subject: How To Be Effective Setting Business Goals [print this page] Everybody has heard that it is good to set your goals - "If you fail to plan then you plan to fail..." but not everyone has been shown how to do it effectively.
Doing it wrong can actually be counter-productive.
Be sure to understand that in making a plan to achieve what you want, at the outset you should only concern yourself with the "WHAT" and not the HOW. There is no need to micromanage the process.
Setting out what you want and when you want it establishes a purpose, and a grid like the example below helps you to set out your goals and objectives - especially useful when you start an online business.
Here we look at how to set your goals effectively, which is more than just writing a wish-list - although that is the first step:
Business Goals
Make a list of all the things you would like to have or do, both in the long-term and short-term., attaining certain income levels, how many new leads etc
Business Goal.........................................Time
First 10 Leads..................................... 1 month
First Sale..............................................1 month
First 100 Leads...................................2 months
Income of $10k per month................4 months
List of 10,000.......................................6 months
Income of $20k per month................8 months
Publish 6 articles per month............ongoing
Personal Goals
Draw up a second list which will be your personal goals. They may be material things you want, or things you want to do.
This gives you measurable objectives as to what you want, and a way of achieving them with the vehicle of Online Marketing.
Your list can be as long as you like!
Personal Goal.........................................Time
Get a new car....................................... 4 months
Travel across Australia.......................6 months
Learn to ride a motorbike..................8 months
Do a 10,000ft skydive.......................12 months
Get a pilots licence...........................18 months
Own dream home...............................2 years
Commitments
Now write a list of the commitments that you are going to make. This will include things you will do to that actively take you towards your goals, but also things you will commit to stop doing that get in your way - like watching mindless soaps on TV or reading depressing news articles.
For example:
* Read information about the business, leadership books or personal development material for 30 minutes each day.
* Spend 15 minutes a day on focussed thought about developing your business or on your goals.
* Work on a website for 3 hours a week.
* Also make sure you commit to spending time on something relaxing that you enjoy - playing with the children, exercising, or a on hobby.
Your have to treat yourself well before you can expect other people to!
Affirmations
You can now build positive affirmations about your goals. This is done by constructing sentences around your your goals.
Repeatedly affirming your goals each day helps with reprogramming subconscious thoughts so that it accepts those thoughts as real. As you (your subconscious) doesn't like to be wrong you begin to be motivated to do the things you needs to do to achieve what you are affirming.
The sentences should be constructed in the positive. The subconscious mind actually ignores negative words such as "don't" or "no longer".
So if you say "I don't smoke" it actually hears "I __smoke".
The sentence should be brief, specific and measurable, stated in the present tense using an "ing" word. Start with "I am".
It is important that you include an adjective, a describing word, to show how you are feeling as you achieve the goal.
The goal must also be personal to you - you cannot set your goals for another specific person and expect them tp buy into it!!
Examples of affirmations might be:
"I am happily earning spending and investing $200,000 a year."
"I am joyfully standing in the garden of my 6 bedroom house, peacefully watching the sun go down".
Visualise
While affirming goals also visualise them. Bring a picture of yourself into that exact situation into your mind's eye.
This sort of exercise is more than just positive thinking. It is the type of creative visualisation technique that is used by top sportsmen who mentally rehearse their winning play over and over. Then when faced with the reality you are already mentally programmed. You reaction becomes second nature, an automatic response: you resolve the prospect's concerns, you ask for the order or the signature...
Spend time thinking about, and importantly feeling good about creating wealth and prosperity and building your Internet Marketing business. Use Images
Your present situation may be far removed from where to want to be. It may be difficult to envision receiving a large commission cheque. Sometimes people cannot believe it until they see it.
To help overcome these you may want to find images that will remind you of what you want. A picture of the car or the dream house.
One hurdle may be not being able to "see" getting a large commission cheque. Well, while you are waiting why not print one out yourself, with your name on it, for perhaps $10,000. Put it where you can see it every day. Your subconscious will be trained to expect it in reality. When you set your goals and objectives it creates a tension, a motivation to achieve them. They clarify your vision and your values and help you to proceed towards them.
It is also much more fun, creative and enjoyable than a boring old businessplan.
Create a millionaire mindset. If you set your goals to manifest money and become a millionaire or achieve financial freedom it is not about the money - it is about what you become on the way to achieving it.
