Goals That Work - Part IV

This post will complete my series on goals. So far we have discussed that there are four components to setting goals and we've discussed three of them: Goals Must be Specific and Measurable, Goals Must Have a Time Limit and Goals Must be YOUR Goals.The fourth and last component to achieving your goals is that goals must be in writing.

Goals Must be in Writing
For some reason, this last component is the one where everyone drops the ball. It sounds good to put your goal in writing, but almost no one does. And the correlation is clear: almost no one wins. Winners are so strange that we admire them deeply. With very few exceptions winners have written goals. It is almost impossible to accomplish something big without a written blueprint.

You may have heard of the 1953 Goal Setting Study by Yale University. If you haven't, then let me bring you up to speed. The study found that the 3% of 1953 Yale graduates who had set clear, written goals had amassed more wealth than the other 97% of graduates combined. Is that enough to convince you that your goals must be in writing? Read that again: 3% of 1953 Yale graduates who had set clear, written goals had amassed more wealth than the other 97% of graduates combined. That's huge!

Now, let me also share with you this little tidbit of information. According to Yale University and their website, this claim is false. That's correct, I said false. Here's a statement from their website:
 

It has been determined that no “goals study” of the Class of 1953 actually occurred. In recent years, we have received a number of requests for information on a reported study based on a survey administered to the Class of 1953 in their senior year and a follow-up study conducted ten years later. This study has been described as how one’s goals at graduation related to success and annual incomes achieved during the period.

The secretary of the Class of 1953, who had served in that capacity for many years, did not know of [the study], nor did any of the fellow class members he questioned. In addition, a number of Yale administrators were consulted and the records of various offices were examined in an effort to document the reported study. There was no relevant record, nor did anyone recall the purported study of the Class of 1953, or any other class.

So you are probably wondering why the fourth component to goals is Goals Must be in Writing. Just because there is no proven study from Yale University does not mean that it does not exist. There is a study by Professor Gail Matthews at Dominican University, not Yale University which looked at goal-setting and achievement over a much shorter period of four to six weeks. Her study had three main findings, according to the summary she posted:

1.) Accountability is important: those who committed to and followed through on sending progress reports to a friend achieved significantly more than those who did not.
2.) Public commitment matters: those who sent their commitments to a friend accomplished significantly more than those who just wrote action commitments or did not write their goals.
3.) Writing your goals is important: those who wrote down their goals accomplished significantly more than those who did not.

In closing, it has been proven that people whom write their goals are more successful than those that do not. Folks, you need to write your goals down. You need to review them frequently if you want to be successful. It is a proven fact.

I hope that you have enjoyed these posts on goals. Please keep an eye out for my next post to this blog. You can follow me on Twitter: @TopOrlCBRealtor or "friend me" on facebook (Tim Shelton). Checkout my website: Thanks for reading!

Tim Shelton, Realtor
Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate
Winter Springs, Florida