Success comes when opportunity meets preparation. Zig Ziglar

So what are your goals?

Maybe you want to lose weight and get healthier?Or start a business?Or become a musician?Or perhaps write a book?

Whatever your goals may be, we know that having goals is an important part of our lives.

Goals give us direction.Goals give us a sense of clarity and purpose.Goals give us energy as we actively work towards them.Goals enable us to move forward in living our best lives (to the best of our abilities, which, in my opinion, is the most important goal of all).

So why is it that so few of us tend to stay true to our goals, and actively work towards them (let alone, achieve them)?

First and foremost, its important that you set the right kind of goals for yourself. You must truly get to know yourself, and set goals according to that truth.

Not your friends, teachers, medias, or anyone elses idea of what your life should be like (even though some may be just looking out for us, and have our best interest in mind, its important that we know ourselves).

Really when I look back on it,I wouldnt change a thing.

I mean,It was so important for me to lose everything,Because I found out,What the most important thing is,Is to be true to yourself.

And,Ultimately,Thats whats gotten me to this place. Ellen DeGeneres, Ellen Degeneres Tulane Commencement Speech 2009Tweet

Of course, as Ive experienced, this is often easier said than done. It can be challenging to block out all the noise sometimes.

So, here are three simple steps you can use to get to know yourself better and become more self-aware. These are the sames steps Ive followed myself (and continue to follow) to gain more clarity in my life.

As you can tell, the key is dedicating time to reflect on your experiences by asking yourself questions.

Whens the last time you had a conversation with yourself?

[SIDE NOTE: I also spoke to inspiring entrepreneur (and friend) Chris Taylor about how we can start living our ideal lives. You can watch the interview here to get some more insights on how you can start living a life true to you.]

Im convinced that the only thing that kept me going,Was that I loved what I did.

Youve got to find what you love.And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers.

Your work is going to fill a large part of your life,

And the only way to be truly satisfiedIs to do what you believe is great work.

And the only way to do great work,Is to love what you do. Steve Jobs, Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford Commencement AddressTweet

Once you have a better sense of self, and are setting goals that are true to you, how can you actually achieve them?

Enter the inspirational Zig Ziglar.

A World War II veteran, and man of deep faith, Zig Ziglar is often known as a leader in sales training. Before becoming a motivational speaker and trainer, he was consistently at the top in sales in the organizations he worked with.

Hes inspired millions of people around the world with his lessons on success. One of the most crucial being the importance of having goals.

In fact, hes helped millions of people not only set, but also achieve, their goals, through what is often referred to as The Zig Ziglar Goal Setting Formula (or The Formula for short).

Its the same formula he used to lose over 30 pounds when he weighed well over 200 pounds.

I want to talk a little bit about goals,On the line of how do you lose thirty-seven pounds and write a book.

Im just gonna kind of give you that as an example.

For twenty-four years of my adult life,By choice,I weighed well over two hundred pounds.

I say by choice,Because you see,I have never accidentally eaten anything.

I mean its always been deliberate.

And when I choose to eat too much today,I have chosen to weigh too much tomorrow.

You can choose to set goals,And realize your potential.

Or you can choose not to set them. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 1Tweet

Its the same formula he used to become a best-selling author.

For ten or fifteen yearsI was going to write a book.

You know anybody whos gonna do just a whole lot of things folks?I was going to write a book.

But it wasnt until I got busy,Writing the book,And writing the plans first,Before the book ever materialized. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 1Tweet

And its the same formula he shares in his three-part goal setting video series (watch below).

Drawing on his personal experiences, as well as entertaining and insightful anecdotes about getting cooked in the squat (my personal favorite), a war-torn Japan and the processionary caterpillar, Ziglar makes one thing clear:

Having goals is important.But equally important is knowing how to achieve them.

Heres each part of the goal setting video series, followed by a few of my favorite Zig Ziglar quotes from each part (browse all 31 quotes here).

