I spent the last three years working towards a goal, but instead of moving forward I fell backwards. I forgot the most important aspect of goals: action. For three years, I only speculated the future while the present slipped by. I finally found the answer once I gave up; and the answer shocked me. My goal appeared closer then I originally thought, and I could have reached it if only I had followed these steps. Before giving up on a goal, commit to using these steps just once.

Envision Success

When you started envisioning your path to success you probably worked with less knowledge than what you know now. It may be time to redirect your path using your recent experiences. Knowledge comes in many forms.

• A tip from a professional
• Taking a class, reading an informative book, garnering info from social media or the web
• Taking an internship, volunteer position, or job if your goal is career related
• Growing older and acquiring more wisdom and experience

Whichever way knowledge comes to you, use it to better equip yourself for success.

Be Money Smart

Most goals require money or involve investing in your future (renting an office space or quitting your day job), but they don’t require buying the best dress on the rack for your book signing or new equipment when you have the option to borrow or become an apprentice. Save money in the beginning so you have it in the end when you need it most.

Supporters Welcome

Friends, family or a support group give the best encouragement when you need extra motivation to push on.  Align yourself with supporters, and disentangle yourself from the rest: ball-n-chain boyfriends/girlfriends, Negative Nancy/Ned, and the like.

Action

Don’t be like me – only thinking or talking about your goal. Get out and do something; everyday should bring you closer to a goal. A wise manager once told me to write everyday because if I didn’t – someone else would.

Drop the Negativity

Are you a Negative Nancy/Ned when things go wrong? Extensively blaming yourself for your mistakes will only restrict success. It lowers your self-esteem and leads you nowhere. The same result occurs when surrounded by negative people. I don’t know how many times a past friend would essentially tell me I couldn’t achieve my dream. I thought, at first, hearing him tell me that would motivate me to victory: turns out, it didn’t. The only way to be pushed by those people is to push them out of your life, for good. Then, simply think of them later when you need the motivation to work harder. Keeping negativity around chains you and your actions to disastrous consequences.

By changing your strategy or treating you goals like they mean more to you than the moon, you ensure success. Don’t let yourself stall out or run backwards when you should already have the goal at your fingertips. Success affects your self-esteem, your whole life and your friends or love life (for the better). Don’t wake up one day and realize you never made it anywhere. It’s a paralyzing feeling.

 Tess Lackey is the author of Run for Time, a blog covering Alzheimer’s disease and fitness. She’s an avid learner, enjoys travel and almost never follows the norm. While struggling for years to achieve her childhood dream, she found her other passion – writing. The struggle led her to analyze both herself and the problems associated with achieving goals; she hopes to help others realize and achieve their dreams. Follow her on Twitter, and tweet your tips for accomplishing goals.

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