Written by contributing blogger, Daniela Forte. 

Let me preface this blog post by saying I am not a goal-oriented person. Never have been, but this year it’s different. At least it feels that way.

I recently came back from a trip to Norway and Sweden and for the first time it opened my eyes to a world beyond the borders of the U.S. It was my first time traveling outside of the country and so of course it was definitely a memorable experience.

It immediately had me setting one goal, to pay off any debt I may owe to credit cards and people in my life, simply because I want to travel again. My next trip? Italy.

But first, I must get my ducks in a row, so I have set a goal to pay off my debt in a year, my mother would be so proud as she is a very goal-oriented person. However, I am not putting tremendous pressure on myself, because if I start to do that I may not achieve it. I will pay what I can and find ways to make this a possibility.

What going to Norway and Sweden taught me was that anything is possible if you want to make it happen. I wanted to make Norway and Sweden possible, so I did. I didn’t allow myself to get bogged down by money issues. I knew that I would figure it out like anything else in life.

So what do you need to know about setting goals? Well, while I am not an expert … I can certainly tell you a lot about wishes and dreams, but I won’t.   What I can tell you is this:

Don’t aim too high or beyond your reach: Do what you can with the goal you have set, take baby steps in the right direction. If you want to lose weight but aren’t ready to join a gym, do exercises around your house, take a walk or a light jog. You are the only person who knows what you can and cannot achieve.

Set a Target End Date: Set a date to achieve this goal. Make it realistic. Like I said above, I am giving myself a year. Why? I plan to go to Italy in 2018. So my goal is to pay it off by then.

Don’t set too Many Goals: You will easily get overwhelmed and end up not achieving any of them. Instead, make a list of goals you definitely want and need to achieve and ones you know can wait. Don’t try to do too much at once.

Reward Yourself: When you have completed your goal, whether it is weight loss or something else, reward yourself. The reward can be anything that makes you happy about a job well done from a manicure to a night out iwth the girls.

Tell Others: Tell others about your goal. They may be great sources to help you achieve it in a quicker time frame than you might have expected and be a support system.

Don’t Beat Yourself Up: You will have setbacks, like anything in life. When the setback occurs, don’t allow it make you quit, let it allow you to push harder. You can do it.

Create a Vision Board: Like said my mother is a big goal-oriented person, and she has a vision board about the goals she wants to achieve in her life. Creating a vision board is easy, all you need is a poster board (preferably one that stands) and start going through magazines or your favorite quotes and look for things that remind you of the goals you hope to achieve. What it also does, is set the intention out into the universe. You will be surprised how much you can achieve without realizing it.

#radiatedaily

image source: pixabay