Visualize Your Goals

It's one thing to write down you goals and set up an action plan to achieve them, but are your goals always on the forefront of your mind? Do you wake up and the first thing you think about are your goals? What time during the day do you think about your goals?

Many people write them down and think about them every once and awhile, but are not consistent with thinking about them and working toward them. One way to get closer to achieving your dreams is to visualize your goals. Write your goals down somewhere and look at them several times throughout the day, especially first thing in the morning.

If you're working on a side hustle while working a 9-5 job and you're also raising a family, it can be difficult to wake up early enough to work on what needs to get done. You might enjoy that personal time, but you also love sleep.  Remind yourself why you are getting up so early. 

Post-it notes

One option to visualize your goals is using post-it notes. David Goggins used to put post-it notes on his mirror about being fat, stupid and slow to help motivate him and prove everyone, most importantly himself, wrong. Consider writing down your goals and putting them by your bedside, your mirror, refrigerator, door,  or other parts of your home life. 

Trying to live a healthier lifestyle? Put a note on your coffee maker to drink a full glass of water first. Put a note on your car that says go for a walk. These are the little things that can help you form better habits and achieve your goals.

Use a planner or journal

If you have a lot going on in your life, you most likely already have a planner to focus on good time management. In your planner or a journal, you should write down your top 3 goals for the day, then make your bed. 

Why make your bed? Once you make your bed, you've already accomplished something and you've only been awake for a few minutes. That sense of accomplishment will help carry over toward your goals and you'll be ready to attack the 3 goals you wrote down.

Prioritize what goals need to get accomplished and at the end of the day reflect on these accomplishments and what you need to get done the next day. It's ok to have a to-do list with 20 items on there, but to some people 20 is overwhelming. Focus on your top 3 each day and once you knock out your top 3, then you can look back at the list you created and start accomplishing some others that were less urgent. You need to be able to focus your efforts on one task at a time, to continue consistent habits and success.

Create a vision board

What is a vision board?

A vision board is a tool that you can use that helps you visualize and manifest your goals. It can be something physical or digital.  If you know what you want to manifest, then you can look up pictures on the internet, but don’t just limit yourself that way.  It would also be a good idea to search through magazines and use those pictures.  You can cut out the pictures and put them on a cork board, poster board or wherever so that the dreams are all in one collective place. 

For example, in the book Bigger, Leaner, Stronger, Michael Matthews recommends you find a picture of the type of body you want to have and keep it out so you can envision it every day. This will help you make the right decisions toward your nutrition and working out.

Your vision board should not just have end goals, but pictures that illicit the emotional response to help drive you to the dream.  It should also include things you will encounter along the journey.  For example, if one of your goals was to run a marathon, you could consider putting pictures of the training required or the point where you would feel exhausted.  This way, you are training your mind for the journey not just the end goal.  Success is a journey, not a destination. 

Once you fill up your vision board, put it where you will see it all the time. Put it on your desk, by your bedside, in the kitchen, in the bathroom or wherever you will walk past it. Look at it when you first wake up and before you go to bed. Let it inspire you.

Purpose is one of my 5 keys to success and using one of these 3 methods will help remind you of your purpose. These aren't the only 3 methods, but these are 3 very effective methods. Motivation will not always be there. You will wake up some days, not wanting to get out of bed or wanting to just sleep the day away. You'll end up not making any progress in your life and as humans, we need to have some sort of progress or we give up. Find a way to visualize your goals and help remind you of your purpose. Use post-it notes, use a journal or a planner or create a vision board. Whatever method you choose, you have to look at your goals often and focus.

How do you visualize your goals? How often do you think about your goals?

Thank you for reading.  Don't forget to motivate yourself, elevate your mind and inspire others.