Life after my 40’s and 50’s certainly has had its moments of wondering if my goals were achieved or went missing somewhere along the way.

Many years of making external pursuits for your family, job, friends may have put you in a position to instinctively think ‘others first’.

If this is you then like myself, you may have asked:  What is my purpose in life?

Grab a sheet of paper or a tablet, phone or chalkboard….whatever you can to write the following down.

Let’s begin with making a list of your goals written down for you to see them. It helps to use a process to achieve your goal as it is way too easy to just talk or write about them, never to put a plan in place to use them. This is now where we will both change that!

 

For me, I have learned to just RIDE my goals !

• Reach Inside
• Identify my goals
• Develop my plan
• Execute my goal

  

• Reach inside

Give it some thought. Considering your personal values is very critical here. What would you like to achieve or change in your life? Your job, career, appearance, education, a trip perhaps or boosting your self-esteem or confidence?

Dig deep to find those things that you find are most important in the way you live or work. Was there a time you were at your happiest? Can you recall times when you were most proud? Can you think of a time that you were most satisfied with your life? Not only will they help you when it comes time to determine your goals, your personal values are most likely the measures you use to determine how your life is turning out the way you want it to.

If what you do in life and the way you act in life matches, you can bet life is pretty satisfying. But when these two things do not match and things feel a bit off, for a long period of time, this is when it becomes unsatisfying. At this point, more than anything, knowing your values is very important to the next steps below.

• Identify your goals

If it helps, I categorized my goals under headings like, family, spiritual, professional, social, financial and other. Try doing this for yourself using headings that work best for you.

Don’t be in a rush to make this list or be afraid to list anything that comes to mind and definitely don’t worry right now about prioritizing…that will come shortly. To be honest, it took about 3 days before I finally finalized my list.

Now that you have selected your list, pick 8-10 of the most important changes to you and put them down in no particular order.

Begin ranking them now in order of importance to you. Number them from 1 (being the most important) to 10 (being the least important).

At this point you must walk away. Put the list in a safe place for a few days up to a week. You will need this time to reflect and forget so you may revisit your list with a set of fresh eyes.

Now review each change on your list. Ensure you are happy and satisfied with each ranking you have made. Make any adjustments at this point to reprioritize.

When you’re a confident you have made your rankings complete, your first ranked item becomes your number one goal to achieve!

• Develop your Plan

By itself this list will not help you without your Plan in two steps.

How will I achieve my goal:

Here is where you will write your strategies to accomplish your goal. For example: If your goal is career then a strategy could be education. Do not limit your strategies. You may need more than a few to accomplish your goal.

What will I do to achieve my goal:

Here is where the detail comes in for each strategy. For example, one approach may be to identify which course(s) may help your education strategy. Another may be to check with your employer to see if they have a financial aid policy for education.

The two steps above MUST go hand in hand. Once you have completed one goal you will find each one after very easy to make a plan to stick with.

DO NOT STOP HERE. Keep moving forward. The next step is your first step to your new future !!!

• Execute your goal

Hold yourself accountable. Make a ‘mini-goal’ or a few (e.g. going to Human Resources to discuss aid options and courses).

Treat yourself after accomplishing each goal with something small but satisfying.

Hold your head high knowing that you are now on your way to growing a better you!

 

Don’t give up your dream!