5 Essential Tools To Accelerate Your Success and Achieve Big Goals

5 Essential Tools To Accelerate Your Success and Achieve Your Biggest Goals

Everyone has goals and dreams for their personal and professional success, but not everyone focuses on the right thing at the right time to achieve them. Here are 5 essential high performance tools that will help to accelerate the success you desire and achieve your biggest goals.  

1. Get Laser Focused on What You Want: Write Up Your Goals 

Did you know that while the research collectively shows that people who vividly write out their goals are nearly 1.5 times more likely to successfully accomplish their goals, less than 3 percent of the population actually do it? 

According to a recent Forbes article, vividly describing your goals in written form is strongly associated with goal success. Author Mark Murphy wrote that seeing your goals in your own handwriting helps them to be imprinted them on your subconscious and be more of a focal point in your mind as a result. 

Would you like some guidance and inspiration to accelerate your success and achieve life's biggest goals? Check out my GOAL SETTING MASTERY guide. 

That’s important because in the moment of decision - when we are faced with making a decision that can lead us closer to our goals or further away from them - our actions are most likely to follow our impulses, not our long term goals and desires. You know what I’m talking about, right? Like that piece of chocolate cake after dinner, or an extra scoop of ice cream. While these might sound good to you at the moment, they might not be congruent with goals like keeping fit and losing weight. 

Sure, its human nature. And our brains are wired to respond with the “feel good” hormone dopamine whenever we attain something we want. That’s partly why it feels so good to satisfy a impulse, like picking up a candy bar or pack of gum at the store check out line that you had no intention of buying when you walked in to buy groceries. 

An article looking at impulse spending at Money.com suggested said that we can use our own physiology to our advantage by reorienting your priorities. In the case of limiting your impulse spending, for example, the key to curbing unnecessary spending could be to recognize the impulse and consciously shift it from buying something new to meeting more essential long-term financial goals. In other words, if we are intentional, we can rewire our brain to prioritize long-term goals over our short-term impulses.

No more “flying by the seat of your pants”! 

Instead, determine your action plan that aligns with your long term goals. Focus on important tasks that lead you closer to your goals instead of giving in to impulses that might take you away from them.

2. Keep Those Goals In Sight And Look At Them Daily

Neuroscientific research shows that the key to achieving your goals over the long run is as much about your mindset as it is the actions you take to get there. And while nothing works for everyone, using a G.O.A.L. list is a great starting point.  

Essentially, a G.O.A.L list encompasses the following:

• A single life Goal that is congruent with your purpose.
• A clearly defined Outcome that results from attaining the goal and is aligned with your purpose.
• An Achievement plan of action.
• A short List of next steps. 

Let me be clear: your G.O.A.L. list is not one that includes your daily to-do’s. Items that make it on your GOAL list are strictly limited to those that are in alignment and congruent with your life purpose. These are very powerful when it comes to goal achievement, especially if they are positioned as the starting point in planning your daily activities over the long run.

So, how do you keep it in sight?

A vision board is a great solution! If possible, hang it in your office to remind you every day about what your most important life goals and WHY…why are you working so hard! Be sure to include items like:

• What do you want to accomplish? 
• Your G.O.A.L. list.
• Activity goals like travel destinations or specific creative projects you want to accomplish
• Pictures of family, friends and other loved ones
• Life event calendar
• Meaningful quotes and affirmations

Keep that list posted right next to your desk on a visible, well-trafficked wall, so you can read it every day. Keeping a list hidden in your desk or in a file somewhere on your desktop doesn’t serve the same purpose; soon enough your list is forgotten and you’re off track.

3. Be Prepared For Some Hiccups Along The Way.

No one’s path is smooth.  Usually, these roadblocks show up just when you’re feeling like you know what you’re doing. When that happens, they can eat away at your confidence, and make you question your path.

But instead of allowing these obstacles to affect your progress and shift your focus, find a way to resolve the problem as quickly as possible and get back on track toward your goals as soon as possible. 

In a recent blog post, I talked about being persistent, the ability to continue taking action towards your goals, despite the challenges and struggles that might present themselves. Without it, we are more likely to give up and quit when things get difficult. And that simply equates to having no chance of achieving the success you want. 

Thomas Edison’s development of the light bulb is one of my favorite examples to highlight persistency. Did you know that it took him more than 10,000 attempts to finally arrive the perfect light bulb?

See, high performers understand that achieving success in life in accomplishing our biggest goals requires more than a single attempt. Rather, it requires a systematic approach. The 3R Formula is a simple and easy way to assess and refocus your actions, so you are more likely to achieve the outcome you desire. It includes reflection and revision points as well as identifying how to remove any resistance points you might come up against. These are extremely powerful, high performance strategies that will help move you closer towards realizing your most important goals.

Another important high performance principle says that if we don’t take the time to sharpen the axe, over time we will become dull and lose our effectiveness. There’s no doubt that in today's rapidly advancing world, we are constantly moving faster and demanding more of ourselves than ever before.  As such, we can easily get drained, exhausted and burnt out. As a result, our productivity can decline and over time. If we’re not careful, we will eventually suffer physically and emotionally. It might not show up right away, but if the number of heart attacks and people suffering from high blood is any indication, the fast-paced life style that many executives, managers and business owners experience can be a life killer if not properly addressed. 

