Everyone has dreams and aspirations that they would like to achieve, but more often than not, they are ideas which seem a lot more attainable in theory than in practice. Whether you dream of living the high life in luxury, of pursuing your dream job as a writer or an actor, or of raising the family you’ve always wanted, it is something which can be achieved if you can put the right actions into practice. Realistically, you can’t just wait for luck or chance to make things happen for you: so if you are wanting to find a way to achieve all of your desires in life, then here are a few tips which you might find will help you on your journey to success.
Set clear goals
You can’t get what you want from life if you aren’t sure exactly what it is that you want; therefore, the first step is to define exactly what it is that you’d like to achieve. The more specific your goals are, the more achievable they will be, as then it will be clear what steps you need to take to get where you would like to go. For example, there is no point just stating that you would ‘like to be wealthy’: what constitutes wealth to you? How much money would you be happy to earn? Would you be happy in any line of work if it earnt you enough, or do you have a specific job in mind? You should also ask yourself why it is that you have this goal in mind, as you might find that your motives are different to what you might have thought, leading you to alter your end goals so that they are more appropriate.
Once you know exactly what your end, or long-term, goals are, you can then turn your attention to your short-term goals. These are milestones which will help you to reach your end goal, and as such, are just as important as your long-term goals. Staying with the idea of earning more money, your short-term goals might be to get a better paying job, or to save a certain amount of money each month.
Recognize your strengths and weaknesses
Firstly, you need to better understand where your strengths lie, as you can capitalize on these to help you reach success. Spend some time writing down all of your strengths, including: your physical attributes, your intellectual and emotional quotient, any specific skills you have, such as good communication or problem-solving attributes, and life experience. Utilize all of your potential, along with any resources at your disposal, and contacts within your network, to help you achieve your goals.
Similarly, it is also important that you identify what your weaknesses are, so that you can work on them and increase your chances of success. It is never too late in life to work on yourself, so once you have listed all of your weaker qualities, you can then spend time working on them individually, so that they pose less of a problem for you. Even if you don’t manage to improve on your weaknesses, just being aware of them will enable you to avoid situations where these could cause problems. For example, if you aren’t well adept at making good phone conversation, then you can try and keep all of your communications to written or face to face communication.
Be committed
Achieving your dreams is not something that just happens overnight, and the road is not likely to always be easy. You will achieve a lot, and on the days when everything is turning out just as you had planned, it will make your dreams seem achievable, and keep you on track. However, you are likely to experience setbacks along the way, ranging from minor pitfalls such as an unexpected bill to larger issues such as experiences life changes (e.g., losing your job, or changes in your relationship). In these instances, it will be more difficult to persevere, but you have to keep your goals in mind, and remind yourself that it will all be worthwhile in the end. While you will have good days and bad days, you should try and be as consistent in your dedication as you can, as this will help you reach your goals in the shortest time possible.
Manage your finances
It is important to be disciplined if you want to reach your end goal, and this applies to your finances. If you have a lot of expenses in your life, such as those which come from owning a home or raising a family, it can be difficult to be strict with your money. However, frivolous spending could well be your downfall, so you may want to get some financial planning advice, such as from the FamilyVest, fiduciary.
Create a personal plan
Your personal plan will be your step by step guide to getting where you want to be. Put pen to paper, and write down everything which you feel is of importance on your journey to reach your goals: this could be anything from half-formed ideas you may have, to a prioritized list of tasks, or a checklist of the progress that you have made to keep up your motivation. You may find it helpful to enlist your friends and family, and keep them updated with your personal plan, as this will add extra motivation to live up to the expectations you have created.
Be a lifelong learner
Learning doesn’t stop when you leave college, and you can always benefit from being open to education throughout your life. The more you learn, and the more life experience you gain, the more of a well-rounded person you will become. Being a more knowledgeable person will help you to reach your goals, so you should always look out for new opportunities. Learning can come through taking classes, reading up on new topics, or just going out into the world and exploring new cultures and interacting with a wide range of individuals.
Find enjoyment
If you view your journey as more of a chore, rather than a learning experience, then you are not going to enjoy yourself. You may think that this is not an important point, however, if you are appreciative of each stage in your bid to reach your goals, then you are likely to stay motivated for longer. You will also benefit from surrounding yourself with positive people, as these are the people who will be a good influence on you, and inspire you to stay on track. Anyone who undermines your or your goals is not going to be conducive to a successful atmosphere.
Emotional development
Emotional development in this instance, means creating the right mental state in order to cope with the everyday stresses and challenges that life throws at you, and working on yourself internally. This means that you should work through any long-standing issues which might have been holding you back from your full potential, and this is something which could be explored through talking to others, or finding new coping strategies. Examples of coping strategies would be something such as meditation, or having an expressive outlet for your thoughts and emotions.
Be creative
Don’t be put off if your plans do not always go as expected: instead, take a creative mindset, and make the most of each situation as it is presented to you. Creativity is often the best way to find solutions to any problems which might come your way, and out of the box thinking can help you find your way around any obstacles which you might face. See changes to your plans as a possibility for new opportunities, and make the most of every new experience. Use your intuition to navigate difficult circumstances, rather than just relying on logic, and consider that ‘going with the flow’ could be a more lucrative option than being set in your ways.
Be open minded
Sometimes, no matter how hard you work, you may not be able to reach your initial goal. However, that doesn’t mean that the direction you are heading in isn’t the right one for you! You may find that, though you started down one path with a goal in mind, along the way you find yourself going in a completely different direction: and more often than not, you will discover that your new goals are just as good, if not better, than your original ones.
For example, using the goal of becoming a parent, it might turn out that having a child through natural conception isn’t the right option for you, and instead you might choose to adopt. Though this might not be what you had originally planned, once you adopt your child, you are likely to feel that you couldn’t imagine being a parent to anyone else. This is a perfect example of how be open-minded to alternative options can bring even better results than you could have expected.