Goals.Priorities.Success.

You don’t have to be a superhero or social activist to have a mission. It just means that you have an idea of what you want out of life. Fortunately, this is the time in your life when you get to take the lead; you get to decide what you want out of it. Knowing who you are and what you want can help set you in the right direction, and the earlier you start thinking about your life mission, the easier it is to make the appropriate decisions and plans to reach it.

To make your dream future your reality, set some reasonable, short-term and long-term goals for yourself based on your top values. You’re more likely to get where you want to go if you set a goal and commit yourself to it. To increase your chances of success even further:

• Choose some logical steps toward your goal.
• Take each step and fill out the details. Include the what, when, where and how for each step.
• Now it’s time for action. Do your plan.
• Keep your plan close by, so you can see how each action step is working and make improvements to the plan as you go.

Establish your priorities

If you are good at setting priorities, you will be better prepared to decide on goals, and in so doing, manage your stress levels more effectively. As stress increases, we are often forced to prioritize our commitments and decide which things can be put to one side and which can’t. This means that some aspects of life inevitably receive less attention than others. But be sure not to ignore any one area entirely. This could be the area which keeps you sane! Let your priorities evolve as the need arises.

Think about your personal values. What’s your dream? What’s your mission statement? What’s realistic? This will help you spend more time focused on the things which will make a real difference. On a daily level, organize your schedule according to the importance of each activity. Use stars, arrows, or a numbered list, or devise your own system. Of course, it’s tempting to leave the most painful task for last, but think how pleased and relieved you’ll be when it’s complete.

Learn to say no to people who try to make you change your agenda against your wishes, but allow some margin for unpredictable interruptions and delays. Plan to maximize your sense of accomplishment while creating space for relaxation too. And congratulate yourself for what you have achieved every day!