Months ago, after being so pumped up and excited from reading a book, I set some goals to incorporate certain tasks into my schedule. However, after some weeks, I reverted to my old routine. What was I getting wrong? I wasn’t reviewing my goals!
‘The key to staying on top of your priorities is to schedule regular times for review and reflection.’ Michael Hyatt.
We all set goals for different aspects of our lives. While many factors such as not setting goals that are SMART can contribute to the failure of our goals, even SMART goals if not reviewed on a regular basis can fail!
What happens when you don’t review your goals?
When you don’t review your goals, you are likely to forget that you set them in the first place! And you definitely cannot pursue a goal you don’t remember!
How many times have you checked your journals after the first quarter of the year only to discover some goals, intention and new year resolutions you forgot you ever made?
How often should you review your goals?
Reviews should be done on a consistent basis. It could be daily, weekly or monthly. Reviews could be as simple as evaluating by bedtime how you spent your day in view of the many tasks written on your to-do list as your goals for that day.
It could be as organized as scheduling a particular time of the week, and a specific location (for me I choose Sundays to review my goals and make plans for the new week, I do this under a lemon tree in my compound with the cool breeze blowing my head).
While daily reviews help your commitment and keep you away from distractions; weekly reviews help you see things from a broad perspective like how far you’ve gone and what you are yet to do.
Tips for daily review
Make your goals as visible as possible: when you see the goals you would like to achieve visible in strategic locations in your house and workplace, you are reviewing them on-the-go as you go about your daily activities.
Review one goal at a time:
Reminding yourself that you have many tasks undone just right about the time you want to go to bed can be overwhelming so it’s best to review a goal at a time.
Tips for weekly review
Location: Schedule a fixed, consistent time every week and a regular location conducive for introspection and meditation.
Self-Examination: Ask the right questions about each goal and give honest unabridged answers. For instance, if my goal is to read a chapter of a book in a week, possible questions could be
Did I meet up with this goal? If yes/no why? Did I break down how many pages I would read per day? Do I need to change my time and approach to reading?
The goal of a review is to ensure that you are acing your goals. Be ready to tweak things or do things differently if an approach is no longer suitable.
A plan is worthless unless it is reviewed from time to time. What tip(s) will you be using to set review your goals either on a daily, weekly or quarterly basis?