Lesson Three: Achievable Goals
Welcome to lesson three! In this lesson, we will continue to build upon our specific, measurable goals by identify what we need in order to achieve them!
Don't be afraid to dream beyond yourself
All too often, I see posts about "achievable goals" saying to make sure your goals are ones you can reasonably accomplish. While there is merit to that advice (obviously, you do actually want to reach your goals), sometimes I feel like it can discourage people from pushing the envelop and reaching for the stars. Many feel like they can only create goals that current them can complete, rather than making ones that they will have to reach outside of themselves to accomplish.
Don't fall into this common trap. You can dream (and plan) big! Yes, you may have to learn new skills (some of which may have steep learning curves) or bring on outside help, but those things don't make your goal impossible. Instead, take stock of what things you need to learn or hire out, and make plans to pursue those details!
Don't fall into this common trap. You can dream (and plan) big! Yes, you may have to learn new skills (some of which may have steep learning curves) or bring on outside help, but those things don't make your goal impossible. Instead, take stock of what things you need to learn or hire out, and make plans to pursue those details!
You can dream (and plan) big!"
Identify your ground-zero, obtain, and outsource areas
There are three separate categories of knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you will have when setting a goal: ground-zero, obtain, and outsource. Let's go into each category a little more.
Ground-zero
This category includes any knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you already have. For example, if I were to make a goal to read 10 books off of my physical To Be Read (TBR) pile, the physical TBR would be a ground-zero resource. These are books I already own and have on hand. Or, if I wanted to publish a book, the outlining phrase would be a ground-zero skillset. I already know how to create an outline that works for me. These things are great because you don't have to do anything extra in order to leverage them to reach your goal.
Obtain
This category includes knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you will need to obtain in order to accomplish your goals. If I wanted to read 50 books in a year, but only owned 12, I would need to obtain the additional 38 in order to reach my goal. Or, another example would be if I wanted to include an illustration in a book. In order to reach this goal, I might learn how to create illustrations that would suit my story. Don't be afraid of areas where you might need to gain additional knowledge or resources. While gaining resources can be intimidating, it is not impossible. Seek to work on one small thing at a time. Even if it takes a long time to reach your desired destination, it will happen
Outsource
This category includes knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you don't already have and it doesn't make sense for you to gain. These are things that you will want to hire out to someone else. This is a tough decision, especially when you're first starting out on a career. You might not always the funds to pay someone else to work for you. This is totally okay. Everyone starting a business is in the same boat. There might be many things that you'll have to bootstrap, barter for, or find discounts on at the beginning in order to make things work. Don't be afraid to find creative ways to pay for things that you might need in order to accomplish your goals!
Ground-zero
This category includes any knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you already have. For example, if I were to make a goal to read 10 books off of my physical To Be Read (TBR) pile, the physical TBR would be a ground-zero resource. These are books I already own and have on hand. Or, if I wanted to publish a book, the outlining phrase would be a ground-zero skillset. I already know how to create an outline that works for me. These things are great because you don't have to do anything extra in order to leverage them to reach your goal.
Obtain
This category includes knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you will need to obtain in order to accomplish your goals. If I wanted to read 50 books in a year, but only owned 12, I would need to obtain the additional 38 in order to reach my goal. Or, another example would be if I wanted to include an illustration in a book. In order to reach this goal, I might learn how to create illustrations that would suit my story. Don't be afraid of areas where you might need to gain additional knowledge or resources. While gaining resources can be intimidating, it is not impossible. Seek to work on one small thing at a time. Even if it takes a long time to reach your desired destination, it will happen
Outsource
This category includes knowledge, skillsets, or resources that you don't already have and it doesn't make sense for you to gain. These are things that you will want to hire out to someone else. This is a tough decision, especially when you're first starting out on a career. You might not always the funds to pay someone else to work for you. This is totally okay. Everyone starting a business is in the same boat. There might be many things that you'll have to bootstrap, barter for, or find discounts on at the beginning in order to make things work. Don't be afraid to find creative ways to pay for things that you might need in order to accomplish your goals!
Your Turn!
Flip to page 3 of your workbook entitled Lesson Three: Achievable Goals
Step one: in the columns, write down what your ground-zero, obtain, and outsource resources are.
Step two: write down how you plan to obtain or outsource your resources. Do you need to buy anything? Sign up for classes or courses? Find a freelancer? List all of those things so that you have a clear plan of how to make your goals happen!
Now that you have a clear idea of what resources you need to reach your goals, it's time to discuss the relevancy of your goal!
Step one: in the columns, write down what your ground-zero, obtain, and outsource resources are.
Step two: write down how you plan to obtain or outsource your resources. Do you need to buy anything? Sign up for classes or courses? Find a freelancer? List all of those things so that you have a clear plan of how to make your goals happen!
Now that you have a clear idea of what resources you need to reach your goals, it's time to discuss the relevancy of your goal!