RELATED ARTICLE | Sharpen Your Axe: 3 Ways to Ignite Your Energy and Avoid Feeling Drained, Exhausted and Burnt-out

To ensure you have control over your energy levels and happiness consider devoting blocks of time to your personal life. According to the OECD Better Life Index, although the desire to successfully balance work and personal life is a challenging endeavor for most people, the ability to do so is important for the well-being of the entire household. So that’s one to begin addressing right away.

Whatever you do to manage the challenge or obstacle, once you resolve it, write down the solution in case you experience another similar problem in the future. Having a list of possible solutions is much less stressful than not knowing what to do.

Quick Note: If you find staying on task difficult, check out Dr. David Badre's awesome book, On Task to learn why we struggle to stay focused on tasks, why we put off working on tough tasks, and turn to easy "wins" like checking off quick to-do items. It’s a must-read for anyone wanting to read the neuroscience behind how to achieve big goals.

4. Find A High Performance Coach Or Accountability Partner.

Accountability is one of the key indicators of successful goal achievement. No wonder voicing your goals brings your goals to life - it forces you to do the work or risk the shame of being exposed for not meeting your goals. 

Why is accountability so useful when it comes to sticking with and reaching goals? 

The research unequivocally shows that a when someone out there sets a goal but doesn’t share it with anyone they are far more likely to give up on the goal and like water, choose the easier path when things get tough

But can an accountability partner help you to maximize your potential to achieve your goals in the future?

That’s where I would draw the line between an accountability partner and a coach. While an accountability partner can be anybody who you trust or admire, a high performance coach is invested in your success as much as you are.  A high performance coach will help you to ensure your goal is in alignment with what your long term goals are in life and ensure what you are doing now is indeed the most valuable activity for growth. In other words, an accountability partner might hold your feet to the fire to help you reach an immediate goal, but a high performance coach will help you cut through the fluff and gain a broad perspective to ensure that you only focus on what’s most important in your life and business. 

You want to be happy at home and in your business, right? The right high performance coach can help you do that. 

RELATED ARTICLE | 5 Mistakes People and Business Owners Make When Setting Goals

And while it is true that both an accountability partner and a high performance coach can hold you accountable, the role of a high performance coach is meant to help you to stay focused, motivated and productive across all the domains of your life, both personal and professional. To ensure your success, a high performance coach will deliver unbiased feedback to you and push you in a way that can help get you to where you want to be much more quickly than if you were to do it on your own or focused on the wrong goal. 

So, which is the right fit for you, the accountability partner or the high performance coach? The answer is that it really depends on what your goal is. If you’re wanting to focus on a mini-goal that doesn’t have a deep impact on the rest of your life if it is accomplished or not, an accountability partner could be a great fit. But if you want to have a more impactful approach as it relates to your long-term success across multiple areas of your life, if you want someone push you to level up and help you realize your full potential and accelerate your success, then a high performance coach might be your best asset. 

Learn more about how a high performance coach can help you to accelerate faster towards achieving your most important life goals by clicking here. 

5. Know And Understand The Real Purpose Of Your Goals.

This is really where it all begins. Having clarity around what you want and why is the foundation for building everything else in life. Getting there is going to require a deep dig into your WHY. Simon Sinek, author of the seminal 2016 book, Start with Why wrote that people become more inspired at work, and in turn inspire their colleagues and customers when they are clear on what drives them. 

While Sinek’s was more directed at entrepreneurs, a clearly defined purpose or mission positions both companies and professionals for long-term success because they help guide decisions, inspire growth and establish loyalty. When these are thoughtfully created and effectively implemented, act as a roadmap, helping organizations and individuals to stay on track and work toward achieving their ultimate goals. 

RELATED ARTICLE | Big Life Goals: My Ultimate Life Bucket list (and why you should have one, too)

Research shows that companies with an effective mission statement that has been clearly communicated have happier employees and typically experience less employee turnover. 

So, whether you are a small business or power professional, what is your WHY? 

• Why do you want to earn six figures? 
• To pay for your high schooler’s college so they will graduate debt-free? 
• So you can move your family to your dream home? 
• So you can donate money to local charities? 

There are no right or wrong answers. Your answer will make these goals important to YOU.

Would you like some guidance and inspiration to master the most critical areas of your life? 

Check out my FREE guide, 5 Secrets to High Performance.  It's a professionally designed to help you to plan and prepare for new adventures and get impressive results.

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Look, we’re both serious about accomplishing your most important goals in life. Let’s make it official and work together.

If you want to focus more on achieving your life's most important goals, both personally and professionally, without sacrificing your happiness, joy or sanity, let's connect and achieve them together. Click here to see if you qualify to be an exclusive client. 

Click here to take action now and book a complimentary session with me. 

Damien Vanderburg is a certified high performance coach with a focus on personal development, high price-point sales and serial entrepreneurship. Damien helps high performers to transform effectiveness, maximize potential and accelerate results. He is also the co-founder of Counterpoint Test Prep, a test prep and college app consulting company. 

Surf over to www.damienvanderburg.com and learn more.