Making Your Goals Achievable
After years of setting ambitious goals, I’ve learned that good ideas and motivation alone don’t guarantee success. I used to describe myself as a "driven goal-getter", and while the drive was real, the follow-through? Not always.
It wasn't a lack of ambition or effort. What I needed was structure. I wasn’t setting myself up with the right systems, timelines, or realistic expectations. And when those goals didn’t materialise, I spiralled into questioning everything: Am I not disciplined enough? Do I dream too big? Or am I just not wired to stick to things?
Over time, I’ve come to realise it wasn’t a personal flaw – it was a process problem. If that sounds familiar, here are the key shifts that helped me make my goals more achievable (and less stressful).
1. Acknowledge the Trade-Offs
It’s easy to romanticise the end result of a goal. But progress requires sacrifice, whether that’s time, energy, social plans, or comfort. If you want to write a book, you might need to say no to spontaneous weekend plans. If you want to build a fitness habit, you might need to trade an hour of Netflix for a walk or class.
Equally important is recognising when your existing values or habits are unintentionally sabotaging your goals. For me, a deep love for a tidy space often wins out over my creative to-do list on weekends. That’s not wrong, but it’s something to be aware of when time is limited and energy is split.
2. Systems Drive Progress, Not Just Goals
Goals give you direction. Systems get you moving.
A goal like “write more blog posts” is great, but it’s the system – scheduling two writing sessions a week, tracking progress, batching ideas in Notion – that actually makes it happen.
Your systems should be tailored to how you work best. They also need to align with the type of goal: what supports a fitness goal will look very different to what supports a career goal.
3. Make It Measurable
Vague goals like “read more” or “use my planner” don’t offer clear benchmarks. Without something measurable, it’s hard to know how you’re tracking. That lack of clarity leads to inconsistency, and eventually, you forget the goal altogether.
Swap the vague with something trackable: “read 20 pages a day,” “use my planner each weekday morning.” Measurable goals create momentum because progress becomes visible.
4. Time-Bound Goals Work—But Only When the Timeline Fits
Deadlines help create urgency, but unrealistic timeframes can backfire. Not everything fits neatly into a 30-day challenge. Some goals are seasonal. Others might need a slower build.
I used to squeeze medium-term goals into monthly plans, which left me feeling behind or burnt out. Now, I work in broader blocks – quarterly or seasonal goals – so I can plan with more flexibility and less pressure.
5. Focus on Fewer Goals, Spread Across Key Life Areas
Trying to achieve everything at once leads to Goal Competition – where your goals start to compete for time and attention. The more you add, the more diluted your focus becomes.
I now limit myself to a handful of core goals per season, each aligned with one of these pillars:
Work: e.g. write two blog posts per month
Personal: e.g. read 20 pages daily
Health: e.g. move my body 3x a week
Relationships: e.g. call family weekly or plan monthly catchups
Finance: e.g. save a set amount per month
This approach helps me stay focused without feeling boxed in.
Final Thoughts
Goal setting is personal. The way you go after yours might look completely different from how someone else does. What matters is that you create an approach that feels grounded, realistic, and flexible enough to evolve.
You don’t need to hustle harder – you just need to structure smarter.
So if you’ve got big ideas that haven’t quite taken off yet, try reworking your goals with systems, measurements, and realistic timelines in mind. Your ambition isn’t the problem. You just need a better way forward.