What Is the Difference between a Short Term Goal and a Long Term Goals?
Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.
What Is the Difference between a Short Term Goal and a Long Term Goals?
When people think of setting a goal they often think of the long term goals such as buying a big house, their retirement or making a lot of money. Long term goals are important but we must not forget that short term goals will get us to the longer goals.
Short term goals can keep you motivated while you are working toward your long term goals. Doing a little every day will get you the results in the long run.
I read a great book recently called the The Slight Edge where the author talks about doing little things daily will give you your long term goals but that the opposite was true as well. Daily doing the opposite of your long term goals will give you exactly what your efforts put out which will have little to do with what you want.
Long term goals can be especially gratifying in network marketing but it takes the short term goals to have a successful business. A short term goal should be something you can accomplish in 90 days and then reset for the next 90.
Here are some examples of short term goals:
- Buying Christmas presents for your kids
- Getaway for the weekend
- Buy an exercise machine
- Fit into a new summer outfit
- Pay off small bills
Long term goals however are those that keep you in your business for the long haul. Your short term goals keep you motivated in the moment but long term goals is really what it is all about right?
Long Term Goals Visual Dream Board
One of the ways to keep your dreams and goals always on your mind is to have a dream board, like a visual board of pictures of things you want.
Dream Board Examples:
- If your single, a picture of a girl to meet
- Big House
- Money
- Picture to represent Freedom
- Picture of your family
- Dream Vacation
- Being free
How to Actually Set a Long Term Goals
Although we have covered the difference between short term and long term goals are, what most people get stuck on is how to actually set their goals. Here is a quick step by step guide on how to do both.
- Set aside time: It has to be quiet and uninterrupted time. Personally since my household is so noisy, I run off to a coffee shop to do most of my work. You ask how is that more quiet with people in and out all the time? The people here are strangers, no TV, no noise, it’s perfect for me. You will have to find what is right for you.
- Now star with a free flowing list of things you want to accomplish. Ask yourself the following question:
- What do I want to do?
- What do I want to have?
- Where do I want to go?
- Where do I want to live?
- How many homes do I want to have? Where?
- What contributions do I want to make to my community or the world?
- How much do I want to earn?
- How much do I want to invest?
- How much do I want to save?
- What do I want to do for my children?
- What do I want to do for my parents?
- What will I do for fun?
- Your list should be longer than mine this was just an example. Now you can go through the list and split your short term and long term goals out. Highlight them in different colors if you need to.
- Let’s start with your short term goals. Write down your top 10 ones you feel most attached to and schedule those goals into appropriate quarters of your upcoming year. Setup three or so a quarter (one will have 4). You have now set up your short term goals for the year!
- Now let’s work on your long term goals. These of course will be a little harder and often takes the buy in of your spouse as well, unless you are single like me lol. I just ask myself and I gave myself permission.
- Let’s start by taking the 5 most important goals and working on those first. To figure out which are the top 5 start by putting a line through the least important 5 and so on until you get the list down to 5.
- Now you have your most important long term goals
Now that you have identified what your short term and long term goals are now you can get to work on accomplishing them. It is hard to accomplish much in your life when you are all over the place and do not know what your short term and long term goals are.
If you want to make your long term goals a reality then click this link or the picture below.