Personal development requires changes in behavior, and sometimes changes in behavior can't happen through willpower alone. People can remain in traps such as smoking and low motivational states for decades. One of the most useful ways to change your behavior is through effective goal-setting. Psychologists have developed techniques that will allow you to do this.
Set Clear Goals
Goals must be clear to be effective, says goal-setting researcher Edwin A. Locke, professor emeritus at the University of Maryland School of Business. This means that they must be measurable, specific and behavioral. Reduce your goals to clear numerical targets if possible, and specify deadlines for achievement. Focus on your own performance, not in comparison with others. "Win the gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle at the 2012 Olympics," for example, is not a behavior-based goal because its achievement depends partially on the performance of your competitors.
Challenge Yourself
Easy goals result in weak motivation. On the other hand, unrealistically difficult goals are disheartening. Find your personal challenge zone between these two extremes. Locke asserts that setting goals that offer significant rewards--whether tangible or intangible--can significantly enhance motivation.
Find Your Passion
Personal passion is crucial to build the long-term commitment necessary to keep on going even when you don't feel like it at a particular moment. No one can muster the internal resources necessary to reach a goal that fails to arouse him, says author and personal success coach Philip E. Humbert. Setting passionate goals means searching your heart for what you want, as opposed to what someone else wants for you, or what you believe you ought to want. One of the best ways to arouse passion in yourself is to find a goal that is meaningful to you. Such a goal may or may not result in financial rewards or social acclaim.
Take Advantage of Feedback
Setting goals that provide periodic feedback allows you to clarify your expectations, adjust the difficulty of your goals, and gain recognition from yourself and others, according to Locke. This process involves breaking down major goals into specific mini-goals, each with its own time deadline. For example, if your goal is to bench-press 300 pounds by the end of the year, set monthly targets and test yourself at the end of each month.
Use Goals to Improve Happiness
"The successful pursuit of meaningful goals plays an important role in the development and maintenance of our psychological well-being," asserts Timothy A. Pychyl, associate professor of psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa. The happier you are with your progress toward your goals, the more you will be motivated to make further progress. Progress toward your goals can be even more satisfying than the final achievement.
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