You may have quite a lot of ideas in your head that you want to desperately bring to life. Or you may have a vision for a dream life that you want to live. It’s natural for all humans to have goals for themselves. While someone may never really spell their goals out, others might write them down with great detail.

In a recent study conducted by Dr Gail Matthews on 270 participants, he found that people are 42% more likely to achieve their goals if they write them down.

With that being said, let’s focus on HOW you should be outlining your goals. Here are 5 key points to keep in mind:

1. Is your heart in it?

To be fully committed to achieving a goal, you must have a strong and positive connection to it. To find if you have this connection, imagine yourself as already having achieved the goal. How does it make you feel? Focus on that feeling and if it’s positive and strong then it means that you should go after it.

When you are emotionally invested in your goal, you can motivate yourself even on slow days, because you know the “why”.

2. How much is too much?

When setting goals within a certain time period, focus on the quality, not quantity. Have a few meaningful goals that you can devote sufficient time to because no one has unlimited time and energy.

3. Are you being realistic?

Make sure your goals are achievable by making them realistic. Set deadlines that you know you can keep up with. While it’s good to push yourself a bit, make sure you don’t feel burdened or you’ll lose motivation.

4. Will you enjoy the process?

Now, you may have paid attention to all of the above- you are emotionally invested in your goal and have set realistic expectations, but you may still find it difficult to take action. This could be because even though the idea of achieving the goal sounds good, you do not enjoy the process that takes you there.

For instance, you may love the idea of looking fit, but hate going to the gym. The key then is to find a workout routine that you enjoy doing. Because enjoying the process is what will eventually keep you consistent.

5. What has worked for you in the past?

If you have ever achieved a goal in the past, note down what you could emulate again. What was it about that goal that made you achieve it? Find out what uniquely works for you.

Now that you have these key points, go ahead and set goals worthy of your time!