Getting Motivated: 5 Ways To Start On Your Goals

January, for a lot of people, is all about setting goals. Unfortunately, in some cases, that’s all that happens. The goals are set and then forgotten about.

To help you get started, I thought I would share my top 5 tips for getting motivated to work on those goals.

Getting Motivated, Tip 1 – Make A List

Write a list of your goals. Don’t worry at this point about how many there are or even how realistic they are, just brain storm a list of what you would like to achieve.

Getting Motivated, Tip 2 – Refine Your List

Now is the time to get a bit ruthless. Read back through your list and cross off anything you know isn’t realistic. If you have something that is part of a long term plan but you won’t achieve in a year, that’s fine.

When I say unrealistic, I mean something that in theory you would like to do, but in reality you know you probably never will.

You should only keep goals you want badly enough to be willing to work for.

Getting Motivated, Tip 3 – Break It Down

So now you should have a list of goals that you are serious about meeting. This is where it can get tough, especially if you have some goals that you aren’t really sure what you need to do to complete them. This stage is where we cross that bridge.

For each of your goals, get a piece of paper (or open a new document if you prefer to work on your computer), title it with whatever the goal is and make a list of everything you would need to do to meet that goal.

Let’s say as an example, one of your goals is to complete a marathon by the end of the year. You wouldn’t attempt to go out and run it today if you hadn’t done any preparation. So break it down into what you would need to do to achieve that goal – buy some proper running shoes, eat healthily, up your protein intake, start training, apply to run etc.

Getting Motivated, Tip 4 – Plan Your Mini Goals

Now it’s time to plan how you will achieve each step. Every step you have written down is now a mini goal. So for each mini goal, write down a plan of how you would achieve it. To continue with the above example, here’s how you would break it down:

Apply to run: Google it. Find out where and when there is a marathon near you and how to apply. Set a target of when you want this complete.

Buy some proper running shoes: Again, Google. Read some reviews or recommendations from people who run. Then rather than order online, go out and try some on see how they feel on your feet. Once you choose a pair you can always go home and order them if they have better deals online. Again, set a target of when you want it complete.

Eat healthily, up your protein intake and start training: These mini goals all go hand in hand. Now you know when the marathon will be, you know exactly how long you have. Work out a diet plan and an exercise programme. Hire a personal trainer if necessary. For this stage, set targets for where you want your fitness to be each month.

Getting Motivated, Tip 5 – Visualize Success

Now you have a full plan. You know everything you need to do to achieve your goal and you know when you are going to do each part. Now comes the hard part. Actually starting.

Remember in tip 2 I told you to only keep goals you were serious about working for? Well here’s why. Tip 5 is all about visualizing the moment you achieve your goal.

Imagine how good it will feel to cross that finish line. If you aren’t serious about the goal, or it was just a spur of the moment thing, visualizing the end result won’t work. It has to be something you are passionate about, something that will make you feel good when you achieve it.

Think about that moment, then get up and go do something off your list, however small. You have now taken the first step and the first step is always the hardest.

I hope these tips help you with getting motivated. Do you have any tips to add? Let me know in the comments 🙂

Come back tomorrow for tips on how to stay motivated, another thing that can be difficult.

*Disclaimer: I have no idea what it would take to run a marathon (although I would be amazed if good shoes wasn’t one of the things). It is just an example to illustrate the point I am making and I am in no way telling anyone it would be that simple.

You can find me here: Twitter Bloglovin Pinterest and Instagram Please do stop by and say hi!