Alright, so Iām a little obsessed with goal setting. Iām good for writing a post about my strategy here at least once a year (here is my 2020 post), and even co-authored a book on the topic (The Path).
Iām almost always refining my process. This quarter I tested keeping a āscorecardā under my index card of goals, for anything that was not a āone and doneā goal. For example, letās say you want to meditate (or lift weights, practice guitar, whatever it is) 3 times a week. From my experience, a bad goal is āmeditate 3 times per weekā; but a good goal is āmeditate 36 times in the next 3 monthsā with a plan to do it 3 times per week. That way if you only get 2 in one week, you can still make it up without technically missing the goal. For goals like this, I put together a āscorecardā to keep track throughout the quarter.
The important part is that you have a process and you consistently refine it.
Imagine you are at a mini-golf course. You take your first put blind-folded. Maybe it goes in, maybe it doesnāt. That is the same as not setting goals. Now imagine you have the blindfold off; you see where you have to aim and you take a more targeted shot – that is setting a goal. Now, imagine you play the course again and remember that you didnāt see the contour in the green last time so you adjust your shot – that is refining your process.
I hope one or more of the links above can aid you as you take another shot. I know it has for me. Time to finish the year strong!
Recommended reading:
Love the scorecard!!! And the approach of total number vs # per week.
[…] quarter as I reflect on the past three months, set goals for the upcoming three months, and ultimately create a reading list to be a part of these goals. The reading list is my preferred […]
[…] align with these ideals I have added a tracking system to my journaling practice to align with my goal setting system & scorecard. The tracking system is low friction and very analog, but the consequences yield […]
[…] days on the things that really matter to me like cultivating strong relationships and achieving my 2020 / quarterly goals I am declaring martial law on my mind and cold-turkeying the one prevailing digital distraction for […]
[…] quarter I reflect on the past three months, set goals for the upcoming three months, and ultimately create a reading list to be a part of these goals. The reading list is my preferred […]
[…] How To Keep a Scorecard […]
[…] my goal setting system I would divide what Scott calls a system into either a meta-habit or a strategy. A meta-habit is a […]
[…] Set goals so you create more luck, create weekly plans to stay on track, use systems so you cannot lose […]
[…] end of the year is one of the best seasons to pick up a book. It is also an opportunity to focus on tying up any year end goals while there is still time of the […]