| Self Improvement Guide
Friday March 12th 2010

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Establishing a Life Goal is Easier Than You Think

The best way out of a slump is to define a life goal. Once done, you will identify your priorities and the areas of your life that needs improvement. Thereafter, you’ll be able to start along a path of self-discovery and fulfillment. Goal setting may pertain to health, spirituality, finances, relationships, work, hobbies or personality changes. The first step toward achieving your dreams is deciding what areas are most important. It can be difficult if you try to start on everything all at once. You’re more likely to succeed if you choose one priority goal at a time.

Try this life goal setting exercise to get yourself on the right path. List the areas of your life you’d like to work on, along with five subsequent objectives. It could be your health, career, finances, relationships, hobbies, spirituality or your behavioral/personality traits. Then, rate each area on a scale of 1-10 (1 being least satisfied, 10 being most satisfied). For instance, your life goal list for health might include weight loss, physique, eating habits, health and habits. On your satisfaction level list, you might admit that your weight satisfaction level is a 5, and that you’d like to lose 20 pounds. Your physique satisfaction might be a 6, as you’d like to build muscle with weight training two days per week. Your eating habits might be a 7 because you need to eat smaller portions. Your health could be an 8 because you’re generally happy but you know your cholesterol is a bit high. For your habits, you may be at a 10 because you are now going to the gym three days a week like you wanted to.

After you have everything written down, one main aim will probably become apparent. Have you placed your career first and let your physical condition slide? Or have you been so engrossed with your relationship that you lost sight of your objective of opening your own business? Consider some of your far reaching objectives and list the short term steps you must make to arrive there. Then determine an appropriate timeline in which to meet your goals.

For instance, your long term aim might be to run a five-minute mile. First, you need to set up a training routine of five days per week. Then, you must try to run a mile without stopping. Then you can endeavor to shave off a minute here and there to reduce your time from 10 minutes down to five. You can try exercising with weights to feel lighter or change your diet slightly to include more protein and energy-boosting foods. No matter what your plan might be, seeing manageable, written goals will help you accomplish them.

After you discover your life goal, you need to look at what you logistically need to do to complete your task. Do you need to keep your life goal list tacked to your refrigerator or work desk as a constant reminder? Do you need to write weekly short term aims down in your day planner? Do you need cell phone reminders set to keep you motivated during the day? Reminders often help people who are trying to tackle complicated work projects. Also, do you need to hire someone to whom you’ll be accountable? When people are trying to lose weight or achieve fitness goals, it helps to have a personal trainer or work with an establishment like Jenny Craig, as people will call to make sure you’re staying on track and keeping focused. It may also be helpful to reward yourself for your smaller accomplishments as time goes by to keep you motivated and sensing progress.

Goal setting teaches individuals very important lessons. It teaches people about setting life goals and then achieving what they dream. It gives them a sense of accomplishment when they have met their goal and this boosts their self-confidence tremendously.