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Setting Goals

            After identifying and dealing with excuses, the next step is determining your goals as a part of determining who you are. Part of the process is setting up a path for your career. It is something that is important for everyone wanting to get ahead in life and can help reduce barriers from developing later, such as being not making enough money and not being able to earn more without going back to get a second degree. Unfortunately, it is something that few people actually do.

Much of the reason for this is that few people take the time to consider what they want in life, job or career. It is important to set goals to help achieve success in all three since they are interrelated. Goals help guide people to achieve their desires and dreams.

            Living in the Nashville and Middle Tennessee gives you opportunities that you would not have if you lived elsewhere. But opportunities are a waste if you don’t know what you want and can’t set goals to help you obtain them.

            Find the time and sit and write down the things you want out of life. Do you want a family, a car, a house, a college education, lots of money or enough money to be comfortable?

            Focus on what you want, not what someone else wants for you. Well-meaning friends and family members don’t really know what you are totally about. However, they can offer some general guidance, so listen. 

            After establishing what you want, it is necessary to go through a goal setting process to set up a path to obtain what you want.

            Before determining your goals, you need to go through a process of finding your intrinsic values, motivation along with your strengths and weaknesses. These factors will influence your goals. 

VALUES

            The first step to take is to determine your values. Do you want to help others or is it more important to have status? Are social causes important to your self-perception? Do you want to be involved in the political process and change the world?

            The employer you work for should not be contrary to your own values nor should your occupation. There are many values to consider when choosing a career. Selecting your important values should help determine your employer and career path. The following are some values that should be considered for their importance during your search for the right job and career. What they mean to you may vary from they mean to another and some will be more important to you than others.

 

            Helping society                               Constantly being busy

            Helping individuals                           Free time

            Helping the environment                   Security

            Power                                             Creativeness

            Influence of others                            Artistry

            Wealth                                            Developing new things

            Status                                             Teaching

            Competitiveness                               Location of work (amenities)

            Individualism                                     Community involvement

            Contact with people                           Recognition

            Working on a team                            Variety

            Seeking knowledge                            Friendship

            Developing new things                        Family

            Independence                                    Stability

 

            Your values do not have to be totally in agreement with your job. However, the closer they correlate the better the chance you will be content with what you are doing along with the likelihood of being motivated to perform your duties day-to-day. Plus, your values will influence your motivation.                      

MOTIVATION

            Second, discover what motivates you. Is it money? Is it recognition by others of your achievements? Is it the applause of an audience or something else?

            Most people are motivated by a combination of the amount of money they want to earn along with their most important values mixed in with what they like to do.

            Innate qualities and characteristics in a person are what make them unique, and when combined with past experiences, influence motivation.

            Learning what motivates is important to determining your desire to perform a job well. It can be the difference in wanting to get up every morning and going to work or dreading to have to get out of bed and spend another day in misery.

            Being in a position that provides motivation will impact your entire life. When you are motivated it is apparent to others and is especially important in job interviews and on the job. Not being motivated is even more apparent. Lack of desire can only be hidden so long from those around you.

            When hiring managers and supervisors see the desire to perform, they are more likely to hire or promote that person.

STRENGTH AND WEAKNESSES

            Now, evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Are you good in math? Are you a good speaker? Are you a good writer? Do you like details? Do you have a mechanical aptitude? Do you like working with people? Are you athletic?

            The following are some basic characteristics that are strengths and weaknesses needed in the workforce. Review them, sort them out and consider any others you feel should be added. Then ask yourself, “Are you good at it or not good at it?”

           

            Reading                                               Follow through

            Writing                                                Imagination

            Math                                                   Creativeness

            Working with your hands                      Able to meet deadlines

            Analysis                                              Detailed oriented

            Problem solving                                   Diplomatic

            Negotiation                                          Friendly

            Innovation                                            Accurate

            Persuasion                                           Persistent

            Selling                                                 Enthusiastic

            Planning                                               Like to tackle new things

            Leadership                                           Public speaking

            Decision making                                   Patient  

            Organized                                            Cooperativeness

            Flexibility                                             Optimistic

            Teaching                                              Sociability 

            Technical (consider categories)              Team player   

            Mechanical ability                                 Ability to handle stress

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            People tend to be motivated by things they are good at or have a chance of being good at doing. So, the next step is to determine what you actually like to do. You may be good at something, but it is not what you like. You must differentiate between what you are good at and what you like to do.

            Consider what you have enjoyed doing most in the past. Did you like working with numbers? Did you like writing? What type of writing? Did you like chemistry lab? Do you like interacting with people? Did you like being creative?

            You should have more than one thing you enjoy. Once have determined what they are, try and rank them and develop a profile of yourself.

            Now consider the type of jobs and careers are available and attainable by you. Which ones fit you profile? Which ones appeal to you the most?

            It is likely your profile will fit more than one profession suggesting more than one career path.

            Are you presently already in one of these professions? If you are employed in one and unhappy it could be because of your employer or your supervisor, not that you are in the wrong occupation. Maybe it is time to find another employer or at least switch to another department or location.

            If you are not in one of your determined professions, consider making a change. 

GOAL SETTING 

          After sifting through all of these factors and establishing a personal profile of what you are about, it is time to establish your goals, not only in your career, but in life. Be realistic.

            Goals can include the level of education you want to obtain. They can also include a certain occupation you want to perform or a specific job in your chosen field. The amounts of savings you want to set-aside by a specific time may be a goal. Owning a home by a certain age may be another. The career you select, itself a goal, will influence many of your life goals.

            To obtain your ultimate goal of a career you will need to develop a path of smaller goals such as being accepted at a certain college, graduating with a certain degree, obtaining an internship or obtaining a job with a certain company. Within these goals are sub-goals. A sub-goal may be taking and passing a specific course of study, maintaining a certain grade point average or working a summer job to help pay for school expenses.

            Benefits of goal setting may not always be obvious. They can improve your self-image. The act of mentally considering possibilities may open up new avenues of direction. They can add dimension to self. They can help develop more self-awareness and your true potential.

            Goal setting can be empowering. It can enable you to build a wonderful life rather than just make a living.

            Setting goals helps you focus your time and energy. Without them you may wander about aimlessly. Goals can help you find meaning in life.

            And if you are one of those lucky few with vision and can truly see what your actions can deliver, there may be no limit to what you can achieve.

            When you hit bumps along the path that confuse you (you will hit these bumps), having clearly defined goals can help place you back on track. Without them you may become lost and begin wandering. Don’t let situations take control of you. Take control of situations.

            But remember goals are not static.

            During your life your desires, dreams, values, and motivation will change, maybe even your strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes they will be influenced by events, sometimes positive and sometimes negative. This means a review process should take place at certain opportunistic times to reflect change and to develop new goals.

            For example, you may be offered a position in a new growth industry you knew nothing about in your younger years. It may be in a part of the country or overseas away from your family and friends. The new job can make you rich, but potentially lonely. Reviewing your goals at a time like this is apropos and making an adjustment can have positive and negative consequences at the same time.

            Only you really now what you want out of life and only you can set your goals and achieve them. How flexible you are is based on life experiences, opportunities (good and bad), how you perceive them and how you react.