Zig Ziglar Setting Goals 1 of 3

Now if you choose not to set them,Youve got to understandThat the consequences are not going to be good down the road.

For twenty-four yearsI was going to lose that weight.

As a matter of fact,In twenty-four yearsI lost several thousand pounds of weight.

How many of you already knowExactly what Im talking about?

But it wasnt until I

1) Wrote it down,2) Put a date on it,3) Listed the obstacles I had to overcome,4) Identified the people, the groups, the organizations I needed to work with,5) Spelled out a plan of action,6) Set that time limit in there,7) And identified all of the benefits to me

It was only when I did that,That the goal became a reality,And I lost the weight. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 1Tweet

Give me a stock clerk,With a goal,And Ill give you a man,Wholl make history.

But give me a man,Without a goal,And Ill give you, a stock clerk. J.C. Penney, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 1Tweet

Now thats the formulaThat I have just given you pure and simple.

Now if I were to ask youWhat 3 x 3 was,There isnt a person here,Who could not instantly answer it.

But if I were to ask youWhat is 5,128 x 2,165,Odds are enormous,That very few of you could pop out the answer that quickly.

But if I were to say to you,Get your pencil and paper out, figure it out,Then all of you could figure it out.

Why?You know the formula.

Now you see,If you know the formula,It really doesnt make any difference,Ladies and gentlemen,What the goal really is. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 1Tweet

Zig Ziglar Setting Goals 2 of 3

The rule is simple:You do it now.

You.Do it.Now. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 2Tweet

As wed say down home folks,

You can put this in your pipe and smoke it folks,Cause its the truth.

The people who wait

For Aunt Matilda to move out,Or John to get on the day shift,Or the new midles to come out,Or the new mayor to come in,Or for the new advertising campaign to get started.

The people who wait

On the new Senator in Washington,Or until inflation slows,Or the rate of interest comes down.

The people who wait,

For changes to take place out there,Before they do the changing in here,

Are flat gonna end up,Getting cooked in the squat. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 2Tweet

Zig Ziglar Setting Goals 3 of 3

You see,The basic of problem is not lack of time,It is lack of direction.

We all have exactly the same amount of timeWhether were a millionaireOr a pauper.

All of us have twenty-four hours,Every single day. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 3Tweet

The truth is,Ladies and gentlemen,

We must have goalsIf were going to do anything.

Goals do a lot of things.

For example,They enable you to chase the blues away.

Ive never known anybody,Who was truly depressed,Who had specific,And long-range,Goals.

And what goals do,Is they create activity.

And you see activity,As you work towards reaching them,Creates the very excitement,Which you need in order to accomplish,Or reach,Your objectives. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 3Tweet

Several years ago,They did an experiment with a number of college students.

And in this particular experiment,They let them go to sleep,And they hooked these brain machines up to them.

With these brain machines,They could determine precisely,Within a matter of seconds,When the student went to sleep.

Then they could tell,When that student,Started to dream.

And as the student would start to dream,They would awaken him or her.

And then theyd let them go back to sleep.

And that is no problem,But when they started to dream,They would awaken them again.

And with those brain wave machines,They can tell exactly when they start to dream.

At the end of one night of this kind of treatment,Many of the students were nervous and fidgety.

At the end of two nights of this kind of treatment,Where they had a reasonable amount of sleep,But no dreaming,

They became very irritable,And very short,And very crossed.

At the end of just three nightsOf a reasonable amount of sleep,But no dreaming,They could tell that some of them,Were headed for some psychological difficulties.

And so what they did,Was they aborted the experiment.

Now about twenty-four hours later,Most of the students were back to normal.

Within a week,All of them had returned 100%.

But the experiment proved something very conclusively,And thats this:

When youre asleep,Ladies and gentlemen,You need your dreams.

Im here to tell you that when youre wide awake,You also need your dreams. Zig Ziglar, Zig Ziglar: Setting Goals Part 3Tweet

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31 Zig Ziglar Quotes That Will Help You Set & Achieve Your ...