Each year, it seems that people put a lot of focus on where they've been and make plans about where they want to go in the next twelve months, and although we at Directing Design don't generally tend to be conformists, it seems that in this regard we are no different. Our (mostly) fearless leader has been a Sandler Training student for quite some time now and each Tuesday morning, he excitedly walks into the office with new lessons learned. As they've often proved invaluable, he strives to share the class teachings and employ that knowledge when making decisions. Naturally, that led to a conversation with each of us regarding his own goals as they relate to which direction he'd like for the company to go, and of course that sort of conversation always inspires one to set goals of one's own.

Now, me being the "I need to spend countless hours reading about how to best set goals and then writing and rewriting (and rewriting again) the goals because I'm trying to mesh all the information together" type, I did a little - no, a LOT - of research on the subject and I'm hoping to impart enough of my newfound knowledge to save you a bit of time. You know... for actually trying to achieve those goals.

First thing's first... When you decide that it's time to work toward something, whether it's work, family, or personally related, you need to figure out what it is that you should be working toward. Define what your vision for yourself is. Where do you dream that your career might be? How do you envision your family structure? Do you see yourself winning a race or writing a book or retiring early on a beach somewhere? How do your colleagues, family members, friends, and peers fit into that dream? Share this with them. It can be powerfully motivating when you make your dreams personal and this can lead to a collaborative effort in working toward your goals.

Once you have the goal in mind, it's time to expand on this. Write down the details of your goal. Rather than just saying that you want to own your own business, state what type of business you'd like to own. Think about how big you intend to make it, how profitable you want it to be, when you'd like for this to be in motion, etc. Decide when you can reasonably start and what the appropriate target date for accomplishment is.

Now that you have the major details established, think about what aspects of your life act as inhibitors. What will you have to change behaviorally? What activities might you have to spend less time on, put on a temporary hold, or give up altogether? Of course, some of these may be bad habits that you should forego (already making this an opportunistic exercise!), but you may also have to weigh the cost of giving up the behavior against the gain of the goal. Is it worth it? If so, let's move on because it's now time to figure out how to reach your goals. I'd advise doing a brainstorming session on actions you should take to start working toward your goals. As with any brainstorming session, you'll probably write down methods that seem completely absurd, and they may be, but they also may prove to be some of your most effective means to that end. What I'm saying is, don't discount a thought just because it seems too out of the box! As you begin implementing these ideas, you'll find yourself nixing a few of them, whittling down the list to actions that are truly relevant to helping you fulfill your vision. You may also consider researching how others have attained a similar goal and emulate some of their actions. Since each person's circumstances are different, of course, you probably can't duplicate someone else's plan exactly, but you may find action points to loosely build yours from.

One of the most important things I can say to you at this point is to write it all down....you're gonna need it! And keep it....you're gonna need it!

It's important to check in with yourself regularly. If you're like me with a touch of "out of sight, out of mind," schedule it in. Decide on a sensible time for you and do whatever you need to do (be it an annoying outlook pop-up, cell phone alarm, or a relentless colleague) to make sure you remember to assess your status. This will help you both stay motivated as you see your accomplishments and address any immediate issues. After all, setting a goal is so much more than just stating where you want to be. It's a work in progress with baby steps and giant leaps, trials and triumphs, private cheers and public accolades, and in the end it's completely worth it.

Thanks for reading,

Adi