Setting your goals for 2014

Those who know me are aware that I love setting goals.  With the proper focus on the right goals one can achieve far more than most believe is possible.  Without goals one is doomed to drift from one thing to the next hopeful that in the process something good will happen.  In his book Goals!: How to Get Everything You Want -- Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible Brian Tracy recommends that we do three things:  write down our goals; make plans to achieve those goals; and work on those goals every day.  This is a great strategy and one I try to follow.  The first two recommendations I have done for years.  Working on the goals every day is sometimes a challenge, but I have found that the more days I spend focused on the goals the more likely they are to be fulfilled.  That doesn't mean that the entire day is spent only on one or two goals, but it does mean that every day something is specifically done that will help make that goal a reality.

I have found that the week between Christmas and New Year's is a great time for me to focus on goal setting for the coming year.  Most of the churches I serve take a break during that week so there's usually little demand for my time which allows me to spend some time thinking about what I need to address in the coming year.  During my years as a pastor I usually found this same week to be a great time for goal setting.  If you haven't already set your 2014 goals you may want to take that week to work on those goals.

Your goals should include every aspect of your life.  You should have goals for your family life, your career, your ministry, your own self-care, and your relationship with God.  By writing down goals in each of these five areas you will find it easier to keep your life in the proper balance.  Without written goals in each area it will be easy to ignore the areas that are without goals.  Don't overdo it!  A couple of goals in each area is plenty.  That means you need not have more than 10 goals that you will pursue in the coming year.  People who set more goals than that often end up not achieving many of their goals leaving them frustrated.

Each goal should be SMART.  S - Specific, M - Measurable, A - Attainable, R - Realistic, and T - time defined.  When you write out your goal make sure it includes each of the elements.  You want goals that will stretch you but are attainable.  If they are not specific, measurable, and time-defined you won't be able to know whether or not you've reached them.  Take the time to ensure that each of your goals are SMART goals, and at the end of the year it will be easy to determine whether or not you've achieved them.

One of the exciting things I've learned over the years is that one need only spend a small amount of time each day specifically addressing the goals in order to achieve them.  Allyson Lewis explains in her book The Seven Minute Difference: Small Steps to Big Changes that taking small steps each day will enable one to make a big difference in his or her life.  What might happen if you read only 10 pages of a book a day, or got up 15 minutes earlier to do your devotions, or make just one more call to a recent guest at your church?  It is in those small daily habits that the seeds are sown that lead to success.

Do you want to see your church grow in 2014?  Set a SMART goal and develop an action plan to make that happen.  Do you want your family to enjoy a special experience next year?  Set your goal and make it happen.  Do you want to grow in some area of your personal or professional life?  With a SMART goal and an action plan it can happen.  Are you ready to get control of your finances?  You can do it.  Now is the time to set your 2014 goals.