I recently shared on my radio show, Highest Praise Radio, why goals are so important. If you missed it, this is for you.
Do you set goals? Have you put goals in place for 2024? If you have, great for you. I hope you achieve them all. If you haven’t what on earth are you waiting for?
If you’ve never taken the time to set goals, then you’re missing something very valuable in your life, like a sense of direction. Goals provide a roadmap for where you’re going, so if you have no goals, you’re likely on the road to nowhere.
Goals also hold you accountable for what happens in your life. Let’s dive deeper to understand why goals are important and why you need some in your life.
Why Goals Are Important
1. Goals Give You A Sense of Direction
Distractions are everywhere—to your left, to the right, and directly in front of you. It’s easy to get caught up in any of it. The sad part about that is, that spending too much time on the wrong thing is a big waste of time. I don’t know about you, but I take my time very seriously.
Whenever you veer off course, is time taken away from where you really need to be. When you don’t set goals, you can get caught up in all the noise that leaves you nowhere. When you have clear goals, they help direct how you need to spend your time. Your goals keep you focused to avoid all the distractions.
2. Goals Help You Measure Your Success
Success doesn’t look the same for everyone. My success will not look like yours and vice versa. That is, unless we have the same goals. But, because you’re an individual and have your own dreams, your goals will be driven by those dreams. When you reach your goals, you’ve succeeded. Never measure your success by what someone else is doing. Measure your success by what you’re doing. You can only do that if you have goals.
3. Goals Give You Purpose
Goals give you a reason to get out of bed in the morning. Every goal you set for yourself will require work to make it happen. That could mean daily, weekly, or monthly tasks to achieve to get you closer to your goal.
Knowing that today is the day you’re expected to meet a deadline, perform a task, or do something that gets you closer to reaching your goal, is a reason to get out of bed and get your day going. This keeps you motivated and excited about life. Imagine waking up and having absolutely nothing to work towards daily. On second thought, I never want to imagine that.
Types of Goals
Now that you understand why goals are important to have in your life, you should know there’s no hard and fast rule about what a goal should be. A goal is anything you want to achieve. Various types of goals can be achieved. A goal can be:
Health-related: lose weight, get better fit, eat healthier, quit smoking, etc.
Business-related: get a new job, start a business, get a promotion, improve work performance, etc.
Financially-related: save money, start a budget, reduce debt, buy a home, learn to invest, etc.
Education-related: pursue a degree, learn a new language, improve grades, get certified, etc.
Geared towards family/friends: spend more time with the people who matter most, make new friends, get married, etc.
Creative/artistic: learn a new instrument, try something new, visit more cultural places, etc.
Community-related: volunteer more, coach a youth sport, start a charity project, etc.
Pulling It All Together
I’ve said this once, but it bears repeating. Your goal does not have to look like anyone else’s. Your goal should be important to you. What I do suggest is that you take some time communing with your inner self to understand what is important to you. When you understand yourself more, and have an idea where God is guiding you in life, it will help to determine the types of goals you need to set for yourself.
If you have not set goals for 2024, I recommend you do so to get focused, have a sense of direction, and start holding yourself accountable for all the success you have coming in life.
In my next blog, I’ll cover how to set those goals.