Have you ever wanted to own a business but didn’t know how to start? Are there other ventures in your life you want to pursue but don’t know how? Maybe you want to run a marathon or get accepted into a specific program. Whatever the case, in your life, you will want to strive for certain things. 

Sometimes, pursuing the things you desire can be the hardest. You might be afraid of failure. You might be afraid of success. Overall, it feels like there is more at stake. So, instead of staying paralyzed dreaming about what you want, set goals and go for it. 

On Season 6 episode 17 of the Making Bank podcast, NFL player John Madsen talks about motivation and goal setting. He chats about how as a teenager, he wanted to play professionally, despite not making his high school football team. Only a few years later, he was playing for the Raiders, and then the Browns. 

He attributes his success to many factors, but the biggest one was setting the goal and following it. In the episode, he dives into why goals are so important and how to properly set them in order to succeed. 

Why Set Goals? 

Direction

So, why set goals in the first place? If you already know what you want to do with your life, what’s the point of getting it down on paper? 

When setting a goal, it forces you to articulate exactly what you want. Sometimes, you may think you know what you want—until you reflect on it. Maybe you want to start a business—but is that all you want? Not necessarily. Maybe you want to start a business in a certain industry. Maybe you want to found a company with a specific product or service. Or perhaps, you just want to make a certain income and you believe a business will get you there. 

Whatever the case, writing down your goals forces you to be specific about what you want. That specificity can give your life direction. A business in the fashion world is a much different path than a business in the tech industry. 

Motivation 

Another thing a goal can provide is motivation. While this is the most obvious thing a goal can do for you, it can be a bit more nuanced than that. By setting a specific goal, you not only give yourself a direction, but you can also determine a timeline. 

A timeline is key in helping you feel motivated. If you can figure out a deadline, that deadline will add some urgency to your actions and get you started. You can now work towards a specific date, learning to fit your steps into your schedule in order to meet that deadline. Having a specific timeline is great motivator that works every time. 

Organization

Once you find your direction and timeline, you can then use those tools to help organize your steps. For example, you can filter all your steps going forward through the lens of your direction. Will this step help move me in the direction I want? Or is this step distracting me from the end goal? The ability to pick and choose how you exert your energy will help provide a fast track to your goal, as well as avoid burn out. 

When you have a deadline to meet, you can use it to prioritize your actions as well. If you know you have a year to accomplish something, you can lay out what needs to get done tomorrow, and what can be done in 6 months from now. What needs to get done first? What needs other things to fall into place before it can happen? 

The direction and timeline of your goal will keep you on your path to success. 

Set Multiple Goals 

When setting goals, John also touched on making sure to have multiple goals that build on top of each other. This can look like daily goals that help you reach a weekly goal, or monthly goals that help you reach a yearly goal. Whatever the case, break down your actions into smaller steps. This will make reaching your goal more manageable, as well as less stressful. 

Another thing John talked about is to always have a larger goal. In the episode, he recounts how in high school, he decided he wanted to play professionally. All throughout junior college, he held onto that goal. Once he reached the NFL, he had reached his goal. Now what? His motivation flattened; his performance struggled at first. He needed a new goal. 

So, when setting your large goals, keep in mind a goal after that. It doesn’t always have to be harder to attain. It could be in a different field, or even area in life such as fitness, family, or spirituality. Whatever the case, keep setting goals.

Set Authentic Goals 

Lastly, it’s imperative to set goals authentic to you. When writing down your goals, focus on what you want, what makes you happy, and what speaks to you. No matter how impressive the goal, you will be miserable if you don’t like what you’re working towards.

Many times, it’s about the journey, not the destination. So, pick a journey that you want to walk, and one that will ultimately fulfill you just as much as the destination.