Goal Planning

Goal Planning

Have you ever felt like you’re sleepwalking into your life without having any idea of what exactly you want? Or maybe you know what you aspire to achieve, but have no plan on how to reach there or don’t know how to reach your goals.

That’s where goal setting enters in. Goals are the initial step towards mapping your future and plays a significant part in the development of skills in several facets of life, from work to relations and everything that comes within. These goals are the target at which we aim with our proverbial arrow.

Types of Goals :

• Short Term Goals: The goals or things that you want to do in the near or coming future. The near future can be a week, a month, or a year. The short term goals are the stepping stones with the direct purpose of reaching long term or lifetime goals.
• Long-Term Goals: These are the workhorse goals that require specific time limit set on them: usually 5 to 10-years.Typically, most of the people overestimate their accomplishments with short term goals but underestimate the possibilities of long term goals.
• Lifetime Goals: The ultimate goals that would take anywhere from 10 years to your life to accomplish.The best method to plan out your life goals is to imagine a future version of yourself, what would you like to become. What has your future version accomplished? Are you content with the things your future self have? What have you achieved?

By thinking about a future version of yourself in this light and doing personal goal setting, you analyze your goals. These goals are central to being you that helps in transforming you as a person. A few common personal goals entail losing weight, scoring good grades, and saving money. If we fail to achieve any of these goals, it can lead to stress, anxiety, depression or substance abuse.

How to set career goals?

Set SMART goals to move forward in your career and make long term career goals and short term career goals. SMART is a popular acronym that encourages you to write realistic goals.

1. Specific – Aim for a precise, actual area to achieve your goal.
2. Measurable – Find out if your goal is measurable.
3. Attainable – Chalk out clear steps and allocate enough time to accomplish challenging yet achievable goals.
4. Relevant – Create proper career development goals that signifies you.
5. Timely - Set your goals within a defined time period to give clarity and gravity to your actions towards it.

Setting goals can be a challenging task. Here our experienced counselors can help you gain insight providing you a non-threatening and non-judgemental environment where you can easily express yourself and plan a successful career.

Whether you’ve been working as a professional for many years or are just commencing your career, you can face a time when you feel like stuck. If you’re not moving ahead at the expected rate, it’s natural to become frustrated, discouraged, and feel stressed. Knowing how to set professional goals can help you get through it easily, ensuring your growth.

Resources

National Alliance on Mental Illness
www.nami.org/Find-Support (800) 950-NAMI