Motivation and Goal Setting Go Together Like...

Motivation and goal setting go together like cookies and milk, chicken and rice, or foxes and hounds. What a minute, I think that last one isn't quite right. Seriously, staying motivated is tough enough, but without setting goals, your success is far less likely to be realized.

When I talk about goals, I'm talking about more than just wishing you were wealthy, or dreaming about pursuing your dream of being a writer. I'm talking about solid, achievable milestones that you can set for yourself. I'm talking about making a plan to achieve measurable results.

What Goals are Not

That's not what goals are about. It's also not about just making a New Year's resolution, or even wanting to be thin, or better off financially.

Goals aren't dreams, and they're not even objectives. The thing about motivation and goal setting, or should I say the lack of motivation, is that most people don't have any idea what a goal is. You can think to yourself that you're going to have everything you wished for by next year, but it won't happen unless you plan and take action. Goals are a key part of that planning.

Tony Robbins says that people tend to have goals that don't inspire them. I take that one step further and say that people don't even understand how to set goals.

This misunderstanding leads to disappointment and frustration. This is why we say that motivation and goal setting go together. The better you define your goals, the better you can track your success, and the more likely you are to have positive results. Positive results will lead to more motivation, and round and round it goes. This is the upward spiral you want to create.

What Goals Are

Here's how the qualities of a goal break down

• Specific -- If your goal is too general, it won't have focus. It will also be difficult to measure, and have less impact. Your goal, therefore, should be specific, and be phrased as though it will happen. For example, if we take weight loss, instead of saying I want to be thin, you'd say I will lose 10 lbs.

• Measurable -- A measurable goal is a good goal, I always say. Ok, maybe I've never said that, but I could. In the weight loss example, if you just say I want to lose weight, that's not enough. You have to be able to measure success. So, pick a number and that's that. The bottom line here is that if you can't measure it, then how do you know how well you're doing, and what to do to change the results? You don't.

• Attainable -- You should aim high. But aiming too high is not going to help you. Why? Well, if you're trying to lose 50 lbs. by next week, that's probably not going to happen. Your motivation, and your results, will be better served by setting a goal of losing 5 lbs. per week until you've reached the 50 lb. mark.

• Realistic -- Just because you can achieve something doesn't mean that you should. Just look at all the Steven Seagal movies. You have to do a reality check. It can be difficult to envision how a goal could be attainable but not realistic, so let's try a few examples to make it clearer.

  Let's say that you want to spend a month in a foreign country. That might be attainable, but if it means you're going to lose your job, you might want to rethink things. If you want to gain 50 lbs. of muscle, but it means taking steroids, you might want to rethink that one as well. Instead of cutting out all sugar all at once, do it gradually. Oh, and I happen to like Steven Seagal movies.

• Time bound -- Time bound, or timely, as it's referred to, is pretty straight forward. In our weight loss example, I will lose 10 lbs. becomes I will lose 10 lbs. by February 1. More examples would be I will write 3 pages for my book each week, I will walk 5 miles every day, and so on.