Goal Oriented

Being goal-oriented is especially helpful for inspirational leaders, starting your own business or making changes in your current company.

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What is goal oriented?

Goal oriented means being motivated by a clear vision, mission, goal or aspiration. That is to say, for you to start and complete projects, you prefer having at least one clear goal that keeps you going.

You love attaining your objectives and others can feel you’re passionate when talking about your intentions and aspirations. This type of conversation makes you feel good and even more motivated to achieve big things.

Whether you’re working alone or with your team members, you often use words such as ‘attain’, ‘get’ and ‘gain’, as you believe they can motivate both you and others.

If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.

Albert Einstein

Leaders who are goal oriented

Michelle Obama

“Never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals”, advises Michelle Obama.

The founder of ‘Let’s Move!’, the ambitious program which intends to solve the obesity problem amongst young people, believes you should never be afraid of failing, as it builds resilience and makes you even hungrier for success.

The confident, goal-oriented lawyer and author says there’s no magic to achievement: “it’s really about hard work, choices and persistence”.

Daymond John

Daymond built his way up from nothing. The famous entrepreneur and TV personality reckons he was able to endure thanks to his goal-oriented mindset. By focusing on where he wanted to be, he was able to overcome every obstacle, as it was all part of a bigger picture.

Daymond still believes in goal-setting: “I read my [10] goals every single morning and every single night before I go to sleep, because it's the last thing I want to think about and I want to dream about”.

For him, the most important thing is being able to visualize yourself accomplishing what you desire — even if you don’t know how to clearly get there yet. After all, “If you don't set those goals, who's setting the goals for you?”

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Melanie Perkins

Melanie Perkins is one of the world’s youngest entrepreneurs. At 33, the founder of Canva says she enjoys setting “crazy-big goals”, since you can only go as high as your biggest dreams.

What exactly is a “crazy-goal”? One that “Scares, excites and humbles me. If it makes me go on an emotional rollercoaster and requires the talents of many, that’s a goal worth tackling”, says the goal-oriented leader.

Melanie also recommends you ask yourself what success would look like in three years. Then, turn your vision into clear goals you can work towards each day.

The benefits of being goal oriented

Business Visioning

Because you are goal-oriented, you can easily predict trends and behaviors. Seeing ahead is something you’ve been doing for years now.

Strategic Thinking

You have an incredible ability for discovering the best ways of achieving your goals. Creating strategies comes naturally to you.

Inspiring Others

You may be one of the most inspiring people your coworkers have met. Your drive impresses, and you motivate others through incentives.

The blind spots of being goal oriented

Obstacle Averse

Since you may not be looking for problems and threats, you may bump into obstacles that slow you down that could have been avoided.

Single-Minded

Your dedication to the goal at hand might mean that you get so ‘zoomed-in’ that you don’t entertain other great opportunities that pop up along the way.

Enjoy the Journey

Your goal orientation might mean you forget to stop and smell the roses, and miss enjoying the journey for the sake of the experience.

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How to become more goal oriented

1. Try visualization

What would you like to achieve in the long run? Make a list of your desires and dreams. Then, close your eyes and visualize yourself accomplishing them and notice how you feel.

2. Set short-term goals

To become more goal-oriented, you can begin to define an easy, short-term goal. When you get there, take notes of what you’ve learned. Then replicate the experience with other (perhaps more challenging) goals.

3. List your priorities and what makes you proud

What makes you feel accomplished? Make a list of achievements you feel proud of and see if they have something in common. If you can spot a trend, try setting more goals related to it.

4. Let go of fear

If you’re scared of failing, that may actually hold you back from setting goals and ultimately achieving them. Try changing your relationship with ‘failure’, by realizing it can be your best teacher.