For many, a new year is a time to set goals. Goals are a good thing, but without a plan they just stay dreams. There are hundreds of books, courses and seminars on goal setting. Over the years I have looked at lots of information on the subject, but this article offers three simple keys.

I know there are lots of different formulas, techniques and strategies for seeing your goals become reality. But, if you want to keep it really simple, in my opinion, these three keys are the most important. First, is the goal itself.

Your goal is your vision for your life. It can be a spiritual goal, personal health goal, financial goal, or whatever; it is your desired destination. Without having any goals, dreams, or aspirations, life is like a sailboat with no sails. It’s like Yogi Berra once said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll end up someplace else.”

Secondly, you need a plan. Many have desires but they just dream about them. Some Christians pray about their dreams and goals but never take any action. Even though they pray, over time their goals can become like a wish list and they almost treat God like Santa Claus: “I hope He gives this to me.”

I am very much in favor of praying, looking for and expecting help from God. But we need to do our part, too. If someone’s goal is to find a better job, are they just expecting someone to call them up out of the blue and offer it to them? Of course pray, but have an action plan to pursue the goal.

Do You Have A Plan?

Without a plan, how will you get to your destination? Recently, Kathy and I spent a few days in San Diego. Yes, we prayed for God to supply what we needed, but we didn’t expect to go to bed one night here in Arizona and magically wake up in California the next morning. We had a plan. We decided to drive and planned the route we would take, as well as all the other details.

For that trip, we pursued a specific plan of action related to our goal. What is your plan of action in order to obtain your goal? What steps can you take to get to your destination. I know there are times when all you can do is pray, but in those situations I always ask God to show me if there is something I need to do, some action I need to take.

Track Your Progress

Thirdly, you need some kind of a progress report, a way to track your action and results. It takes a little bit of time and effort but sadly lots of people never do this important third step. I certainly have been guilty of not doing it at times.

It doesn’t have to be complicated and elaborate, complete with spreadsheets. Tracking helps you see your progress, and helps you see if you need to tweak your plan or formulate a new one.

For example, suppose your goal is to slim down and your plan is to change some of your eating habits and add exercise. If you never take a few extra seconds and jot down what you eat each day and when you exercise, how will you know if your plan is working or not? On the other hand, if you are tracking those things, when you step on the scale you will know if your plan is working or not.

Again, there is a ton of great, helpful information you can find about goals, but using these three simple keys can help you see your goals become reality. By all means pray, but remember, prayer is not a magic wand, and our petitions are neither a wish list nor a to do list. God expects us to do our best.

• Set a desired goal. Implement an action plan. Track your progress.
• Stay faithful to your plan, tweak it if you need to, and ask God for His help.

Mike Verdicchio
2014

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