Do you have trouble setting your goals and even more trouble accomplishing them?

There is a well known and established method of both setting and accomplishing goals. It is often referred to by its acronym SMART. It will definitely make you feel smart once you understand it and implement in your life. It always helps if you study and use a system such as Getting Things Done. You don't have to use all of it but a system will always out perform random acts of goal setting.

Now on to SMART. Each letter stands for a specific item that needs to be included in your goal. The better you make them the better your chances of actually accomplishing your goal and getting the benefit from it.

S = Specific. Most people say I am specific in my goals. Lets look at some goals and determine how specific they are. In the case of financial wealth I often hear people say I have a goal of being rich. Is that a specific goal? Getting a little better is I want to be a millionaire. Better. At least this one includes a dollar amount. I will cover specifics in each of the next letters so I won't spend a lot of time on it here. Just remember the most specific you can make your goal the more powerful it is to your own mind. In other words the easier it is to visualize the better your chances of actually acting on it and accomplishing.

M=Measurable. Now measurable is fairly easy to understand. Can you create a measurement system to determine when your goal is accomplished? Take sports for example. A football team may have a goal of increasing their average yards on first down. It is an established measurement system. Everyone understands how it is calculated and measured. Take our earlier goal – "I want to be rich". Think you can measure that? That any two of your friends will agree with you that you have achieved it? The more objective you can make your goal the more solid it becomes in your mind. Our minds have a tremendous ability to make real what we have in our minds. I want to be a millionaire is better but is it really measurable? Are you talking about being a net worth millionaire or a cash millionaire? There is a very big difference between net worth and cash. A cash millionaire can write a check for a million dollars. A net worth millionaire may not be able to write a check to cover lunch. In caseyou are wondering I much prefer being a cash millionaire. It is easy to measure and no one can argue on whether you have achieved it or not.

A= Attainable or Actionable What?? Two different words? Well it depends on which school of thought you come from on which word is appropriate. I will discuss both so you can see how they could be implemented in your own goal setting process. Let's start with attainable. First let's define attainable. Something that can be achieved. Sounds pretty logical right? No point in setting a goal that can't be achieved right? But how do we determine what is attainable? Is creating a company that impacts millions of people unattainable? Is becoming a millionaire unattainable? Now obviously these goals have been achieved by hundreds of people so they aren't impossible. Now if I said I want to be a millionaire tomorrow when I am broke with no assets is highly improbably. You could always win the lottery but that doesn't follow the second word I chose.

Actionable I prefer goals that I can work towards and that my actions contribute to their success. Having a goal of winning the lottery is an example of something that may be attainable but is not really actionable. I want to be a millionaire or create a business generating $100,000 in profit every year are actionable and attainable goals. You will find that action is the primary ingredient in success. So don't let the thought of attainability limit your goals. Many impossible goals have been accomplished because someone set out to do them and BELIEVED they could be accomplished. Make your goals actionable and they can all be attained.

R= Relevant. Relevant is the one part of this whole process that can be in the mind of the beholder. Your goal should be relevent or related to your overall life goals. If my vision of my life includes a strong relationship with my family but the individual goal requires spending 50 weeks a years traveling to accomplish it, then it isn't very relevant to what I want my overall life to represent. I like to think of it this way. As Stephen Covey mentioned in his The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Begin with the End in Mind. Imagine your funeral eulogy. What do you want people to say about you? How do you want to be remembered. Make sure your individual goals line up to support that visual. It is very easy to fall away from our central vision if we aren't careful in setting our individual goals.

T = Time Restricted. This is probably the one that gets the least amount of emphasis. Think of a diet goal. "I want to lose weight". Not a very strong one is it? A better one I want to lose thirty pounds. Better but still lacking that time emphasis and some of the other characteristics we have discussed so far. If you are anything like me I need a deadline to drive me. Using human psychology we understand that the closer a deadline gets the more active we are on working to complete it. How many all nighters did you do in college to get a paper written? How many times have you shifted your entire schedule to make sure a project was done on time? How often have you forgotten your child's birthday? See how a deadline can make a difference? Now to fully use it you need to take a large goal and break it down into smaller individual goals. Having a goal of losing 30 pounds in 3 months means that we will probably put it off for 2 months and 2 weeks and then try to cram it all into the last 2 weeks. Not a smart way to do it (no pun intended). Now breaking that goal down into 10 pounds in a month or 2 1/2 pounds a week. Now we have something to motivate us each week.

