Why Should You Set Goals?

Setting goals is a very significant part of success and positive accomplishments. It is like scaling a 20 feet building and marking early on what feet you would like to reach at this specific period.
Ever wonder why some people could not even achieve an inch of what they dream of becoming? Blame it on pure dreaming and lack of setting goals for achieving their dreams.

People who set goals literally create a map of their target achievements in life, marking where they should begin, where to pause, where to delve a bit, and where and when to stop. Once this map is created, it allows the map drawer to check where he is in the scheme of things and whether or not he is making some achievements that will take him closer to his goals.

By setting goals, people will know how they are doing and what they should be doing to achieve their targets or dreams in life. They will know if they can relax or if they have to double their efforts when they are falling short of what is expected of them.

Goal setting means a person is proactive in dealing with challenges that may affect his plans. Being proactive means one is able to outline possible difficulties that may occur as well as the solutions to these difficulties. By doing this, a person is not easily scared or defeated when challenges occur because he has already prepared for them. He knows they can happen and he has prepared a solution or strategy when that time comes.

Setting goals will enable people to track their progress in whatever endeavor they have set out to do. It will help people become more confident in themselves and more motivated to achieve their plans.

However, goal setting is not enough, as this should be accompanied by a positive outlook and self-discipline. A person may have a blueprint of where he wants to go, but if he does not have the necessary discipline to carry out the plan, then nothing will come out of it.

To be successful in goal setting, the goals that one has set for himself should be realistic and based on his capabilities, as well as selected and important external factors. Being too ambitious in setting up goals can make the goals unrealistic and difficult to achieve. However, do not also set goals that are too low because this might discourage one’s vision instead of achieving it.

It is also necessary that the person setting the blueprint for his direction should also include a time frame within which the goal will be achieved. This way, he is able to determine if he has to fast track his strategies or to slow down a bit. Goal setting will also help a person check if he is performing within his plans or if he is doing things towards the achievement of his plans. 

Once you have achieved something, even a little of what you hoped to achieve, then you should always give yourself a pat in the back to keep you motivated. But do not be too complacent with any little achievement, as this may cause you to backslide.

Setting goals can be used in any aspect of one’s life - from one’s personal or family life, to his career and finances.  Goal setting can be as simple as setting a target weight when you wish to lose pounds or something big, like earning your first million.

When setting goals, it is always important to set standards that would suit your present situation, your capabilities, and other factors that may influence the achievement of your goal.

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What You Should Do If You Find Yourself Fired From Your Job

Each week, millions of Americans go to work, do their jobs, and collect their paychecks.  Unfortunately, there comes a time when that cycle is disrupted.  If you have recently found yourself fired or terminated for cause from your current place of employment, you may be in shock.

Although shock is a normal feeling, it's important that you start taking action right away, should you ever find yourself fired from your current position.

This action is particularly important if you rely on your income to pay important bills, such as your rent or mortgage, or if you use your paycheck to help support your family. 

One of your first steps should involve creating a resume for yourself. This is important, as you will need a resume to apply for new jobs.  Even if you are able to fill out a traditional job application, you will still want to attach a resume. Resumes add professionalism to all job applications and they can help to set your application apart from all the rest.

If you are unsure how to write your own resume, you may want to consider using the services of a professional resume writer.

It's important that you proceed with caution.  Unfortunately, many job seekers make the mistake of including a job from which they were fired on their job application or on their resume.   However, in that same sense, many make the mistake of leaving the job that they were recently terminated from off of their resume, when it should really be on it.  That sounds a little bit confusing doesn’t it?  If you are unsure as to how you should prepare your resume, you are not alone.

What you need to do is examine your reasons for being terminated, as well as how long you were employed by your past employer.  Many employers do not like seeing gaps over one or two years; therefore, if your last job, the one in which you were fired from, lasted over two years, you may still want to include that position on your resumes and job applications. 

Once you have created a resume for yourself, you can start to go finding and applying for jobs.  This is the easy part, as you will find that you have a number of different options.  You may want to start with your local newspaper.  Most newspapers have an employment section.  What is nice about using your local newspaper to examine all open job positions is that most of your jobs will be local.  There is typically no sorting by location needed.  In addition to using your local newspaper, you can also use the internet to help you research companies with open positions. 

Once you have a collection of jobs that you would like to apply to, you will want to create a cover letter for yourself.  Cover letters typically should not be developed in advance, as you will want to personalize your cover letter with the name of the position you are applying for, as well as the company you are applying at.  You can create a template for yourself, but make sure each and every one of your cover letters is personalized in one way or another. 

