How To Effectively Set Goals

As a child we possess so much persistence. In fact as a child we see the word so big! It is when we grow up that we see the word as this mall place and often times feel stuck. When did we lose the persistence we possessed as children? As a child, with no real concept on what a goal is or how to develop one, we would still develop goals. I’m sure at one point or another you set your mind on flying a kite or riding a bike or shooting a ball. The persistence that we used was so great that the fear of falling from a bike was nonexistent. The idea of the kite breaking never even crossed our minds and when he handled a basketball, being able to fly like Michael Jordan was the ultimate goal.

When did it all change? That question my friend I cannot answer. I do not know if it was when they criticized your technique or when no one wanted to help you improve it, however, what I do know is that we need to be as relentless as a child wanting to learn how to walk. The child that is learning how to walk has no fear. I know this to be true because I have two daughters. When they were each learning how to walk, my wife and I made sure to be their shadows, however, they would act as if we weren't even there. They would fall on the ground, on the mud or any other surface they could find and yet, they were persistent, they were relentless and failure was not an option.

Setting goals is more of a mindset than anything else. If you do not have tunnel vision, anything will distract you from the target. Did you know the term ‘sin’ was used in archery? This term was used to reference someone that ‘missed the mark’.  With that in mind, I ask, how many of us have sinned after establishing goals?

I’d like to share with you three key things I think we need when trying to effectively set a goal. Before I share with you these keys, lets see what the Bible says about setting goals.

1. Mission statement.
   • Your mission statement should answer the question why? Why do you want to accomplish this goal? Your why cannot be based upon what others want for you or on what you will gain, remember the greatest profit you can ever make is the impact you have. Once you've accomplished your mission statement, will you be able to better serve others or are you only looking to serve yourself?
2. Don't set goals for someone else.
   • Your goals cannot be predicated on what someone else wants for you. You have to want it like a child wants to walk. In fact, your mission statement will help you realize if this is being done for me or for mommy or daddy or someone else. This is about you and at the same time, greater than you so it cannot be predicated on the desires of someone else - no matter how much they love you.
3. Educate yourself.
   • Educating yourself is key when establishing a goal because you have to know realistically what it's going to take to accomplish you desired outcome. I suggest that you watch people that have been successful in the realm in which you'd like to be in. It's not about copying them, it's about the technique the individual utilized to accomplish their success despite the challenges they have faced and you may also.
   • Education will help you develop a realistic plan with mini goals as checkpoints along the way. We often develop plans that are not carefully mapped out with checkpoints and this can cause fatigue and frustration. Checkpoints aka mini goals, allow you to know you're in the right direction.

“The plans of the diligent certainly lead to profit, but anyone who is reckless certainly becomes poor” Proverbs 21:5 (Christian Standard Bible). The key word in this verse is plans, “the plans of the diligent certainly lead to profit”. Let us not get confused, to profit isn't only a financial thing. Some people are bankrupt mentally, others emotionally only because they did not make a proper plan but rather acted recklessly.

We have often heard people say “plan your work and work you plan” but we must also pray our plan! James 4:13-15 (CSB) says the following in regards to playing you plan. “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes. Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” Is it wrong to establish a goal? No. Just don't forget that God is the one who opens doors no can close and closes doors no one can open.

Other Bible verse on setting goals. Philippians 3:13-14 & Proverbs 24:27, Luke 14:28-30.