Now lets go back to our original goal. I want to be rich. A much better goal is "To have $750,000 in my bank account and zero debt in the next 4 years by focusing on creating alternative incomes, controlling my spending, maximizing my savings, and following a monthly review process"

That's just an example of course. It is a large goal that covers 4 years. Obviously it needs to be broken down into many smaller goals and plans. An example of a smaller part of this overall goal. I will increase my 401k contribution by 2% tomorrow. Or I will create a budget in the next 24 hours. Or I will spend 2 hours a night for the next 7 days to determine 5 alternative business streams I can create and create goals for them following the SMART method.

Does it take work? Oh yea. That is what separates the majority from the minority. We all have the capability. Not everyone puts the sweat into it.

How is it going with you?

I hope you're having fantastic progression towards achieving ALL of your goals… especially with 2010 approaching. It's a good time to look back at 2009 and see if YOU did something to achieve maximum success. (you desreve it!)

Very soon, I will send you a checklist to plan 2010 properly. For now, I have got a new report for you, which you can download now at ZERO cost for you. The report is:

"The Secret To Personal Power!" by Adam Khoo.

Right Click here to download it NOW (choose "Save Target As").

Till next time, take care!

Khaled Asmri

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In his video, “Achieve Your Goal: Jack Canfield On Never Giving Up,” Jack explains how he and his partner were trying to get “Chicken Soup For The Soul” published and it was rejected by 144 publishers before it was eventually published. They were told that the title didn’t make sense and that no-one wanted to read short stories.

After 14 months of trying to get the book published they took it to the National Booksellers Association where they finally found someone to publish it. The funny thing is that the publisher predicted that they wouldn’t sell more than 20,000 copies, but Jack and his partner had set a goal to sell 1½ million copies in 18 months!

Their goal was reached and they went on to sell millions of copies worldwide. If you have to ask yourself the question, “why should we set goals” then you should already have your answer. Jack didn’t just set a goal and do nothing about it, he took action trying to find a publisher and never gave up. Never, never give up!

Stress is usually caused by the pressures coming at us from both our working and and personal lives and can cause irritability, tension, headaches and an inability to concentrate. We all live with different stresses every day and we need stress in our life, but if it gets out of hand, and you feel that there is too much pressure, you will have to make changes in your life. The onset of a major health condition is a sign that you need to seek a different way to live your life.

There are many different treatments for stress and some of the most valuable to use is free software. One such program is “Stress Management & Anxiety Reduction Techniques 1.0” The information contained in this software is described as the following:

This amazing free system reveals the step-by-step secrets to beat stress and anxiety for good, and start living a more fulfilling life. You get a combination of expert advice from psychologists and educators, as well as benefit from the experience of people who were able to eliminate excessive stress and anxiety from their life. These stress management & anxiety reduction techniques will make your life easier and help you overcome the daily problems that can plague us.

This is free to use software so go to http://download.cnet.com/Stress-Management-Anxiety-Reduction-Techniques/3000-20412_4-10920406.html and download it now and you could be on the right path to healthy aging and stress reduction.

The top 2 ways you can stay positive during this time are:

You have to stop the negative chattering your head which is constantly telling you how terrible you feel. Replacing the chatter with some positive thoughts can be as easy as listening to a CD throughout your day which will have an immediate effect of making you feel uplifted. If you don’t have time to listen to CD’s then spend your spare time reading self-help books from people who can offer you some wonderful words of wisdom that you can use to help get you get back on track.

Try taking up some form of exercise, whether it's going for a daily walk or going to a gym and doing an exercise program. Exercise is a wonderful way to help clear your mind as you concentrate on your program, and nothing else. If you live near a beach there’s nothing more uplifting than going for a walk, hearing nothing but the sound of the waves crashing. It’s a great way to clear your mind.

Grief is not easy to deal with and it will pass with time, but to help you along the way you have to take some form of action. If you do nothing, the grief will stay with you far longer than it should. Start helping yourself and within a short period of time your grief will be gone and you will be able to get on with your life once again.

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Photo by uneduex, Flickr.com

In the article People Shyness, you do not allow this condition to ruin your social life. The author is saying that you don't have to be ashamed of this condition, because many people suffer from the same thing. It's been described as having a reluctance to speak to new people who approach you and wish to speak with you.

