What’s the Difference Between Enabling, Short-, Medium- and Long-Term Goal-Setting?

When you wake up, think about winning the day.

Don’t worry about a week or a month from now —

just think about one day at a time.

If you are worried about the mountain in the distance,

you might trip over the molehill right in front of you.

Win the day!

Drew Brees

The most effective way to achieve important goals in your life is to break your larger goals up into smaller ones. Long-term, medium-term, and short-term goals are all necessary in a successful goal setting strategy.

Using enabling goals, or supporting goals, will help ensure that you are consistently taking steps toward achieving the life you desire.

Enabling Goals

The best way to get where you want to go is with a mix of short, medium, and long-term goals. Each has different benefits and can launch you forward toward the end result that you are seeking. What ties all of this together is the enabling goals. These are goals that are formulated as stepping-stones for medium and long-term goals.

Here is a step-by-step goal setting strategy to bring your dreams to life:

1. Set your long-term goals first. What do you want to achieve in the next few years? These are broad goals that will take some time to achieve. This includes things like buying a home, graduating from college, or starting your own business. Your long-term goals are the bedrock for goal setting as they define where you want to be in the future.

• Long-term goals should be obtainable within a set number of years. Try to give your goals a specific time frame, such as buying a home in five years or graduating from college with a PhD degree in eight.

2. Set your medium term goals up next. Let these act as large stepping-stones to help you achieve your goals. For example, if your goal is to obtain an M.D. degree (medical doctor), then a medium-term goal would be to achieve your Bachelor’s degree in a related subject, since this is a reasonable goal between where you stand right now and the ultimate goal you hope to achieve.

• Medium term goals should also be made with specific time frames in mind. These will keep you moving forward, ensuring that you are always working toward your long-term goals and aspirations.

3. Finally, focus on your short-term goals. These are the goals that you can achieve more readily. Set short-term goals for each semester, for example. Or start with setting a goal to apply for financial aid, a goal to enroll in classes, and a goal to meet with an academic counselor so that you can outline your education plan. These goals guide you toward your ultimate goal.

• Short-term goals can be anything you want them to be, but they should be enabling goals. This means that they should be small, but definite, steps toward your desired end result.

Be S.M.A.R.T.

Follow the SMART goal setting strategy for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely short-term goals that you know you can achieve.

Long-term goals tend to be the most meaningful and important, which is why they take so much time to achieve. But you should not only focus your attention on the big picture goals, when it is medium and short-term goals that will allow you to get there. Focus on all three types of goals when planning for your future.

The more time you take to plan out your goals, the better the results are likely to be. Planning and forethought can go a long way in helping you achieve what you really desire in your life.

Photo Credit: HikingArtist.com via Compfight cc

via Business 2 Community http://ift.tt/1kG3XmO