𝟓 𝐓𝐈𝐏𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐒𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐆𝐎𝐀𝐋𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐊𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐈𝐍 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐.

Goals are pivotal to understanding what you want to do and how you intend to achieve it. I must however highlight that goals may show you where you want to be in your writing life, but a goal will not take you there – no, not on its own!

Year in, year out, you might have set writing goals that only remained an aim because it was not backed up by effective writing habits to sustain its accomplishment... I used to be there as well!

I had several writing goals that remained locked up within the pages of my journal, not because I didn't give it a whirl. I just failed to realize that writing goals must be backed up with daily, or weekly commitments if they will be attained.

Therefore, in this article, I will be showing you practical yet powerful tips that has helped me take concrete steps to attain my writing goals – authoring 3 books in less than 12 months, along with coaching several others to complete their books in record time

𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑦 𝑡𝑜 ℎ𝑖𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑔𝑜𝑎𝑙𝑠?

Here's what to do:

𝟏. 𝐔𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐖𝐇𝐘

Truth be told, writing can be such an arduous task, however, tapping into the deep roots of why you are compelled to write can help you stay motivated and committed to the writing process. This is the reason I recommend that whatever your writing goal is, ensure it is connected to the overall vision of your life.

I remember while writing my first book – Grow and Glow, a book dedicated to helping teens live purposefully. Like every other writer, there were times I got discouraged during the process but every moment I saw a teenager misbehave, I was compelled to finish up with that book.

Now, before you set those goals, take a few moment to drill deep within....𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑑𝑜 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑤𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒? 𝐼𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑞𝑢𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑? 𝐼𝑠 𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑙𝑒𝑔𝑎𝑐𝑦? 𝑇𝑜 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑖𝑛𝑓𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒? 𝑊𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑖𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑝 𝑙𝑎𝑢𝑛𝑐ℎ 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠? 𝐼𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒? 𝑂𝑟 ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑝 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑢𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑓𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑛𝑖𝑐ℎ𝑒?

Whatever it is, clearly identify your strong and unique WHY. Then, go ahead to write it down, and keep them close by where you can see them everyday. It will keep you motivated and help you stay committed to your writing goals when your creative energy ebbs.

𝟐. 𝐁𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓

Based on my research, I have discovered that 70% of writing goals are never accomplished because of their vagueness. I’ve had students come into my coaching programs with writing goals like..."I want to write a book" or "I am writing a novel". And my next line of action is to bring some level of clarity to their goals. You can’t just decide to write a book, what kind of book? Who are your audience? Where do you start from?

At this point in setting your goals, you should employ the clarity compass; the 5Ws and H. Here's a template you can follow while setting your goals:

1. What kind of book am I writing? (Fiction/Non-fiction)

2. Who are my audience/readers?

3. What specific problem is my book solving?

4. Where can I write without distractions?

5. When do I begin to write and When must I finish up with my book-project?

6. How do I get the necessary information and support?

Employing the clarity compass, transforms your goal into a well-crafted idea backed up with actionable steps.

𝟑.𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤

The third thing to do while setting an effective writing goal is to break your goal into smaller bits and attach a clear time frame for its accomplishment. Your writing goal to author a book can be broken down into smaller goals of writing 1 page per day, 1000 words per day, or 1 chapter per day for the next 3 months.

Like the renowned author and speaker, Brian Tracy, emphasizes…"𝐵𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑦𝑎𝑟𝑑, 𝑖𝑡'𝑠 ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑑, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑖𝑛𝑐ℎ 𝑏𝑦 𝑖𝑛𝑐ℎ, 𝑎𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔'𝑠 𝑎 𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑐ℎ".

Don't view the entire mountain at once, focus on taking your journey to the mountaintop a step at a time.

However, to avoid complacency, it's important to create a healthy sense of urgency with your goals.

Without a deadline that forces you to roll your sleeves and get on your writing desk, you might just leave your goals and run off the rails.

Why?

Parkinson's law perfectly explains that... "𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛".

Simply put, you delay in carrying out a task when you know you have more than enough time at your disposal...and your delay in getting things done gives allowances for procrastination, distractions, depleted creative flow, self-doubt, etc.

Ultimately, to avoid falling into the deadly trap of procrastination, you need to create a healthy time frame that forces you to finish up on your book or whatever your writing goal is. Use a planner to record deadlines for your writing goals, or have them well marked out in your calendar. Remember, a little pressure doesn't hurt!

𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝:

• Task: I am writing a book for teenagers to teach them the principles of success and effective living.
• Deadline: To be completed 4 months from now, April 11th, 2022.
• Action Step: I’d commit to writing 1 page per day for 1 hour at exactly 5 am.
• Benchmark: At the end of the first month I would have written a minimum of 25 pages of this book and 100 pages at the end of the 4th month.

It's a lot easier to stick to this writing plan if you didn't skip the clarity compass phase I earlier described. 𝐼 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑘 – 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑇𝑜 𝐼𝑛𝑘 (𝐴 5-𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 𝐺𝑢𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑈𝑛𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝐶𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝐼𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑠, 𝐵𝑙𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑦 𝑊𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠' 𝐵𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐼𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑊𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑆𝑘𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑠).

𝟒. 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞/𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐞

The right environment plays a critical role in enhancing your creativity and productivity to achieve your writing goals. There are different writers as there are different approaches to writing, which explains why some people can write in a noisy environment while others need absolute silence to get the work done. What’s important is discovering the 'Write' paradise that offers comfort, proper lighting, and allows you to express your ideas without putting interferences in your creative flow.

You can also go the extra mile of eliminating distractions from your mobile phone or other technology device by turning off notifications or putting them away while you turn laser focus on your book.

𝟓. 𝐁𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞

After you’ve set your goals, it’s easy to forget about them as the year unfolds. Therefore it is expedient you create a regular self-review system to keep you accountable. Take out time either weekly or bi-weekly to critically examine if you have been able to meet up your target. This will give you an overview of your progress rate and equip you with the knowledge of what to improve on. If you discover you have been unable to keep up with your goals due to disruptions in your schedule, your self-review session will enable you re-strategize rather than feeling overwhelmed at falling short of your goal and giving up entirely.

If you have been able to keep up with your writing goals – you deserve to be praised. Celebrate all the small wins you have on your way to finally becoming an author. It is a great way to track your progress as well as stay motivated.

I also recommend getting an accountability buddy who would check in with you, help you stay motivated while ensuring you stay true to accomplishing your writing goals.

I hope you found these tips helpful. And I believe you are better equipped to set attainable writing goals this year. I love you and your writing and I can't wait to cheer you on as you accomplish incredible things.

𝐼'𝑑 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑦𝑜𝑢. 𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑚𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑖𝑝𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑦?

Need more personalized help with your book-project? I am always ready to assist.

© 𝐂𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐁𝐞𝐞

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