The Importance of Having a Long Term Plan and Short Term Goals

Keep Your Eye on the Prize
One thing that sets successful people apart, often making them the leader of the pack is their willingness to plan. Planning suggests that a person is prepared, and it is that kind of preparation that allows him to live a life most of us only dream about. The importance of planning short and long-term goals has never been lost on businesses. Non and for-profit companies understand that planning with the establishment of long and short-term goals provides the structure and vision that will ultimately lead to progress and success. Now everyday citizens are getting on that bandwagon that gives them control over their life and helps them manage their dream.

Movies and love stories have romanticized the idea of carpe diem – seize the day- the idea of taking advantage of today because tomorrow is not promised. As wonderful as that sounds, tomorrow does come, and if you are not prepared for it your today and tomorrow will be miserable. Urgency is usually what gets a person’s attention and make him handle his business. If an emergency is what it takes to provoke you, you will always live tossed to and fro by things you could have controlled. Long and short term goals help you establish habits that lead to success, and they will make you more confident in yourself.

A goal is defined as an objective that someone strives to achieve. It is observable and measurable and is usually attained within a specific time frame. Long-term goals are strategic and accomplishment based. Short term goals are motivationally designed to keep you focused and moving forward. The goals that you set for yourself should be SMART. This little acronym will help you always keep the purpose of your goals in mind. They should be:
S- specific
M- measurable
A- achievable and affordable
R- relevant and realistic
T- time-based https://boardeffects.com/blog/difference-short-term-long-term-goal-planning

We all have been given seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day, and twelve months a year to set priorities about how we want to live. Most people choose to live on a treadmill that has them going nowhere. Planning through the use of long and short-term goals will change all of that by putting you in control of your life. Once you have identified something you wanted and then got it after following through on specific plans, you will never again live the unstructured life that no goals binds you to. Goal setting helps you take control of your life, it makes you accountable for your life and motivates you to live your best life.