It's a New Year. Lots of folks have set Goals. I have spent most of six decades setting goals of varying sizes and shapes. And then I stopped. That was from a scary realization that I was achieving almost every goal I set. Fear of Success stops many of us, more (I think) than fear of failure. That is lesson #1.

Why did I include a shiny toilet handle as a prompt for this post? Because I fixed that toilet myself. It was a goal. A very small one. But when your bendies and reachies don't work, you can't use tools very well, and even simple household maintenance is beyond you...something as simple as replacing a handle and flapper can give you immense satisfaction. You don't need big goals to raise your self esteem. And don't let anyone pooh-pooh your baby steps. Today a toilet, tomorrow a shower head, and then...a nap.

Let's filter some things out through decades of experiences. Dreams and Wishes are not Goals. A Goal has to have three things going for it:
It must be believable. It must be achievable. Most of all, it must have a time limit. Unless your goal is a long life, then all you have to do is keep breathing.

What do I mean about being believable? Believable gets rid of Magical Thinking. Things don't get better, change, or have a different outcome because you thought they would. You have to work at it. Money is a big carrot - at least most folks think it is in our Country. So let's start with a money goal.

I want to be a Millionaire. If you work at a minimum wage job, your brain will dismiss this out of hand. $16,000 a year working in a Service Industry does not add up to a million dollars - unless your plan is to work for roughly two decade without spending a penny of it. It isn't believable. Not to you. Not to your brain. Not to the Universe.

Ahh, but doubling your salary in a year? You have doubled your pay before...at least once in your life. Maybe you had a job shoveling snow and got a dollar a driveway. The Next winter you asked for two dollars. You do a good job, you are dependable. You finish your work. Or maybe you got out of High School with no job at all...then that first job, or enlistment, is more money then you ever made before. Your brain believes you can make more money...it has seen you do it. So doubling your money in a year, or getting a raise within six months...your brain can get on board.
So let's write a simple money goal.

By December 31st of 2020, I will make 10% more money than I do now. It is believable, achievable, and has a time limit. A good goal. Now how do you go about it?

Do the prep work. Can your company pay more than you make now? (that answer is almost always : YES). Do you have the skills they need? If yes, you are ahead of the game. If no, get them. Here is a small example:

I know a guy who works at a large Home and Tool store. He started out as a stock boy. He had to handle lots of items. Items he knew nothing about. So he signed up for a Carpentry Class at the Local Junior College. It took him two years (and working full time, so don't give me any crap that Millenials aren't hard workers). In order to gain real life experience he gave four hours a week to building Habitat for Humanity houses.

Within a year, they moved him from Shelving Stock to working the Wood and Home building Sections. There he met retired plumbers, electricians, and carpenters. He listened. Then he went to class. Then he built houses for Habitat.

A year later, he graduated from the Junior College. He could have gone to work for any Home Builder in the City, doing framing and finishing work. He stayed with the Company. Now? Well, he is the Manager.

He set short term goals - and met them. He set medium range goals and did the work. His long term goals built on the little ones along the way. From not being able to use a hammer, to using his expertise to help a customer decide on which nail gun. It took him just three years. How long would it take you?

So my first goal post (get it? LOL) ends with this quote from Anthony Robbins:
"Most people overestimate what they can do in a year, and underestimate what they can do in a decade. "

Believable. Achievable. And a Time limit. There you go. Goal setting in a nutshell.

You go Soldier!