These are just a few of the steps you should take, should you ever find yourself terminated from your current position.  In dire circumstances, such as ones where you need income right away, you may want to visit your local temporary employment agency, as they can help you find short-term temporary jobs.

If you are without a job due to plant closings, personnel cutbacks, etc, Unemployment Compensation will help cover some of your expenses for awhile. But you may still need to find a job and these suggestions will help you in your job search.

Changing Your Life for the Better: What It Takes To Be Successful

What does it take to become successful?

It's a  question asked by many people. And it's also why a lot of people are purchasing self help books and videos that often do little for them when it comes to helping them achieve their goals.

To be really successful, start observing successful people and adapt some of their traits. These traits helped those people achieve their goals and these traits are also the basic foundation of success.

There are many traits that can help you become successful. But there are only about 5 that you really need to develop as the ones that really matter.

The first - you need to have confidence. When you look at successful people, you will see a certain aura of confidence that seems to overpower other people. It may even seem like arrogance but recognize that confidence is what you should have in order for you to reach your goals without fear.

 The second -  always know what you want. A lways know what you want to achieve and you never deviate. This is why successful people almost always achieve their goals. They have this radar that is fixed to a certain point which drives them to that point. And, they don’t let anything stop them. With this kind of focus, you will see why people achieve such massive success. Everything else that they consider unimportant is ignored.

Another - have extreme concentration. Successful people take every piece of information, no matter how small, as important.
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Hard work is another trait that you require. If you have this, then you are already halfway in to achieving your goal. Without hard work then you will never be able to find success.

Successful people didn’t achieve their goals sitting down. Some of them even got their hands dirty in the process and some of them even made some sacrifices.

Lastly, successful people are fearless when it comes to achieving their goals. They are not afraid of making mistakes. Many people fear that they might make a mistake along the way to success and ends up giving up even before they start.

Successful people see mistakes as a lesson. If they do make a mistake or fail at something, they just learn from it, shrug it off and continue on with their journey feeling much stronger than ever before.

If you develop these traits, you can be sure that you will be able to have a better chance at success.

Is Stress adding pounds to your weight?

How to Overcome Emotional Eating as a result of stress.

Eating is a part of life.  Your body gets its nutrients from food.  Sometimes we can go overboard with our eating habits and it can result in gaining weight.  One issue with food is emotional eating. 

The problem of emotional eating may end with the scale but it begins in the mind.  Stress takes its toll on your life.  When your defenses are compromised your health takes a hit and so do your emotions. 

Everyone has good days and bad days.  How we deal with the bad ones brings emotional eating into play.  You look for comfort for your hurts.  People who turn to food for comfort find a coping mechanism that won’t judge them, hurt them or tell them “no.” To complicate the issue, eating pleasurable foods can stimulate the release of endorphins just like exercise.  So, after you eat, you feel better.

Emotional eaters use food to relieve stress.  They hide behind the food instead of seeking solutions to the problems.  This is not uncommon when the stressor is something horrible such as physical abuse or a death.

But, how do you know you are using food in this way?  The first sign is obvious.  You will gain weight if you eat too much.  In light of the weight gain, examine other areas of your life:

* Have you been under stress lately at work or at home?
* Has anything traumatic happened in the last year?
* Are you dealing with a problem but haven’t found a solution?

Answering “yes” to any of these questions could mean that you are an emotional eater.  You eat but you are not necessarily hungry at the time.  The foods that you choose are what we term “comfort foods”:

* High fat foods like French fries, fried foods
* High carb foods like macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes
* Sugary foods like ice cream, donuts, cookies, cake

There is help for emotional eaters.  The first step is recognizing that you have a problem.  You’ll experience feelings of helplessness and guilt.  The guilt is over potentially ruining your health and the helplessness lies in the fact that you don’t see a way out.

Secondly, seek counseling.  There are many types of counselors out there that can meet your need.  Emotional eating has nothing to do with dieting or changing your eating habits but gaining control over your emotions. 

A counselor might suggest things like visualization, practicing problem solving skills, relaxation techniques and family support.  Visualization helps you to see your problems in a realistic way and not blown out of proportion.  You will also learn to see food as nutrition for the body and not an emotional crutch.


Thirdly, your family can learn your triggers for stress and be on the lookout for changes in your eating habits.  They can help you be aware of the foods you are eating, assist you in making healthy food choices and exercise along with you. 

Proper diet and exercise increases immunity, blood flow and positive thinking. 

Yoga enhances the mind/body connection so you don’t eat when you aren’t hungry.

Finding new ways to solve your problems and deal with stress will push food out of the equation.  You’ll feel good about finding solutions which will replace the dependence on food.  

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