Goal Setting Worksheet and Templats

Goal Setting Worksheet Personal Growth Plan

What's the biggest unachieved goal you have? You can begin to make progress by using a tool called a Goal Setting Worksheet.

I. Formulate a clear, measurable, and achievable though stretching goal.
Too many goals are unrealistic or too foggy. If you say "I will save a lot of money over the next six months" you probably won't! But if you say "I;m going to have $100 per week automatically debited from my account, it's going to happen. No wiggle room there! You will know if you've succeeded or failed. And, assuming the targets are also appropriately challenging or significant, you will have a strong goal statement.

Step 2: Why do I want to achieve this goal? What are the benefits I'm seeking.

If it is a fitness goal, your motivation may be tied to a desire for a long active life. A financial goal may be tied to a desire for more security. Write down every reason. When you have all the reasons identified you will have an important ongoing motivation tool for the duration of your pursuit of the goal.

III. Make a list of the hurdles you will need to clear to achieve your priority.

All significant goals have significant barriers. Identify them. Maybe you are flabby and out of shape because your job has long commute and you sit on your butt all day. Maybe you travel a lot and have never figured out a way to eat right in restaurants. Maybe you have a huge debt that makes it hard to save. Make a comprehensive list of all the issues.

Step 4: What is the primary constraint, the one barrier which if I removed it would immediately move me toward my goal?

Boil the list down to a single obstacle and resolve to deal with it decisively.

#5: What is the cost of reaching this goal?

Any substantial goal requires sacrifice. The more significant the goal, likely the more substantial the sacrifice. This is a reality check: Are you prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to reach your goal?

Step 6: What information or skills do I need if I am to achieve this goal?

Don't be surprised if your goal requires you to develop new areas of your life- that's the nature of a goal: you're becoming someone different! So learn new things and enjoy the growth that takes place en route to your accomplishment.

#7: Is there someone who can walk with me toward this goal?

This is a very important question, and your answer is also very important. An unachieved goal usually means we lack the self discipline to get there alone. So we need to lean on the discipline and accountability of another person. In some cases they might be partners who are moving toward a similar goal; in other cases they are mentors who are leading us and coaching us to go where they have already gone. Either way, this person is often the difference between success and failure in goal setting.

VIII. Write down every single thing that you will need to do to get to your destination.

List every single stage you see that you will need to pass through to get to the end. You don't need to put them in any particular order at this point, just get them all down on paper, or on the screen of your computer.

#9: Boil the long list down to the three obvious items.

For example, you might narrow down your savings goal to spending less eating out, working overtime once per week and setting up an auto transfer from your bank account into savings.

X. What are the daily and weekly systems you need to reach the goal?

Whatever you do, do not skip this step. Goals are achieved due to the habits we start or the habits we stop. Think about that for a second. Your life = your habits. Where we end up is simply the logical result of our habits.

#11: Do I really really really want to do this?

This is the final reality check before moving into action. Now that you know all that will be involved in reaching this goal, how badly do you want it? Or, has the hard truth about what it will take made the status quo more appealing?

XII. Identify something you can easily do today that will be the first step towards your goal.

It doesn't need to be a big thing, it just needs to be something. The sooner you take action, the sooner you will feel that sense of progress, and the sooner you will reach your destination.