Goals need to be attainable. That means they need to be realistic. If they are not realistic, you will not attain them and this leads to frustration and discouragement.
My husband and I would like to return to Ireland and focus on playing golf. (This time we focused on hiking in all six of Ireland’s national parks.) I think it would be a great idea to spend one week in Ireland and one week in Scotland. If we were to set a goal to do this in five years, that would be realistic for us. We could save enough money in five years to do that, if we cut back on other things.
Setting a goal to go to Ireland and Scotland this year would not be realistic. We do not have the money saved for another large vacation and we do not have any more vacation time. So why set ourselves up for failure by setting an unrealistic goal, one that we cannot attain?
Examples of unrealistic and realistic goals follow.
“I will lose 25 pounds in one week.” (This will only work if you resort to amputation of limbs!) “I will lose 25 pounds in 5 months.”
“I will start training this week and finish the local triathlon next week.” “I will train a minimum of four hours per week starting this week and finish the local triathlon next year.”
The important thing is that you achieve your goals. Write them so that you can actually accomplish them. Base this upon your situation and your resources, including financial and time resources.
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