How to Achieve Your Goals in 5 Simple Steps

If you want to achieve your goals this year, you’ll want to follow my 5-step process that’s simple but surprisingly effective.

You see, I always had good intentions. But every year I’d make New Year’s resolutions, only to forget them by the end of January. Or maybe I got past the first couple of months but then, wham! Life happened.

So, I stopped. Completely. No more resolutions for me.

And for a while I was okay with that. But I knew I needed something more. Something to guide me. Something to help me focus in a way that would bring structure and meaning to my year. And I found just the thing. That’s what I’m sharing with you today to help you achieve your goals.

Now that we’re at the time of year when goal-setting and resolutions kick into high gear, this is the perfect time to share with you my alternative to New Year’s resolutions to help you achieve your goals.

This is the path that led me to a more meaningful, power-packed year. These tips will empower you to create your vision for your year and make it crystal clear. And of course, the clearer the vision, the more confident you’ll be in working towards it. So, if you’re ready for a year of meaning, impact and abundance, read on.

5 Super Simple Steps to Achieve Your Goals

These five tips will help you set clear goals, make them stick and ensure that you enjoy the journey.

1. Pray

It’s my firm belief that God has a plan and a purpose for each one of us. I’ve learned the hard way what it feels like to live outside of God’s plan and I certainly don’t want to go down that road again. More than anything though, I know that God’s plan for me is good. So, as I make plans for the year the first thing I do is seek God’s will. I approach Him in prayer, fully expecting that He will lead and guide me. And He always does.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

~ Ephesians 2:10

So, without a doubt, prayer is the first place to start if you want to achieve your goals and have a powerful, Spirit-filled year.

2. Choose One Word

Rather than create a long list of things I want to do for the year or promises that I can’t keep, this is what I do instead. I choose one word that will sum up what I want to focus on, the person I want to be or how I want to live. Think of this one word as your theme for the year.

And again, I highly recommend committing this process to prayer. Ask God where He’s leading you and what He wishes to show you. Ask Him to give you your word for the year that will help you achieve your goals. Pray, pay attention and listen.

It’s usually during one of my intentional goal-setting prayer times that God gives me focus and clarity – and my word for the year.

I love having a word for the year to meditate on and guide me throughout the year. One year my word was ENOUGH and God showed up time and time again to remind me that He is enough for me.

3. Set Goals

Now, this is the real meat of the matter. And believe me, goal-setting really isn’t as painful as we make it out to be, unless of course you’re trying to go it alone. But when God is at the helm, you’ve prayed through His will for you and sought His direction – what a difference it makes! You can then step into your year with a sure foundation.

When setting goals, you’ll want to be sure that they are SMART so that it’s more likely you’ll achieve your goals. SMART goals are:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Realistic; and
• Time-bound.

4. Envision it

Part of my goal-setting process for the past several years involved creating a vision board and this is like my secret weapon. A vision board is a powerful tool to keep you inspired throughout the year. One glance at your vision board brings to mind the future you’re looking forward to and it motivates you to keep going.

To create my vision board, I focus on my roles and relationships and I try to imagine what I’d like to see in these areas of my life in the upcoming year. I pay special attention to my relationship with God, my husband, my children, my family and friends, and those who don’t yet know Jesus.

One year I chose the word FULL as my one word. My theme scripture became John 10:10 which reminds me that Jesus came (and died) in order that I might have life to the full. My vision board became a tangible reminder of the FULL life that God wants me to have, with the word FULL appearing in several places, in different fonts throughout my vision board. That one word transformed my year and gave me a whole new perspective.

5. Live it

Once you’ve set your goals and created your vision board, it’s time to put those plans and goals into action. This is the time to live them out. To help keep me on track I created the Spark Success Goals Planner to document my goals and measure my progress month by month. You can add your goals to a regular calendar and make time to review them regularly.

Check in ever so often to see how you’re doing. Ask yourself if you’re satisfied with the direction you’re going in and if not, adjust course.

Of course, as you live out your goals, remember to have fun. Life, after all, is meant to be lived fully.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. 

~ John 10:10

Also remember to add grace. They’re called goals for a reason and by the very nature of the word, goals are something we’re always striving for. Should you fall short, grace abounds.

So, there you have it. Five steps to achieve your goals and help you craft a powerful vision.

I’d love to know if any of these tips helped or if they’re others you would add to the list.

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How’s your progress?

If you’re working toward your goals and you’re not sure of your next steps or you just want the confidence in knowing you’re on the right track, take my free THRIVE assessment here.