefit you in two ways. First, those people who doubted you? You get to prove them wrong. You now have the drive to work harder so that those people realise they made a mistake on belittling your abilities. You get to prove that you are more than what they think.
Secondly, you recruit a support system. These are the people who will be cheering for you and challenging you to take your goal up a notch because they believe in you. You might also find someone who has the same goal as yours. Now, you may go through the same obstacles together. You will face a lot of challenges on your journey towards your improvement, but at least you have the right people around you.
Isn’t it nice to picture what the whole year would look like and just plan your action ahead to make this year the best year of your life? Taking on new goals is a great start.
Always remember that no matter how grand our goals and dreams are, nothing will happen if we just let it stay as dreams. What will really make the difference is our actions! Whatever you think you should be doing, do it now and do it for yourself. Claim that spotlight and put your best foot forward.
Dreaming big is a great feeling, but keep in mind that goals aren’t instantly achieved. You can’t finish writing a book when you dedicate one week of your life to do it, you need to do it repeatedly until it becomes a habit.
It will be hard, yes. But nothing worth it comes easy, right? Plus, don’t you just love that sense of accomplishment when you get to finish something?
This article was written in collaboration with training.com.au.
