How to Write Down Your Goals and Fulfill Them

Guest post by Laura at This Eternal Moment

In her book Write It Down, Make It Happen, author Henriette Anne Klauser shares a powerful story about the famous football coach Lou Holtz:

“He was twenty-eight years old when he sat down at his dining room table and wrote out one hundred and seven impossible goals. He had just lost his job, he had no money in the bank, and his wife, Beth, was eight months pregnant with their third child. He was so discouraged that Beth gave him a copy of The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz to help lift his spirits…”

The book said you should write down all the goals you wanted to achieve before you died and Holts’s list included meeting the pope, having dinner at the White House, and becoming the head coach at Notre Dame.

If you look on his website today, you will see that of the one hundred and seven goals on his list, he has achieved eighty-one. This is a great example of someone writing his goals down, working step by step towards those goals, and achieving them.

Write Down Your Goals – Even the Crazy Ones!

Last month, my husband and I went on a Mediterranean cruise to Croatia, Greece, Turkey, and Italy for one week and afterwards spent an extra week traveling throughout Italy. This was a trip we had dreamed about and planned for several years. Twelve years of marriage and three kids later, we finally arrived!

During a day at sea on the ship, we decided to sit down for a few hours together while we ate lunch and stared out at the sea. We talked, laughed, brainstormed, and had fun writing down our “Bucket Lists”- all those things that we would like to do before we die.

Klauser recommends to start by putting on a pot of coffee or tea and writing down everything that comes to your mind:

“Write fast. Do not linger over the page. If you find yourself dismissing a goal as grandiose or far-fetched, write it anyway and put a star next to it. That’s a live one.“

Write Down Your Goals to Clarify Them

We all have dreams and goals, but it often takes the act of writing them down in order to determine the specifics of our goals. For instance, I currently homeschool my eldest daughter and as I wrote down goals associated with homeschooling, I found myself writing the goal: “Guide and shepherd all three girls towards the discovery of their individual talents and callings.”

Writing down this sentence did more than simply clarify a goal – it revealed the priorities and intentions of my heart. I don’t merely want to teach them at home; I want to help them explore and discover their gifts, talents, passions, and calling from the Lord and empower them to walk in it.

Photo by: Pedro Ribeiro Simoes

Write Down Your Goals – Then Pray Over Them

What separates Christians from the rest of the world is that when we receive Christ as our Lord and Savior, we believe our lives are not our own anymore. This goes for our gifts, desires, and goals as well.

Write down your goals and then take time to carefully pray over each one. Ask Christ to highlight those goals that He is truly calling you to act upon.

Once you have a better idea of which goals will glorify and honor God, share them with someone you trust. This could be your husband, mentor, or best friend. The purpose of this is not only to invite their input and encouragement, but also to hold you accountable to act on your goals.

Next Steps Towards Fulfilling Your Goals: Creating a Plan

One goal on my list is for our family to learn the Hebrew language. I prayed about this and then shared it with my husband who agreed that this is a goal worth pursuing. Then I came up with some next steps:

• Find or buy a curriculum or program that will teach us Hebrew
• Determine how and when we will do our lessons (For this summer I have chosen Twebrew School video tutorials, which are great for small children)

A personal goal I have is to develop my blog site and make it more user-friendly, interactive, and engaging. So my next steps include:

• Spend 20-30 minutes every day working on my website.
• Keep a running “to-do” list of features I want to add to my site and choose to work on one at a time until they are accomplished.

Writing down your goals, praying about them, sharing them with others, and mapping out clear and measurable next steps will put you well on your way towards seeing those goals fulfilled.

So- what are you waiting for? Put on some music and a pot of tea, get out your journal and pen and start writing!

Once you have a list, we’d love to hear from you! What did you find helpful as you wrote your goals down? What has helped you accomplish your goals in the past?  What is one goal you are working to achieve right now? Let’s encourage each other until we see our goals fulfilled!

Laura M. Thomas is a homeschooling mother of three spunky girls, a childbirth educator, and writer. You can read more of her writing at www.thiseternalmoment.com.

This post contains affiliate links. See my full disclosure policy here.