Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Examine the purpose more closely
• Part 2 of 2: Achieving your goal
• Tips

Not every goal in our life takes months or years of work. There are also goals that need to be achieved in a much shorter time frame - sometimes you only have a few weeks, days or even hours. These goals can be extremely important, they are often part of a process of achieving a greater goal. Short-term goals are generally simpler than long-term goals, but they can be challenging to achieve. Staying focused and aware of the time you have is crucial to achieving short-term goals.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Examine the purpose more closely

1. Make sure the goal is specific. For any goal you have in mind, it is important that it is specific and clearly defined. The time you have for the work you have to do to achieve the short-term goals is shorter, so it's important to avoid any confusion about the goal. Confusion can lead to delay and will also have a negative effect on your motivation.
   • Imagine you are writing a book. To make the process manageable, you decide to divide the whole into several short-term goals. You hope to achieve these goals in multiple periods of one month. For example, the short-term goal for the first month could be “start writing the book”. But that is not exactly formulated specifically. A better formulated goal is, for example: “write a first draft version of the first chapter this month”. This goal has been formulated a lot more clearly and shows exactly what you want to achieve.
2. Make sure the goal is realistic. It is important to set goals that you can actually achieve in the time available. Failing to do so will have a discouraging effect, which could eventually lead you to give up early on when you want to achieve future goals.
   • Our brains thrive in achieving success. Setting achievable goals and acting decisively will create the motivation needed to achieve the next goal. Setting an unattainable goal within the time frame you have in mind will have the opposite effect.
   • Referring to the example of writing a book described above, you are unlikely to have the goal of completing the first six chapters in the first month. You will undoubtedly need more time to complete the chapters unless the chapters are very short. Suppose you do envision this and then fail to meet the deadline, it will undoubtedly have a discouraging effect, making even a realistic amount of work unattainable for the next month.
3. Determine the steps required to achieve the goal. Almost any goal can be broken down into smaller steps. Getting a clear picture of these steps will make the goal feel more manageable. It can also help you create a clear plan that you can follow on your way to the goal.
   • Suppose you receive a visitor and your house needs to undergo a serious cleaning. You could split the process into several short-term goals, namely: cleaning the bathroom, kitchen, living room, etc.But you could even break these steps down further. Using the kitchen as an example, you could split this step into doing the dishes, cleaning the countertop, cleaning the refrigerator, and sweeping and mopping the floor.
4. Try to estimate how much time you think you will need for each step. Having a timeline and deadlines for these tasks will keep you motivated, accountable, and purposeful.
   • For example, if you start cleaning the bathroom, you may estimate that it will take you 15 minutes to clean the tub, also 15 minutes for the toilet, 10 minutes for the sink, 10 minutes for organizing and cleaning. the cupboards and ten minutes to clean the floor. If you stick to this timeline, you should be able to clean the bathroom in an hour.
5. Put your plan on paper. Once you've identified the necessary steps, you should be able to outline the plan on paper. The plan helps you determine the most logical order, making it easier to stick to the plan.
   • It may seem unnecessary to write down the steps for a simple task such as cleaning your house. And indeed, this may not be necessary. But when you do, you make the goal more tangible, which will improve your motivation.
   • Writing down the steps also reduces the chance that you will forget something important.

Part 2 of 2: Achieving your goal

1. Set priorities. Often times, when it comes to short-term goals, we are dealing with multiple goals at one time. It's important to identify which goals are most important so you can try to achieve them first.
   • If you have visitors, you may want to clean your house before the visit. But you may also need to get some groceries at home. You may also want to clean your car. It might also be a good idea to make plans for activities to take with your friends when they visit. You may need to work ahead as you cannot do this work when you have visitors. If you want to do all of the above tasks at once, you won't be able to work as efficiently as you identified the most important task, completed it, and moved on. In reality, if you try to complete all tasks at the same time, you may not be able to complete any task.
   • Setting priorities will also prevent you from wasting time after reaching a certain goal. You already know at that moment which step will follow.
2. Get started. As with any goal, achieving short-term goals takes time and effort. Once you have started, you will develop momentum that will help you act decisively and achieve the goal.
   • If your home is quite a mess, it may be more difficult to start cleaning. However, check the plan you have drawn up and try to get on the first step as soon as possible. Once you've cleaned one room, the resulting sense of accomplishment will motivate you to move on.
3. Stay focused. Whatever goal you are trying to achieve, you should work towards it steadily. With short-term goals, this is even more important. Since you cannot take the time to achieve your goal, it is crucial that you keep your goal in mind and are not distracted. There are several ways in which you can achieve this.
   • Track your progress. Keep an eye on the clock (or calendar) and the plan you set when you try to reach your goal. The timeline you have set up can be a strong motivator for you to stay focused. No one likes to feel that they've failed.
   • Create an ideal environment for success. Try to remove things from your environment that could prevent you from achieving your goals. Suppose you're trying to clean your house, but you know that chances are your dog will be chasing you all day long begging for attention. You may be wise to temporarily move the dog somewhere else so that you can focus. If you're concerned that you won't be able to resist the temptation to play your favorite video game, store the controllers in a drawer in another room. Don't take them out until you've finished your work.
4. Be flexible. From time to time you may find that the work towards short-term goals does not have the effect on you that you hoped for. Or, you may notice after you've done a lot of work that you could have done it better in a different way. If this is the case, do not strictly adhere to the predefined plan.
   • If a short-term goal doesn't work out as you expected or is taking a lot more time than you expect, feel free to revise and adjust the plan. Having a plan is important, but every now and then you need to change the order of the steps, perhaps delete steps or add new steps. You may even have to omit a short-term goal altogether in favor of another goal.
   • Returning to the example of writing a book, you may plan to complete a draft of the first chapter in the first month. But as you write the chapter, you may come up with a new idea that you hadn't thought of before. If this is a good idea, it would be wise to revise your plan slightly to accommodate this idea. The time it takes to revise your plan may have implications for achieving your initial goal, but if it means that the book will be better, then you need to be flexible and revise your plan.
5. Reward success. When you have managed to achieve a short-term goal, you should reward yourself. This is also called “reinforcement” (stimulus). Your brain will associate your bold and efficient way of working with positive consequences. This makes it easier to motivate yourself to achieve future goals.
   • There are two types of reinforcement. Positive reinforcement is adding a positive reinforcement into your life. For example, you could reward yourself with a nice drink or dessert. Negative reinforcement is the removal of a negative reinforcer from your life. For example, imagine that you don't like walking your dog. You may be able to strike a deal with a roommate that he or she will walk the dog if you manage to reach your goal.
   • Encouraging good behavior is more effective than punishing bad behavior. It will increase your motivation to keep going.

Tips

• Having a third party to assess the progress you are making is helpful. As an outsider, third parties are often more aware of the pitfalls that hinder you in achieving your goals than you.
• It is important to develop your ability to keep your own promises. If you are going to set goals for yourself, don't try to dissuade yourself from this idea no matter how insignificant it may seem. This could lead to you giving up again in the future.