How To Set Personal and Professional Goals for Self Development in 2019

We are fast approaching not only a new year but a whole new decade! If you’re not someone who usually sets goals for the new year, perhaps this is the year you’ll make an exception!

Setting goals for the coming year doesn’t need to be about fluffy resolutions to lose 10 pounds or take up a hobby that you will never stick to. These can be realistic and valuable goals for both your personal and professional life which can help to bring you closer to the life you want to live.

Of course, goal setting can be done at any time of year but the beginning of a new year, marking the passage of time, is a great time for starting your self-development journey. Let’s take a look at the best ways to set realistic goals for self-development in 2020.

Think About the Things That are Most Important to You

I try to work out what your goals for next year should be, start by thinking about the things that are most important to you. What aspects of your personal or professional life do you value the most? Finding the goals which you most value is critical for being able to keep motivated to achieve them. Your goals should be directly linked to the big picture items which you most want to achieve in your life. Think about your life’s top priorities: these could be related to a specific career direction, finding a new job or finding purpose in your career, to your health, your finances or relationships. Start with these broader areas and then narrow down to goals for 2020. By having goals that are linked to the areas which are most important you, you will be driven to achieve them. Furthermore, as the things which are most important to you, these are the areas you should be focusing on.

Have a Balance Between Realistic and Ambitious

One of the most important things when it comes to setting goals is the balance between being ambitious and being realistic. It is important to be ambitious to some extent: you need to have something to strive for. You don’t want to limit yourself by setting your sights too low, so you should be reasonably ambitious in the goals you set. On the other hand, you want to be realistic, and set goals that are obtainable. If you set goals that are too far beyond your reach it is easy to become discouraged and give up. The best way, therefore, is to strike a balance between being ambitious and being realistic.

Be Specific in Your Goals

Another important factor is to be as specific as possible in your goals. For example, rather than saying “eat more healthy”, your goal should be to eat 5 serves of vegetables every day or to cut out saturated fat. This means you should take the time to set real, formal goals and set specific targets for each. This helps to keep you accountable and keep you on track because you have very specific objectives that you need to stick to. Having timelines on your goals is also important for similar reasons. Without a set deadline, your efforts could drag on indefinitely. Of course, you should make sure these targets are a good balance between realistic and ambitious.

Write Your Goals Down

Once you have set your goals, make sure to write them down. Whether on a piece of paper, on your computer or simply as a note on your smartphone, having a written record of your goals will formalize them. This will also help to keep you accountable to your goals and allow you to check back on the targets you have set. Written goals don’t lie!

Tell People About Your Goals

As we’ve already implied in this article, one of the big things about goals is accountability. Being held accountable greatly increases the chances of continuing to work towards your goals, and therefore ultimately to achieving them. In turn, one of the most effective ways to be kept accountable is to have others involved. For this reason, it is important to tell other people about your goals. Talk to your partner, friends, family members and colleagues: tell them about the goals you have for your year in 2020. This is not to say they necessarily have to monitor you and keep you on track, but just having others involved will motivate you to keep going, so that you can report back your wins and don’t have to admit falling short. Furthermore, once you say something out loud to someone, it makes it seem more real!