Let’s talk about goal setting. No, it’s not always the most exciting topic, but it is critical to your success. After all, a life without goals is like trying to drive to a destination you’ve never been to before without a road map. Is it possible to still reach your destination? Maybe. But I can tell you that your journey will be a lot harder if you don’t have a plan—that’s where goals come in! 

Not only is it important to set goals, but it’s important to set intentional goals. That means putting thought behind each and every goal you set. How is this going to get you closer to success? What is the purpose behind what you’re doing? I’m here to show you how to set intentional goals you’ll follow through with every time. 

Make it personal.

It’s not enough to just set a goal and hope for the best. You must have a solid reason behind why this goal really matters to you if you want to achieve it. For example, let’s say you have a goal of starting a successful ice cream business. This goal might be important to you because you want to provide an incredible life for your family, or maybe you’re just really passionate about ice cream (#same). Defining your “why” makes the goal personal to you. It gives you a reason to stay motivated and keep going after your goals, even when you’d rather call it quits.  

Write it down … and don’t forget about it.

People always talk about the importance of writing down your goals, but they don’t often tell you what to do with them from here. It’s not enough to write them on a scrap piece of paper or tuck them away in a journal that you’ll eventually lose track of. My challenge for you is to place those written goals somewhere you can actually see them. Maybe that means sticking them on your mirror or on the magnet board above your desk. The idea is that when you feel yourself losing inspiration, those goals are easily accessible to you. So, choose a spot where you’ll look at them every day (you could even create a vision board)!

Take baby steps.

Let’s say you set an intention of running 5 miles every day. Is this a good goal? Sure. But if you’ve never run a single mile in your life, it might be best to start with something more realistic. Try challenging yourself to run a mile and tack on more distance over time. I’m not here to discourage your initial 5-mile goal, but I am here to help you realize the importance of the baby steps that will eventually lead you to your big goals! Think of these small goals as critical checkpoints on your roadmap to success. (Check out this post to learn more about the power of small goals.) 

Be your own competition.

It’s so easy to get caught up in what everyone else is doing. You think you’re making great progress toward your goals when you notice someone else moving 10 times faster toward theirs. All of a sudden, you worry you’re not doing as well as you thought. Stop for a moment and consider this: What are you gaining by paying so much attention to someone else’s success? Nothing. If anything, it’s just causing you to lose sight of your own goals, and that’s definitely not productive. If you’re looking for a little healthy competition, compete against yourself. You’ll become your own motivation when you’re just trying to beat the you that you were yesterday. 

Long story, short: We all need goals. They give us something to strive for … something that gets us out of bed every morning. They can make the difference between staying motivated and losing your inspiration entirely. Your goals are the gateway to your dreams—set them with intention, then go make them happen! 

Goals are easier to achieve when you’ve made the decision to simplify your life and focus on what’s truly important. I shared my best tips to help you out in this post.