The 3-Step System to Achieve Your Goals with Ease

What are some simple steps to achieving goals? Because you know how it is.

You watched a TED talk, took a course, or went to a conference – and you got super inspired to set a goal.

You really thought this was it. But then your motivation vanishes as always.

Why is it so difficult to achieve your long-term goals?

“Goal setting is the secret to a compelling future.” – Tony Robbins

How can you make sure that you actually use the right steps to achieve your goals?

Let’s set you up for success!

Missing steps to achieve your goals

The very first problem is that most of us do goal-setting completely wrong.

This is true for both long-term goals and short-term goals.

If you don’t set your goals the right way, you set yourself up for failure.

And it’s not about setting reasonable goals. To set yourself up for success you need to:

1. Identify the why behind your vision
2. Set goals that inspire you
3. Make them concrete and specific
4. Break them up into incremental milestones
5. Focus on your goal progress, not the outcome
6. Make sure you reward yourself regularly
7. Get social support or an accountability partner

Special tip: If you actually write down your goals, you make them more real to your mind.

So, if your multiple goals

• aren’t clear and precise
• if you aren’t emotionally invested in them
• if you don’t have a plan

…your brain just can’t handle that.

It doesn’t know what to do and what to focus on.

This means you’re stuck and can’t take action. And any hopes of achieving your goals go out the window.

Make sure you truly know what your vision is.

FREE vision workbook 4 pager

Your brain needs a plan to achieve goals

If you’re serious about achieving your goals, you need to have a how.

A plan.
And it can’t be vague and blurry.

Again, your brain can’t handle it.
It needs clear instructions on what you want to achieve.

And it needs the next steps to achieve your goals.

Plans bridge the gap between your goals and actual goal achievement.

“If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us.” – Jim Rohn

Let’s see why this is crucial

You saw above that it’s important to identify the why behind your different types of goals.

You need to be emotionally invested and be clear about what’s driving you. And you need to plan how you are going to reach your goals.

But the why and the how activate different regions in your brain.

And without the how it becomes highly unlikely that you achieve your goals.

How your brain works to achieve goals

Basically, some areas of your brain help you create your goals.

You need other areas of your brain to achieve your goals.

And those parts don’t automatically work together.
In fact, it seems like they don’t work together at all.

That’s because your brain doesn’t use these two different areas at the same time.

Another advantage of plans for achieving goals

To keep motivated, you need to break up your different levels of goals into small steps.

Celebrate your milestones.

Measuring your progress is important for your brain. Achieving your goals is a long-term project with plenty of steps.

And you need sustained motivation to keep going.

“You should set goals beyond your reach so you always have something to live for.” – Ted Turner

But how can you stay motivated if your goals will take forever to achieve?

Through the power of small, clear steps.

They make sure you don’t feel overwhelmed.

And your brain releases great-feeling dopamine whenever you tick something off your to-do list.
[Dopamine is a chemical neurotransmitter that improves your mood and boosts your motivation]

It makes you feel good and fuels you with enough motivation to take the next step.

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Without these simple steps, you can’t achieve your goals

That’s why you can feel totally inspired to set a goal and never actually get close to achieving it.

The good feeling dopamine doesn’t last. You want to keep your motivation flowing while you move from task to task.

So if you’re wondering what your next step is, the dopamine may be gone before you decide anything.

If your brain is confused about potential outcomes or what you need to do, you lose out on your awesome, natural motivation booster.

The simple steps to achieve your goals

To make your goals achievable, you need clear goals.

But this doesn’t mean you have to figure out your entire journey beforehand.

It would be overwhelming and frustrating if you had to come up with your whole plan at once.

The secret to achieving your goals is always to stay 2 steps ahead.

The next steps need to be crystal clear.
And this includes tasks like getting more information on your topic, too.

It’s not just about kicking down doors.

Don’t freeze your brain and lose your motivation because you don’t know your next actionable step.

Make sure you have a good plan so you can stay at least 2 steps ahead.

Ninja Goal Planner

Concrete examples of 3 simple steps to achieve goals

“Dream big. Set goals. Take Action.” – Unknown

Let’s say you want to earn more money.
What could be possible steps to achieve your goals?

Obviously, you must identify a specific sum you want to earn.

“More money” or even “plenty of money” is too vague.

You can’t set initial goals and make plans for things that aren’t specific and concrete.

So maybe you decided you want $5,000 more income per year. Or a certain increase compared to your current level.

You have absolutely no idea how you can pull that off. And that’s okay!

Remember, planning is not about identifying all the steps.

It’s only about getting clear on your next few steps to goal achievement.

You also have to take some super simple action immediately. Before the initial high of setting a goal wears off.

You want to keep that sweet feeling of motivation coming.

Bonus Tip: Setting a specific date and time for when you will take the next step increases your chances of actually doing it exponentially.

Step 1: Brainstorm to set yourself up for success

The first thing is to identify how you can earn that extra money.
If you really have no clue, the very first step should be research.

Some ideas to get more money could be:

• Get promoted
• Get hired somewhere else (for the same job)
• Change careers (do something else)
• Build your own (side) business
• Grow your existing business
• Participate in competitions (with prize money)
• Win the lottery
• Invest your money
• …

Now you know more about possible options for your attainment of goals.

Step 2: Choose which priorities to focus on

The next step could be to research the one or two options you like best thoroughly.

You can’t just “get promoted” at work, so what do you need to bring to the table to be considered?

For most options in our list,

• Are there skills you need to learn?
• What are they?
• Where and how can you learn them?

Try to think of something easy (goal-related) to do a few times per week.

Step 3: Start working on your goal

Next step: If you’ve identified a skill you need to master, you can research courses and sign up for a class.

In the meantime, you can read and watch as much about this skill as possible.

Different step: Alternatively, you may have realized that you need to contact a few people – because you need their help with something.

Then you can decide who you’ll contact how (phone, email etc.) and when.

As you can see, we still don’t know the exact steps you need to take to achieve your $5,000 extra income goal.

But we’ve identified a few simple first steps that get the ball rolling.
They also show your brain that you are an action-taker.

And you get the added bonus of staying motivated.
Because it feels good to get things done!

Need a deep dive into these steps to achieve your goals?

No matter the type of goal, as you move forward with your steps, new steps will become clear to you.

Don’t get overwhelmed because you think you have to figure out the whole plan.

You only need to see the next few steps (and your big individual goals to give you direction) to be set up for success.

Free Ninja Goal-Setting Class

In 30 minutes, learn how to: Clarify your priorities ☆ Set great goals ☆ Make tracking fun ☆ Stay motivated

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“No desired achievement is gained without any goal setting.”- Wayne Chirisa

I hope our focus on these simple steps helps you achieve your goals.

Get clear on your vision, and make sure you set goals the right way.

Combined with the right plan, you will be unstoppable in reaching your long-term goals!

Improve yourself. Improve your life!

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Ninja

Ninja is a marketing strategist and content creator. You could say she's obsessed with self-improvement... and she wants to help YOU create the fantastic life you desire

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