This may be a little early for the traditional New Year’s resolution game, but if you find something to be important there is absolutely no reason to wait until January to improve your life.

Odds are that you, like most everyone else on Earth, hate the whole concept of setting goals.

I don’t blame you. Most people say they are going to do the same old thing year after year – some succeed, most fail miserably. I don’t intend to be negative, but the truth hurts.

Why do people dislike goal setting? For many, it is because they have repeatedly failed to meet goals, and they form a negative connotation to the process. I bet whether you like it or not, deep down you are thinking about past failures already.

Let’s change that.

No matter how hard the process is, I guarantee I have worked with people that needed far more support than you do. I’m talking extreme cases. One client took more than a year before they could say “goal” without spiraling into a state of anxiety and anger.

You are not starting from as difficult a state of mind. You can do this with a little bit of homework and, ideally, some support.

There is more to goal setting than meets the eye. I don’t even like the term “goal setting.” Anyone can set a goal . . . then what? Most people make big changes and work really hard for a couple of weeks, maybe even a month, then, burnout and go back to the comfortable way they’re use to. You know you’ve done it. Don’t be ashamed; consider me guilty as well.

Goal setting is useless if you don’t know where to go from there and isn’t the best way to describe the process. So what do we call it? Goal achievement.

Setting a goal is not enough. The desired result is to actually make consistent progress and eventually have success.

It has been written about bazillions of times, so you can get details on SMART goal setting without me repeating it, but here is the basic idea:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-based

The first step in this process is to write your goals down. Make sure to limit the number of goals you work on, as having too many things to focus on decreases the odds of actually accomplishing any of them.

Benefits of writing your goals down include making things more concrete and sharing with your peers what you plan to accomplish. This makes you accountable and builds a support system to help you work toward your goals.

Having a bad day and contemplating doing something counterproductive? Find someone in your support network and use them as a sounding board. Ask that person what obstacles they have faced and what they have done to overcome them. You are not the only one dealing challenges, and odds are that there are similarities in what challenges most people are facing.

Here are the steps you should take.

- Write down a list of all the things you want to accomplish.

- Narrow it down to the one or two highest priority goals on your list and include a few specific objectives (smaller steps or specific tasks) that will help you move toward your goals.

- Keep in mind SMART goal setting techniques.

- Share your goals with the people that you think will be supportive and helpful in your journey.

- Take consistent action toward achieving your new goals by making small and sustainable changes every day.

If you do these simple things, you will already be in the habit and you will have a huge head start on the New Year’s resolution crowd. There is no reason to wait; start taking control and working toward improving your life today.

• A Technique to Reach Your Goals Faster Without Struggling
• 5 Ways to Get Back On-Track Toward Achieving Your Goals