Not being able to connect with people on a social basis is really a lack of self confidence, and it's either something that you’ve been born with or from the environment that you grew up in. Sometimes being an only child, living in a small neighborhood or town can make you feel shy. The problem is that being in such a small community you don't really have a connection with a whole lot of people.

It makes you wonder what would happen if this person was taken out of a small neighborhood and suddenly thrust into a big city, where they will be surrounded by thousands of people every day.

You may feel that a person who has no social contact and has impacted on their personal life, would not be able to change the way they feel. But this is not true. Getting out into the community and making eye contact with others is the first step in changing your complete lack of self-confidence. Gradually over time you will be able to meet people and be more confident.

http://www.articlesinaclick.com/health-and-fitness/anxiety/people-shyness-do-not-allow-this-condition-to-ruin-your-social-life/

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Photo by ia7mad, flickr.com

The whole message in this video, “Emotional Stress Relief Self Help Technique Health Kinesiology”, is to show you how you can manage your own stress so that you can relax within a short period of time. Kinesiology focuses on how the body moves or functions and uses muscle tests to monitor the integrity of the electrical pathway from the brain to the muscle fibers.

The technique involves you holding points in your head anything from 30 seconds to 10 minutes, depending on how long it takes you to feel your stress being relieved. Don’t press hard but rather press lightly to feel the full effect. While your hands are on your head remember to lean against a table to hold you up.

We all know that stress is caused by your emotions, so by using this kinesiology technique, you are taking the focus away from how you feel and instead your focus is on your hands and what they are doing.

Taking away the stress from your life is the number one goal, so having a technique which is not hard to remember, will have you relaxed in no time. Within a short period of time you can go back to your normal routine.

Your mind is so efficient that within a blink of an eye it can deliver whatever it is you desire. It can offer you health, wealth and happiness and all you have to do is ask for it. So what do you need to do to develop these mind skills further and improve your life? Meditation.

Meditation is achieved by training brainwave patterns to be focused on one process such as through a mantra, prayer or staring at a candle. These processes can take many years to learn so you have to find other ways to get you into the meditative state more quickly.

Meditation can be used to overcome problems such as depression, anxiety and panic attacks, sleeping disorders and drug and alcohol problems. There are products available which work on stimulating the brainwaves which need 6 minutes of being exposed to steady and accurate pulses in order to retrain your brain. These products are called brainwave entertainment.

Once you’ve used this system to meditate you’ll be able to boost your brain power and all it takes is less than 30 minutes a day. You can boost your creativity and feel at peace, more confident and have much more excitement into your life.

The other benefits of meditation are that you are able to concentrate more easily and you are able to get rid of those negative thoughts more easily.

You can really change and improve your life using the benefits of meditation.

http://successelixir.net/recommend/quantum-mind-power

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Photo by h.koppdelaney's, Flickr.com

Anthony Robbins was talking about the current financial situation and how it really is no different to any other disaster that we have faced in our lives previously.

Even with the impact these disasters had on us, there were still people out there who managed to make a living and survived the impact it had on them. What he was saying was that we cannot let the circumstances defeat us, but instead, we should raise ourselves up to the challenge and find a new direction.

Motivation and self improvement is your responsibility and is an insight into the way you are currently thinking. If you are in a constant state of negativity, then it is your responsibility to change your thoughts in any way you can.

If you believe that the current financial crisis is going to destroy your current lifestyle and everything you've worked for then it will happen. What you need to do is to change the self talk in your head and turn it around to thinking about how you can change your situation for the better. Change will only happen when you decide to do something about it.

People who suffer from depression, tend to contract physical illnesses as well and this is because their mind is full of negative emotions. They can suffer from headaches, vomiting or diarrhea and some of the more severe cases also suffer from Agoraphobia.

The idea is to rid your body of all negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones. But how can you do that when you feel so ill physically? It’s not an easy thing to do, but you have to re-train your mind to have a more positive slant.

Have you noticed that some days you’ll wake up and you feel as though you should stay in bed? Quite often you will end up either not feeling well or have a bad headache. Your intuition is telling you to stay there.

Re-training your mind requires a bit of effort on your part, so arm yourself with books, CD’s and DVD’s all on self development and immerse yourself in them. Sooner or later you will notice your thought patterns changing and you’ll be able to rid yourself of your negative thoughts.

Knowing how your mental health takes over your physical body will make you aware of the way you think. Try to push all negative thoughts out and replace them with positive ones.

http://successelixir.net/recommend/command-more-luck

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Photo by Carlo Nicora, flickr.com