Set realistic goals

People who find their life purpose and work to achieve it tend to be happier and less stressed. That is, if they manage not to become obsessed with achieving success at all costs and neglect other areas of their lives, or sacrifice their integrity and health along the way.

In this highly competitive world, what predominates in the professional and training sphere are performance goals that constantly push you to demonstrate your capabilities to others and stand out in your environment, but that does not imply knowing what you really want. These goals do not represent a true compass in your life.

Not setting your own goals and objectives is to always depend on the circumstances and objectives of others. This causes a lot of anxiety and detonates negative behaviors or bad habits such as the tendency to procrastinate or justify yourself, constant criticism and complaints.

Having clear objectives to guide you promotes change and personal growth. It is a practice that empowers you and gives you the feeling of being in control of your destiny. It helps you look to the future and overcome past experiences that hold you back.

Importance of goals and objectives

No matter what you want to achieve in life, once you figure it out, getting there requires planning. Setting goals and objectives is the only way, or it will all remain dreams and fantasies.

The main thing is to discover what you want to be and what exactly you want to do, which is not easy and takes a lot of introspection. You need to stop your usual rhythm and dedicate some time to reflect on this because it is a process of change that requires a strong investment in yourself.

Goals must inspire you, you must be able to believe in them enough to maintain motivation over time. It is allowing yourself to dream but with your eyes open. Setting clear and concrete goals will help you define the objectives you need to accomplish. The more personal and realistic they are, the more they will push you forward.

Goals are the vision, what you want to achieve in the medium or long term. The steps you must climb to reach it are the objectives. These are usually short-term and measurable, so the more specific they are the better. Objectives should also be realistic, i.e. achievable.

Mastery Goals

The best goals to set are mastery goals. The purpose of these goals is to accumulate knowledge, skills and abilities. They are aimed at personal growth, at becoming a better person. The skills you get as a result of achieving these goals will serve you in every area of your life, to achieve greater performance and emotional stability. These are goals that, if achieved, have an impact on the formation of your personality and self-esteem.

For example:

• Abandon an addiction.

• To stop lying.

• Master an emotion that harms you and others.

• Having a healthier lifestyle.

• Changing thought patterns that get in the way of your self-improvement or impair your social interactions.

• Work on your empathy.

• Work on your leadership skills.

Ways to set goals and objectives

You have probably already tried to set goals to achieve that goal you want to achieve but for one reason or another it has not worked out and you end up abandoning your resolutions. Here are some tips to keep in mind when setting goals and objectives.

In general for goals it helps:

• Rate goals positively: by thinking about your goals in a positive way you increase your chances of achieving them. For example I want to be healthy instead of I need to exercise, or I need to lose 10 kilos. This way there will always be a higher value regardless of the result.
• Set goals for your whole life: don't focus on only one area of your life, for example, only promote the professional one, neglecting the personal one.
• Seek help if necessary: we do not have to do everything alone. Having someone to motivate us, push us and hold us accountable for the fulfillment of our plans and our organization makes us more efficient and makes the journey more enjoyable.

For objectives, it helps to use the well-known SMART system:

• Make them specific: it helps you to have more control by allocating time and resources. What you want to achieve, why, in how much time, who can help you, and so on.

• Be realistic: you can achieve them with the resources you have at the moment or clearly recognize if you need others. Take into account strengths and weaknesses. It is advisable that they are few but well defined, rather than so many that you cannot meet them or you get overwhelmed. This way you can maintain motivation and confi