During my initial life coaching training I was advised by a very well regarded coach that you should not let clients use the word “dreams” to describe what they want from life. A “dream” portrays something unreachable, not in reality, a “pipe dream” that would some day be nice but there is no real suggestion of action towards getting there. If we are serious about achieving our “dreams” we need to start referring to them/thinking of them as something more practical such as goals.

Goals have the ability to keep us focused, this is where a life coach can help you to remain focused and be there to hold you accountable for the goals you have set yourself, and keep this momentum flowing.

Firstly you need to make sure that your goal is something that is in alignment with your values. Sometimes people think they will be happier when they achieve their next promotion, car, another house, but when they really think about it, often with the help of a coach, they discover that they have never really thought about what they want, and they are coming from a place of should, pressure from family, and just a general feeling that this is the next step and just what is expected of them.

Once you have established your value based goals we need to create a system to structure them: We need to set SMART goals, specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time bound.

Specific:

Instead of ” I want to have more money “I want to increase my earnings by x amount”

Measurable:

You need to be able to know when you will have achieved your goal, i.e. When you are actually earning x amount.

Achievable

Make sure you can reach the goals; you may want to move to another country and retire. Smaller, more achievable goals that are aligned with your long term goal would be to 1) pay off the mortgage on your house 2) Save x amount of money by x date.

Realistic:

Know your limitations whilst remaining ambitious, realise that you cannot become a medical doctor without a medical degree, however, you could volunteer at your local hospital.

Time:

Always set a time to achieve your goal by, it will give you a target to work towards.

Next, write down an action plan:

Goal: The smart goal you want to achieve

Reality: The current resources you have to achieve it

Obstacles: Any possible blocks to your success

Milestones: write down dates by which you will have achieved certain stages of your goal

Actions: Write down what actions you need to take to achieve each milestone

Reward: Reward yourself when you have met each milestone

Hire a coach to support you on your way, and this is how we turn a dream into a concrete, achievable goal.

Sophie Hainsworth is a certified life coach who works with clients all over the world to achieve the results they want. If you are interested in being coached by Sophie over skype/phone/e mail please contact her at coach@sophiehainsworth.com to set up a free trial session. Check out her website at http://www.sophiehainsworth.com