The goalsetting process will help you to define exactly where you are now and where you want to be. Living an exciting, challenging, happiness filled life does not happen by accident - we have to create it ourselves!

Properly defined goals not only highlight the things that you want to achieve but also give you a clear step-by-step plan of how you are going to achieve them.  By setting clear, compelling goals you are able to sculpt the life of your dreams - and remember, anything is possible!

This resource gives you a straightforward goalsetting technique which should enable you to create a compelling vision of your future. The tool begins by exploring some of the personal development goals that you have such as travel, learning new skills, building self-confidence, learning new languages etc. 

This is followed by a focus upon your material, fun goals such as to own a great big house (or a small tree house!), to live in a particular type of way, to own specific things etc.  This is not about being greedy or about focusing on the material things in life, however as it is designed to keep this process fun and to give you some extra drive.  To this end it is important to note that the 'thing' goals do not always require monetary gain.

Finally, your financial goals are addressed. 

The aim is to break down your goals and ambitions into chunks so that you can develop specific plans and timeframes in order to move closer and closer towards them each day.

The first stage of setting your personal development goals is understanding what you want to achieve in your life - so refer back to the first exercise of developing your vision.

The aim of this exercise is, again, to brainstorm literally any goal that you might have or to anything you would love to achieve.  As with all of these exercises, it does not have to be realistic at this stage and you do not even have to have any idea of how you would go about achieving it now - but just have fun. 

You could think about the following areas of your life for inspiration:

• who would you like to become?
• what would you like to do?
• what would you like to learn?
• what health goals do you have?
• what emotions would you like to create?
• where would you like to go?
• what would you like to see?
• what would you like to create?
• what skills would you like to develop?
• what abilities would you like to have?
• what are your career goals?
• what would you like to accomplish?

In the next 1-20 years who do you want to be, what would you like to become, what do you want to have in your life?  Be creative and write for five minutes as fast as you can.  GO!

Now that you have your list, go through each of your goals and write a time that you will achieve them.  Next to each goal write either 1, 3, 5 or 10 depending on whether you are committed to achieving each goal within 1 year or less, 3 years, 5 years or 10 years.  You do not need to know exactly how you are going to achieve it yet, just that you can and will.

Next, select your top 3-5 one year, personal development goals that you are 110% committed to achieving and then under each of these goals, write out a paragraph (or two) about why you are totally committed to achieving it.  Think about what it will mean to you to have this goal become a reality.  What difference would it make to you and those around you?  How would your life be different?  How much better would you life be?

NEXT STEP > Now that you have your personal development goals for the next one, three, five and ten years set you are ready to move on to your next goalsetting exercise - your material/fun goals!