{"id":43164,"date":"2021-07-23T08:10:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-23T12:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=43164"},"modified":"2021-07-26T11:35:08","modified_gmt":"2021-07-26T15:35:08","slug":"write-down-your-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/write-down-your-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"Why You Should Write Down Your Goals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Do you write down your goals? Why should you write down your goals\/ How does the simple act of writing down what you want to achieve help you expedite your journey there? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The simple act of writing down your goals can make a huge difference in your commitment to work towards them. When you put down your goals on paper, you increase your interaction with them which makes you more likely to achieve them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we’ll discuss the power of writing down your goals and how to do it for maximum impact. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Interact With Your Goals<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Studies indicate that increasing your interaction with your goal makes you more likely to achieve it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers recruited participants from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia to study the effects of different goal-setting habits. They divided the participants into five groups, asked each participant to set a goal\u2014something they wanted to accomplish in the next four weeks\u2014and gave them one or more techniques to follow while working toward their goal. The table below summarizes which techniques each group of goal setters used and how they fared:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/td>Group 1<\/strong><\/td>Group 2<\/strong><\/td>Group 3<\/strong><\/td>Group 4<\/strong><\/td>Group 5<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Think about goals<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td><\/tr>
Write goals<\/td><\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td><\/tr>
Write steps to achieve goals<\/a><\/td><\/td><\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td><\/tr>
Send a list of steps to a friend or mentor<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td>x<\/td>x<\/td><\/tr>
Provide weekly updates on your goals to your friend or mentor<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td>x<\/td><\/tr>
% Participants who achieved their goals<\/td>43<\/td>56<\/td>56<\/td>64<\/td>76<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The study showed that the more ways participants engaged with their goal, the more likely they were to achieve it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another study, people who wrote down their goals and reviewed them regularly earned nine times more over the course of their lives than people who didn\u2019t set goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the techniques in the above study, here are five ways to engage with your goals:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Read and visualize your goals<\/a> two or three times per day. <\/strong>As you read a goal, visualize how it will feel to have achieved it. Visualization is a powerful tool to help you realize your goals. Studies have shown that the brain activity for doing an activity and visualizing the activity are the same. The system in your brain that does this is called the reticular activating system<\/a> (RAS). Regular visualization activates your RAS, makes your goals feel achievable, and motivates you to take steps to get there: It creates a disconnect between your lived reality and what life will be like once you\u2019ve achieved your goal. This disconnect is called \u201cstructural tension\u201d and it motivates you to make your reality match your visualizations.<\/strong> For example, use it to speak up more in class, take on more ambitious projects, or other activities that will help you achieve your goal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An important note on visualization: Some people see bright, colorful, three-dimensional pictures of their visions, while others just think about how things will be. Both work equally well for activating your RAS and working toward your goals. Principle 10: Expand Your Comfort Zone further discusses using visualization with your affirmations<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Write down your most important goal and keep it in your wallet.<\/strong> Every time you open your wallet, you\u2019ll remind yourself of what you\u2019re working toward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Create a goal book or vision board<\/a>. <\/strong>Use a journal, notebook, binder, or display board to record your goals. Write each goal at the top of a separate page and write about it in detail below. If you\u2019re artistic, consider making art that represents what achieving your goal will look like. Or, place pictures of things you hope to achieve in the book or on the board. This could include places you want to travel and things you\u2019ll own. Read your goals at least once a day to motivate you to act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Write yourself a check. <\/strong>This strategy could work well if one of your goals is to increase your earnings<\/a> over time. Make the check out to yourself for the amount of money you\u2019re hoping to get, write what it\u2019s for in the memo line, and mark a future date that you\u2019ll have achieved it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Example: Actor Jim Carrey wrote himself a check for $10 million dated five years in the future, motivating himself to expand his acting career. Within five years, he had exceeded his goal, making about $20 million per movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Break Your Goals Into Steps<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Besides writing down your goal and interacting with it, break it into smaller steps you\u2019ll take to reach it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To identify the steps necessary for achieving your goal, ask yourself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n