How Many Goals Should You Have?

How many goals should you have? How many is too many… or too few? Does it even make sense to ask this type of question? Suppose we try to come up with a decent number. We could say that the answer will depend on many factors: What types of goals you’re consideringHow accessible or inaccessible your goals areHow well your goals complement each otherThe time and energy you have to actively work on your goalsHow much resistance you’re likely to encounter as your pursue your goalsHow quickly you’re able to achieve your goals on averageHow much social support you have from other peopleHow much money and other resources you have to invest in your goalsHow likely you are to stick with a goal vs. abandoning it before you achieve itHow many distractions you currently have on your plateHow much stress you can reasonably handle Very quickly we see that the answer is going to be something like, Well… it depends. The truth is that there are too many factors, there’s too much unpredictability, and there’s too much inherent chaos in the goal setting and achievement process to come up with an ideal formula for all situations. Answering this question numerically looks pretty hopeless. But let’s not give up so quickly. Suppose you ask me how many goals you should have, and I confidently say that you should have 42 goals. The answer you seek is 42. You might ask, “Why 42? Why not 41 or 43? Does it make that big of a deal?” And suppose I respon...
Source: Steve Pavlina's Personal Development Blog - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Productivity goals purpose Source Type: blogs