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Chapter 5: Turn it into goals

Man is a goal-seeking animal. His life only has meaning if he is reaching out and striving for his goals.

—Aristotle

In the previous four chapters, we have explored your dreams, passions, desires, and purpose. In this chapter, it’s time to put it all together and create personal goals to make all your dreams a reality.

Goal setting is a discipline just like anything in life; it takes practice, patience, and persistence to get good at. In this chapter, you will learn how to set goals, what to aim for, and how to reach your goals to make your life the life you want to live. Setting goals will set you up for success while not doing so will set you up for failure. It’s as easy as that. The people who get ahead in life are the people who know what they want and move the needle forward daily to get there. They are action-oriented goal setters and achievement-minded people, always growing and getting from every day instead of just going through the days.

Current situation awareness

To start you on this incredible life-changing journey on goal achieving, I want you to do this exercise of first taking inventory of your life and current situation. Before you start working out your goals for the future, it is important to know where you stand. Answer the questions below:

• The year is (x) and I am currently (x) years of age.

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• I currently live at (x) with (x).

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• I currently work at (x) as a (x) and earn (x) per year.

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• Five people who have the most influence on my life are (x).

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• I currently weigh (x) and I rate my health as (x).

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• I currently enjoy spending my free time doing (x).

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• I have dreams of becoming (x).

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By doing this, you will get a quick snapshot of where you are in life right now. This is not a right-or-wrong exercise, just a personal reflective insight into your own life. Now for a fun exercise you will enjoy doing, using the same questions I asked you, rewind your life back 10 years, and answer the questions again.

• The year is (x) and I am currently (x) years of age.

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• I currently live at (x) with (x).

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• I currently work at (x) as a (x) and earn (x) per year.

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• Five people who have the most influence on my life are (x).

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• I currently weigh (x) and I rate my health as (x).

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• I currently enjoy spending my free time doing (x).

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• I have dreams of becoming (x).

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Was this exercise an eye-opener for you? Did you see the changes and growth you’ve had in life up until now?

Now while your mind is open, let’s finish this exercise by using the same questions again and fast-forward 10 years into the future. This time, answer the questions as though all your goals, desires, and aims have come true.

• The year is (x) and I am currently (x) years of age.

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• I currently live at (x) with (x).

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• I currently work at (x) as a (x) and earn (x) per year.

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• Five people that have the most influence on my life are (x).

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• I currently weigh (x) and I rate my health as (x).

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• I currently enjoy spending my free time doing (x).

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• I have dreams of becoming (x).

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Reflect and ponder

When was the last time you took a moment to take in all that you have done and accomplished? When was the last time you patted yourself on the back for a life well lived? When was the last time you were grateful for the things you have in your life?

We get so busy in our lives that we fail to stop, reflect, and ponder on the life we have lived so far. The things we have done, the places we have been, the people we have met, the problems we have faced, the people we have lost, and the unique experiences we have had. Think about it: when was the last time you stopped, reflected, and pondered on the life you have lived? Take a few moments to do this, and write down some thoughts that come to mind.

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Now, a gratitude exercise. List the things you have in your life right now. Things like your relationships, health, job, possessions, things you have access to, things you take for granted, etc. Write it all down.

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Write down some of the great places you have visited and the unique experiences you have had.

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Now that your mind is ticking in gear and you are reminiscing about your past, I want you to really think hard and write down some of the obstacles you have overcome on the journey of life. This can include bad habits you have overcome, or previous dreams and goals achieved. Write it down.

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Now we can see an overview of your past and present situation. This exercise on reflection will give you clarity on where you want the direction of your life to go. Before we push forwards to the future, we need to know where we have been in the past.

Goals to hit

Let’s start by writing a long list of things you want in your life. They can be big, small, cheap, expensive, totally out there, hard to reach or easy to attain, long term and short term. Things you want to do, see, create. Economic goals, family goals, relationship goals, fun stuff, health goals, and completely selfish goals. Absolutely anything. Let your mind wander and roam free, and write them down. Write a list of at least 50 to 100 things.

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Now not to be morbid, but I want you to consider the age you want to live to. Seriously, what age do you think you will live to? Is it 60, 70, 90, or 103? Now take away your current age from this number. For example, if I am currently 30 and want to live to 90, that leaves 60 more years of living. I want you to place your list of goals into the categories below.

Goals that can be achieved in:

1 year

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3 years

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5 years

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10 years

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20 years

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30 years

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From this list, identify one major goal that if you accomplished would have the most positive impact on your life and the world in which you live. What is this one major goal? This is your Magnum Opus, your star in the sky to follow, your masterpiece.

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Before wrapping up this chapter on goals, I want you to keep a goal workbook and a goal Excel spreadsheet on your computer. If you’re serious about your goals, I recommend you create a motivational vision board. It is as easy as this: open up a Word document, Google images of all the things you desire, save those images, insert them into a Word or Excel document, make a collage, and save it as your wallpaper. Print copies and put them in places where you will be constantly reminded of your goals.

The tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach.

—Benjamin Mays

Remember

• Goal setting is a discipline just like anything in life; it takes practice, patience, and persistence to get good at.

• Stop, reflect, and ponder on the life we have lived so far.

• Goals without plans and deadlines are just wishes
• People without goals tend to walk in circles.
• Become accountable when achieving your goals.
• You can alter your life through goal setting and goal getting.
• Set higher and higher goals when you reach a peak.