Goal Setting - Turning Intentions Into Goals

Wouldn't it be nice if your dreams just magically appeared without effort on your part? I've covered two out of four stages needed to progress towards your dreams in a way that's aligned with who you are: your character and values. When your actions and decisions are aligned with who you are and what you value, you'll end up living with more peace and ease. Plus, you'll achieve your goals faster. I'll assume you have your intentions from the last stage, so now it's time to set some specific goals.

Let's say your intention is to improve your general health. You've already visualized what it's like to have good health... perhaps you've pictured all the fun activities you'll start to do, the strength your body feels, the support and good will of your friends, and so forth. A good visualization will make you want to be there already! What are specific goals you now would like to achieve? A few sub-categories of "general health" could be diet, fitness, healthy relationships, or stress reduction.

First you must pick a specific goal related to your intention. I'll use diet and fitness as the two goals for this example. Then you'll have to determine three things: (1) what you want, (2) when you'd like to accomplish it, and (3) how you know when you've reached your goal. Don't worry about stating things perfectly or whether they sound strange to someone else.

For diet, a specific goal may be:

"I want to eat well-balanced meals and have energy though out each day. It's a daily habit by the end of three months. I'll know I've accomplished this goal if, by the end of three months, my thought process to select appropriate meal foods has become routine and easy-to-do; an unconscious habit."

For fitness, two specific goals may be:

"In two months, I want to walk 3 miles twice a week. By the end of four months I want to walk 5 miles 3 times a week."

"In four months, I want to be more flexible: specifically feel comfortable in my yoga class, do the splits, and touch my toes."

Both of these goals -- diet and fitness -- include three factors: what you want, a time schedule, and a defined state of completion.

Clearly at the beginning you may not know what's included in a "well-balanced meal" for your body. As you start taking steps towards your dreams, you may end up adjusting specific goals as a result of the knowledge you gain. For instance, you might have initially said, I want to lose 25 pounds, but let's say in a month, you learn about body fat ratio and have measured yours. So you decide to change your goal to include percentage of body fat. Be gentle and flexible with yourself as you continue to learn more about your goal areas.

In my next article, I'll cover the last stage "how" -- what it takes to achieve your goals --your approach and support structures to help you along on your path.

Theresa J. Swift, MS, CRC, is a life and business coach, author, and president of Swift Resolve Coaching (http://www.swiftresolvecoaching.com/). She works with people who are serious about achieving their "must have" dreams and goals. Coaching expertise includes: lifestyle, transition, performance, achievement, relationship. If you've enjoyed this set of five articles, sign up for her monthly newsletter.