Written by: Myrto Mangrioti, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
There are four reasons why so many people don't have a fulfilling life and goal-setting is not the only problem.
For starters, they're unclear about what they truly want and why. How can you be happy, excited, creative, or safe and loved, if you don't know what will make you feel this way? So, the first thing you need to do is decide what you want.
But wait! Before you do, let me tell you about the second reason. People don't dream big enough because they don't believe they can achieve this goal or are too scared to try. For now, I want you to dream big and not worry about the "How".
Ask yourself: "What is it that I truly want to be, do or have in my life?"
Write this list down.
Now that you have your list, let's move to the third reason: they don't know how to go about achieving these wants. And that's where goal-setting comes in.
Goals are your wants and dreams turned into ROADMAPS that will get you to where you wanna go in your life. But they should be written and applied correctly in order to work for you.
I use the word R.O.A.D.M.A.P.S. as an acronym for everything a goal should be… and I guarantee that if you use it, you'll start achieving your goals and creating a happier, more fulfilling life for yourself and your loved ones.
R – EASONABLE
O – RDERLY
A – CCOUNTABLE
D – EADLINE
M – EASURABLE
A – CTIONABLE
P – ERSONAL
S – PECIFIC
1. Personal
A goal must be personal.
It must be something you want. Not your wife, kids, mom, friends, society, etc. And in the same spirit, it should be your goal, not something you want for someone else, like your son, to become a chef (yes, I’m a foodie…)!
Know your "Why". Why do you want to achieve this goal and remember it because it'll help you push through the roadblocks you may find along the way.
2. Specific
A goal must be specific. Vague goals, produce vague results.
For example, if I told you my goal is to be rich, would you know what I'm talking about? Vaguely... Why? Because I'm sure being rich has a different definition for every person. What's your number? Being rich to live in Manhattan, or in the suburbs of a small city, or as part of a tribe in the Amazon rainforest is a totally different game. Or maybe for you, being rich has nothing to do with money, but it's about experiences, knowledge and feelings.
As experts say, our brain is a goal-seeking organism. It has a system called RAS (reticular activating system), which filters the millions of messages, thoughts and images we receive. Only important and relevant information to what we focus on gets through to our conscious mind. So, we must be very specific about our goals.
The more details, the better.
No: I want to go on vacation.
Yes: I want to go on vacation, with my wife, to Santorini, in Greece, at a 5-star hotel overlooking Volcano, for 7 days.
3. Measurable
Goals must be measurable.
Someone else other than you can be able to assess if you've achieved your goal or not.
No: I want to be my perfect weight
Yes: I want to be 150 Pounds
No: I want to have a good salary
Yes: I want to make $10k/month after taxes
4. Deadline
The goal must have a deadline.
By when do you want to achieve it? This is to push you to get started. If you don't have a deadline, your goal is just a dream set somewhere in the future. It'll also help you readjust your plan if you realize you'll not get there by your deadline.
Yes: I want to be 150 Pounds by midnight, December 31st, 2022
Yes: I want to go on vacation, with my wife, in Santorini, Greece, at a 5-star hotel overlooking the Volcano, for 7 days, by 30 June 2023.
5. Orderly
You need to have a clear, orderly plan of action... or at least the first things you need to do to reach your goal. As you methodically start moving towards your goal, the roadmap will get clearer.
Think of a GPS analogy. You give the coordinates to both where you are and your destination. When you start, it only shows you the first part of your journey. As you go along, and even if you take a wrong turn, the GPS recalibrates and gives you the next part of your journey until you reach your destination.
Create your orderly plan of action, get feedback and course correct if you need to.
This goes hand in hand with Actionable coming up next.
6. Actionable
It's not enough to just write your goals. You must be ready to take action in order to achieve them. Because as Jim Rohn said:
"You cannot hire someone to do your push-ups for you."
Use the ORDERLY plan you created and start taking 3 steps each day towards your goal. If you think about it, in a year, you'll have taken more than 1000 steps toward this goal! You've got this!
7. Reasonable
Your goal must be reasonable.
It must get you out of your comfort zone but not scare you or stop you in your tracks, because you don't believe it's possible to achieve it.
If you're broke and with no job, you probably shouldn't set a goal to have $1M in the bank in 12 months. You cannot expect to lose 100 pounds in 2 months or learn to play the piano like a pro in 6 months if you don't know what a musical note is.
Set realistic, smaller goals, and build upon them.
8. Accountable
Having someone to keep you accountable for your goals will help you stay on track to achieving them. It can be a coach or anyone who will cheer and support you but also, push you to take the next step when you need it. Someone who won't let you give up.
In a nutshell:
Dream big but start with something reasonable, something you can achieve with some effort. Create your ROADMAPS and start using them to get to where you wanna be.
Last but not least (reason number four), to have a fulfilling life, you must enjoy the journey. This is the key that lets you know you've picked the right goal to pursue! Be present and appreciate the small things in life. Celebrate the victories, learn from the failures and readjust your course. Love the ride, have fun along the way, and don't wait to be happy when you arrive at your destination.
Myrto Mangrioti, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Myrto Mangrioti believes life is a learning playground that shouldn't be taken too seriously. Struggling with her "good girl" attitude all her life, she found peace by embracing it. That’s when she founded Loving Living to pursue her passion for helping people awaken to their true selves, enjoying their lives to the fullest by living in the present moment. Myrto is a certified Deep Coach, a Canfield Success Principles & Methodology Certified Trainer, and a No.1 International Best-Selling Amazon Author. Early morning, you can find her at the beach. She's vegan and loves nature. Meditation, yoga, music and cooking inspire and ground her. She lives by one word: EMBRACE… yourself, your life, the present moment.
