Step 1: Set A Timeline For Yourself
To ensure your SMART goals are timely, set an end date for when you want to cross the finish line and achieve your goal.
Some of your goals may have built-in timelines. You might want to learn 50 key phrases in Spanish before going on your vacation to South America. Or you may want to save a certain amount of money for your child’s college education by the time they graduate from high school.
The proper timeline for other goals will be entirely up to you. For instance, you might want to write your first book before the end of the year or earn a seven-figure income by your 40th birthday.
The best timelines for your personal growth goals have a date that’s ambitious, but achievable. You’ll stay motivated if you challenge yourself, but don’t be too ambitious or you’ll run the risk of not achieving your goal and feeling defeated.
Start out by estimating how long it will take you to achieve your goal if everything goes 100% as planned. Then, write down a specific end date.
Next, ask yourself if you’ll likely need extra time or not, considering roadblocks that may come up. Or, do you want to push yourself even faster than a comfortable pace?
Once you settle on an end date, you’ll be able to create a timeline for what you will need to do each day, week, month, or year in order to achieve your goal on time.
Step 2: Reach For Milestones Along The Way
The timeline you’ve created will help you identify the milestones you’ll need to hit in order to achieve your goal.
If your goal is to read 24 self-improvement books this year, your milestones could include finishing a book every two weeks. It may also help you to figure out how many pages or chapters you should read each day.
Checking your milestones off will help motivate you to continue progressing forward. Milestones can also help you see if your timeline is too ambitious and needs to be altered to be more realistic yet still challenging.
These milestones will also help you look back and reflect on the ups and downs of your journey as you actively practice how to measure your personal growth.
Step 3: Track Your Progress
The next step in knowing how to measure progress on your goals is determining how to track them.
Many tools are available to you, so choose the one that you’re most comfortable with. Some people like to organize and track their goals in programs like Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets, for example.
Others prefer to utilize a project management tool, such as Asana, that is made specifically for tracking goals, setting up to-do lists, and monitoring progress.
You may also consider using a goal-setting app, like Goals Wizard, which has a companion website for tracking on your computer as well as your phone.
If any of those options do not seem right for you, though, a simple method of tracking your progress with pen and paper or a journal works perfectly. Whatever method you choose, the important part is that you have your goals in writing and are able to conveniently track them on a regular basis. People who write down their goals and progress are internally motivated to continue forward.
A key aspect of tracking your progress is writing your goals in the present tense. When you do this, your subconscious mind registers it as a command to give you motivation towards your goal.
For example, “I weigh 150 pounds on Valentine’s Day,” helps you visualize what you will look and feel like on that day, inspiring you with ideas on how to reach your goal and motivating you to make necessary changes.
It’s also important to track your emotions, thought processes, actions, and habits as well as your milestones. This can give you insight into the progress you’re making and what you may need to focus on to overcome obstacles. If progress is stagnant or moving backward, for example, it may be time to change something to kick start new growth.
Remember that learning how to manage your time wisely will catapult you toward success in reaching your goals. Learn time management tips for productivity to avoid distractions, prioritize your most important tasks each day and overcome procrastination.
Step 4: Set Specific Times To Measure Your Progress
The next key aspect of personal development measures is to check in on your progress regularly.
Be careful not to fall into the trap of setting amazing goals but then forgetting about them after an initial burst of motivation — like many New Year’s goals that fall by the wayside despite good intentions.
Instead, set a specific time to check in on your progress, and then make sure you follow up. Stay consistent with how you track your progress, whether it is daily, weekly, or otherwise. Think of it as an important business meeting, and don’t miss it ever!
Reaching your goals takes consistent effort. Be sure to hone your time management and organizational skills to help you stay focused and increase your productivity so you will reach your goals.
Step 5: Be Your Biggest Motivator
The final key to knowing how to measure your personal growth is to cheer yourself on. Learn positive affirmations that will help you stay motivated and encouraged, and remind yourself of them daily.
With any venture that requires change, difficulties will inevitably arise — even setbacks. But this is all part of the natural process.
Never beat yourself up if you fall behind or miss a benchmark. Instead, see it as a learning experience that can help propel you to further progress.
The key to measuring your growth is to be aware of it, accept it and make changes to fix it. Therefore, it’s necessary, to be honest with yourself instead of making excuses or ignoring obstacles.
Be adaptable and flexible with how things change throughout your personal growth process while holding yourself accountable and moving forward.
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