Goal Setting Guidelines for Staying in the Saddle

Goal setting guidelines for staying in the saddle are necessary additions to our success saddle-bags – and I don’t mean those saddle-bags we want to lose. Any new endeavor requires self-growth and that self-growth isn’t always a smooth ride. Sometimes the ride seems too rough to handle and we may end up pitched off into the dirt. Falling off that horse happens -however get right back on. It just gets harder the longer you wait to remount.

Regardless of why we fall – maybe there are too many "Crazy Days" in which we allow other people’s agendas to buck our own – maybe we hit a plateau and have trouble regrouping to move forward – or maybe we are feeling guilty or unworthy of pursuing our goals – whatever it is, we must jump up, dust off and remount or be doomed to always wonder what if… I will give you a few of the goal setting guidelines that I have used myself.

Goal Setting Guideline #1-Board Meetings – When feeling really off-track, I call an emergency board meeting. My emergency meetings consist of me, my lovable mutts and my journal. We may all converge in the office or retreat to the backyard. Why my dogs and my journal? My dogs are my way of grounding myself and releasing negativity so I am able to be more open and receptive to the positive. You may use something else such as soft music or a picture of your family. I use my journal to get into my head and address what is going with my progress. Just as in most businesses, when slumps happen, the smart leaders call board meetings to uncover issues and to rededicate everyone to the shared cause. In my journal, I write to remind myself and to rededicate myself to my WHY.

Goal Setting Guideline #2 - Remember your WHY?- What is the rational or reason you wanted to pursue your goals in the first place? Was it just a spur of the moment inspiration or do you really want to do something with your life? What do you want to happen and WHY? That Why is the reason you do what you do and is the inspiration that you must remember when the ride gets rough. I use my vision board, notes posted by my computer and pieces of jewelry as constant reminders of my intentions. This helps boost the memory process – especially when the ravines and creeks invade my own ride.

Goal Setting Guideline #3 - Block out Your Plan – Do you have a written plan of your goals and intentions? As you may know – putting your plan in writing is important to success. It seems to trigger the “Official-ness” of our intentions to ourselves as well as to others. It sets everything in motion. I know I have the tendency to get overwhelmed so I must break my plan down into specific monthly, weekly and daily tasks. That way I don’t get that paralyzing feeling of gazing across that challenging ring full of high jumps and water obstacles and wanting to dismount. It’s easier to take the smaller low jumps as opposed to sailing over incredibly high obstacles. Smaller jumps are just fine and more motivating to propel your forward movement.

Goal Setting Guideline #4 - Put on Your Blinders - Even with a plan I tend to get easily distracted. I usually resort to putting on my blinders. Just as with the harness horses on the racetrack, blinders block out the distractions around us and allow us to focus forward by narrowing our range of vision. My blinders usually consist of closing the door of the office, putting on the ceiling fan, turning off the glaring overhead light and turning on soft instrumental music. (Many times, I also have to put the Jack, the Pomeranian in time out – meaning out of the room – when he starts up with his game of take away the other dog’s rawhide treat. Even though I love him, he has to respect the boundaries, too.)

Goal Setting Guideline #5 - Good Distractions - Sometimes what really deflates our motivation is the distaste or fear of a task that must be done. That task may be the step blocking all forward movement. My horse, Guin had a major objection to getting her hooves worked on. I have to imagine that she had a very bad experience formerly because she would fight to the death rather than allow my favorite farrier, Mike, to even pick up her hooves. The solution that Mike and I came up with was to keep Guin distracted by my doling out little handfuls of sweet feed while Mike attempted to set the world record in hoof trimming. It worked – so well so that Guin actually pricked up her ears and nickered when she saw Mike coming toward her. Why not try keeping your mind on your dream scene while having to drive to a less than eagerly anticipated meeting or pop up a game on your computer while waiting for a huge print job or while having to listen to a required “listening” piece. Just be sure to stay aware enough to function safely and effectively.

Goal Setting Guideline #6 - Eat the yucky stuff first – Save the best for last – As a kid, I always got through my dinner plate by choking down the less yummy stuff and leaving my favorite for last. I do the same with my dogs when it comes to the monthly preventive maintenance routine. First the ear washing that results in struggling to secure my very determined old shih tzu, Miles, while aiming the squirt of solution into each of his ears. Next come the flea drops that he reluctantly lets me leak onto his withers as he stares at me with reproach. Then finally the beef-flavored heartworm chunk that he gleefully wags his tail for - forgiving me for my prior misdeeds. Do those things that you don’t want to do first. You may need to hold your nose and choke it down but it will be over quickly enough and then you can go onto the more pleasant tasks. That heavy dreadful feeling leaves as soon as you just do whatever you don’t want to do.

Goal Setting Guideline #7 - Use Positive Reinforcement - Rewarding yourself once a task is completed is fabulous way to motivate. Jack’s trainer, Lindy, has introduced our whole crew to the methods of positive reinforcement. It works much better than the shrieking and chasing method when Jack is let outside and doesn’t want to come back in. Now I just step out the door and shake the treat bags and all three dogs come running. Whether it’s a new pair of shoes for “daddy”, a bag of greasy/salty potato chips for me, sweet feed for Guin or the special dehydrated liver for Jack, Chewie and Miles, we all have some sort of reward that we look forward to enough to get through the tasks we really rather not do.

Goal Setting Guideline #8 - Hook up with an Accountability Partner – One of the best ways to stay motivated is to share your goals with an Accountability Partner. Your partner should be someone that will respect and listen to you and hold you accountable without judgment. Your agenda should be your partner’s focus. That’s one of the greatest attributes of coaching. When you hire a coach, you take yourself and your goals more seriously. It is a valuable investment that will return to you multifold.

Everyone needs help with goal setting and motivation at different times during their own ride on the way to their intended destination. It happens to all of us. It’s all part of the cycle of making positive permanent changes. When the ride gets rough, don’t bail out of the saddle – feel free to ask for help.

Cheers to YOUR SuCCess! ~ Janus Moncur - The Co-Creative Coach™