Why working backwards is the best way to reach your goals
When
you
are
first
working
towards
a
dream
or
goal,
the
first
flurries
of
excitement
can result in getting loads done, but there can
tend to be a lack of structure to your path.
After the excitement has died down the sheer
task can seem so daunting and so far away that
sometimes it’s easy to give up even before we
even get started. With a bit of planning your
dream can get that structure so that you can
achieve it more easily.
Set a date
Do you have a date when you wish to have
completed your dream? You should! If you
haven’t thought about it and are still thinking
that you are just going to get there someday
then I want to encourage you to just try and
set a date. It doesn’t need to be an exact time
on an exact day, month and year, but certainly
try and narrow it down to a month and year.
Think about when is the best time for you to
reach the goal. If there isn’t a best time,
choose a time that you think will give you
enough space to get there. 6 months time? A
year? Get a date, print it out, tell the world.
Once you tell the world when you’re planning
to do something it’s amazing how things can
conspire and work so that you reach it.
Opportunities arise and since people know
about it they are in a position to help.
However, that is not a reason to sit back and
wait for it to happen!
Work backwards
Now that you have a date to work towards,
magical things can happen. Get yourself a
calendar, online is fine, you can print one out
or even buy a specific plain calendar for the
job and then add in the most important date
first – the date you are aiming to reach your
goal.
Think about the big things that are going to
happen in order for you to reach your goal.
Of course these will be goal and dream
specific and there and no right and wrong
things to put on. Are you going to give up your
employment? Work out your intended leaving
date and pop it on the calendar. What about
money? Do you need a certain amount by a
certain time? Pop that in there too. Give
yourself a halfway goal and add that to the
calendar. Do you need to buy any items? Are
they needed by a certain date? Add in any
vacation time and important dates too so you
can see the big picture.
All of a sudden, I hope you’ll find that the
path to your goal doesn’t seem so fuzzy and
unclear any more. There are milestones for
you pass, and a clearer path to take.
Keep adding as you research your goal.
As your goal is defined and as you learn more
about what it’s going to take to get there, keep
adding more items to your calendar. Look at
what is on there already – can you expand on
anything? If you’re leaving your job, when do
you need to hand your notice in? Can you add
that date to the calendar too? Maybe people
who leave bring in cakes on the last day –
write down that you need to buy cakes!!
Nothing is too trivial.
Don’t be afraid to recalculate
It’s not easy reaching your dreams, if it was
we’d be all there already! The reasons that
they aren’t easy is because they take time,
effort and a huge number of steps to get
there. Perhaps you’ve set a date and started
working backwards and all of a sudden hit the
fear that you can never do it in that time. If
so, don’t panic! Just recalculate your date, it’s
ok! There are no set dates we need to worry
about. If you’ve always wanted to reach it
before your 40th birthday and you then
realise it will never happen at least you’re
thinking about it now and can maybe
recalculate it to change it to happening in the
year that you are 40. The important thing is
that you are working towards something!
The value of working backwards isn’t just in
realising what needs to be done and seeing
whether it can fit in a timeframe, although
that is important too. What is also great is
that if you do this well, each month that comes
around has a ready made ‘to do’ list waiting for
you to achieve! Another great benefit is that
when it all seems so far away and you’re
feeling like you’ll never get there, you can see
in your calendar things that you’re doing
TODAY to get the dream going.
you
are
first
working
towards
a
dream
or
goal,
the
first
flurries
of
excitement
can result in getting loads done, but there can
tend to be a lack of structure to your path.
After the excitement has died down the sheer
task can seem so daunting and so far away that
sometimes it’s easy to give up even before we
even get started. With a bit of planning your
dream can get that structure so that you can
achieve it more easily.
Set a date
Do you have a date when you wish to have
completed your dream? You should! If you
haven’t thought about it and are still thinking
that you are just going to get there someday
then I want to encourage you to just try and
set a date. It doesn’t need to be an exact time
on an exact day, month and year, but certainly
try and narrow it down to a month and year.
Think about when is the best time for you to
reach the goal. If there isn’t a best time,
choose a time that you think will give you
enough space to get there. 6 months time? A
year? Get a date, print it out, tell the world.
Once you tell the world when you’re planning
to do something it’s amazing how things can
conspire and work so that you reach it.
Opportunities arise and since people know
about it they are in a position to help.
However, that is not a reason to sit back and
wait for it to happen!
Work backwards
Now that you have a date to work towards,
magical things can happen. Get yourself a
calendar, online is fine, you can print one out
or even buy a specific plain calendar for the
job and then add in the most important date
first – the date you are aiming to reach your
goal.
Think about the big things that are going to
happen in order for you to reach your goal.
Of course these will be goal and dream
specific and there and no right and wrong
things to put on. Are you going to give up your
employment? Work out your intended leaving
date and pop it on the calendar. What about
money? Do you need a certain amount by a
certain time? Pop that in there too. Give
yourself a halfway goal and add that to the
calendar. Do you need to buy any items? Are
they needed by a certain date? Add in any
vacation time and important dates too so you
can see the big picture.
All of a sudden, I hope you’ll find that the
path to your goal doesn’t seem so fuzzy and
unclear any more. There are milestones for
you pass, and a clearer path to take.
Keep adding as you research your goal.
As your goal is defined and as you learn more
about what it’s going to take to get there, keep
adding more items to your calendar. Look at
what is on there already – can you expand on
anything? If you’re leaving your job, when do
you need to hand your notice in? Can you add
that date to the calendar too? Maybe people
who leave bring in cakes on the last day –
write down that you need to buy cakes!!
Nothing is too trivial.
Don’t be afraid to recalculate
It’s not easy reaching your dreams, if it was
we’d be all there already! The reasons that
they aren’t easy is because they take time,
effort and a huge number of steps to get
there. Perhaps you’ve set a date and started
working backwards and all of a sudden hit the
fear that you can never do it in that time. If
so, don’t panic! Just recalculate your date, it’s
ok! There are no set dates we need to worry
about. If you’ve always wanted to reach it
before your 40th birthday and you then
realise it will never happen at least you’re
thinking about it now and can maybe
recalculate it to change it to happening in the
year that you are 40. The important thing is
that you are working towards something!
The value of working backwards isn’t just in
realising what needs to be done and seeing
whether it can fit in a timeframe, although
that is important too. What is also great is
that if you do this well, each month that comes
around has a ready made ‘to do’ list waiting for
you to achieve! Another great benefit is that
when it all seems so far away and you’re
feeling like you’ll never get there, you can see
in your calendar things that you’re doing
TODAY to get the dream going.
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