Setting Goals School of Missions 2011

South Carolina Conference 2011 Global Outreach Goal

$500,000 Malachi 3:10b "Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams"

What Is A Goal? The end toward which effort is directed. 1. The result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim; end. 2. The terminal point in a race. 3. A pole, line, or other marker by which such a point is indicated.

Synonyms Target

Intent

Purpose

Intention

Objective

Finish

Object

Three Key Elements Of A Goal 1. An accomplishment to be achieved; 2. A measurable outcome; 3. A specific date and time by which to accomplish the goal.

Why Is Goal Setting So Important? • Goals establish direction for you and others in your organization. If you never set a goal, how will you know where you are going? • Goals identify intended results. If no goal exists, how do you measure your progress?

Why Is Goal Setting So Important? • Goals challenge you to grow. If you never set a goal, how do you move out of your comfort zone? • Goal setting builds confidence and reduces stress. Frustration is lowered when vagueness and doubt are replaced by focus and concentration. • Goal setting forces you to be specific.

Vision • The act or power of imagination. (1) mode of seeing or conceiving. (2) unusual discernment or foresight, "a man of vision". • Vision is a clear mental portrait of a preferable future, communicated by God to his chosen servant-leaders, based upon an accurate understanding of God, self and circumstances.

Vision A vision is a mental picture of what you want to create or achieve – and it’s the single-most important thing to have before you do any goal planning. How can you plan effectively without knowing what you envision for yourself and others?

Vision • Once you’ve zeroed-in on the image, DON’T keep it to yourself. For your vision to be translated into action, it must be shared with the people who will be impacted by it – and with those whose help you’ll need in making it happen. • A goal is created three times. First, as a mental picture. Second, when written down to add clarity and dimension. And third, when you take action towards its achievement.

Sayings About Goals • Unless you have definite, precise, clearly set goals, you are not going to realize the maximum potential that lies within you - Zig Zigler • One way to keep momentum going is to have constantly greater goals - Michael Korda • Many people fail in life, not for lack of ability or brains or even courage but simply because they have never organized their energies around a goal - Elbert Hubbard

Sayings About Goals • Big goals get big results. No goals get no results or somebody else's results - Mark Victor • Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal - Pamela Vaull Starr • Have the dogged determination to follow through to achieve your goal; regardless of circumstances or whatever other people say, think, or do - Paul Meyer

Sayings About Goals • "Success in any endeavor does not happen by accident. Rather, it’s the result of deliberate decisions, conscious effort, and immense persistence – all directed at specific GOALS.” Gary Ryan Blair • Goals determine what you will (or will not) do and become – in business and in life.

Sayings About Goals

Everything you do, every decision you make, and every thought you entertain has a direction, which serves as an advance or retreat in the pursuit of your goals. Gary Ryan Blair

Questions To Be Answered 1. WHAT is the goal? What specifically do I want to accomplish? 2. WHY do I want to achieve this goal? 3. WHEN do I need to (expect to) achieve this goal? 4. WHERE am I now in relation to this goal? 5. WHO will be involved in helping me achieve this goal? 6. HOW will I accomplish this goal?

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS

Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Timely

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Specific - A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished than a general goal. To set a specific goal you must answer the six "W" questions:

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Who: Who is involved? What: What do I want to accomplish? Where: Identify a location. When: Establish a time frame. Which: Identify requirements and constraints. Why: Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal. EXAMPLE: A general goal would be, "Get in shape." But a specific goal would say, "Join a health club and workout 3 days a week."

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Measurable - Establish concrete criteria for measuring progress toward the attainment of each goal you set. When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the exhilaration of achievement that spurs you on to continued effort required to reach your goal. To determine if your goal is measurable, ask questions such as......How much? How many? How will I know when it is accomplished?

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Attainable - When you identify goals that are most important to you, you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You develop the attitudes, abilities, skills, and financial capacity to reach them. You begin seeing previously overlooked opportunities to bring yourself closer to the achievement of your goals.

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS You can attain most any goal you set when you plan your steps wisely and establish a time frame that allows you to carry out those steps. Goals that may have seemed far away and out of reach eventually move closer and become attainable, not because your goals shrink, but because you grow and expand to match them. When you list your goals you build your selfimage. You see yourself as worthy of these goals, and develop the traits and personality that allow you to possess them.

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Realistic - To be realistic, a goal must represent an objective toward which you are both willing and able to work. A goal can be both high and realistic; you are the only one who can decide just how high your goal should be. But be sure that every goal represents substantial progress. A high goal is frequently easier to reach than a low one because a low goal exerts low motivational force. Some of the hardest jobs you ever accomplished actually seem easy simply because they were a labor of love.

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Your goal is probably realistic if you truly believe that it can be accomplished. Additional ways to know if your goal is realistic is to determine if you have accomplished anything similar in the past or ask yourself what conditions would have to exist to accomplish this goal.

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS Timely - A goal should be grounded within a time frame. With no time frame tied to it there's no sense of urgency. If you want to lose 10 lbs, when do you want to lose it by? "Someday" won't work. But if you anchor it within a timeframe, "by December 15", then you've set your unconscious mind into motion to begin working on the goal.

Nehemiah Step One for Achieving Goals: Planning He Saw The Need 1:2-4 - "(2) Hanani one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped, who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. (3) And they said to me [The need is going to be presented]

Nehemiah 'The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.' (4) so it was, when I heard these words, [Nehemiah caught it] that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days." To set goals for World Missions you first have to see the need.

Nehemiah He Prayed Nehemiah's mission was based upon God's promises in His revealed Word, and faith that God was with him. We are not just trying to come up with random goals but goals that we have prayed about; goals that are inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Nehemiah The Vision He could visualize the restored walls of Jerusalem. Setting Goals and Mission Nehemiah had a clear mission with specific steps tacked to a definite target date.

Nehemiah 2:6 {The Message} - "The king, with the queen sitting alongside him, said, 'How long will your work take and when would you expect to return?' I gave him a time, and the king gave his approval to send me." Plotting Steps To Achieving Goals

Nehemiah Step Two for Achieving Goals: Organization Organization is securing the material, manpower, methods, money, machinery (and any other needed resources). It is arranging and coordinating those bits and pieces in such a fashion to reach the aims/ goals decided on in the planning phase. Planning is "what to do," while organization is, "how to do it."

Nehemiah Step Three in Achieving Goals: Leading 2:17-18 – “17 Then I gave them my report: "Face it: we're in a bad way here. Jerusalem is a wreck; its gates are burned up. Come — let's build the wall of Jerusalem and not live with this disgrace any longer." 18 I told them how God was supporting me and how the king was backing me up. They said, ‘We're with you. Let's get started.’ They rolled up their sleeves, ready for the good work.”

Nehemiah Nehemiah motivated by example. He did not ask others to do what he himself was unwilling to do. He wrote, “So neither I, my brothers, my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us removed our clothes, each took his weapon even to the water” (Nehemiah 4:23).

Nehemiah Step Four in Achieving Goals: Controlling Evaluation and controls were established by Nehemiah (Nehemiah 4:7-13). One must measure progress and performance. Plans do not always go as hoped. Consequently, leaders must be flexible and able to adjust when necessary.

Nehemiah Following the work, we are told, “So the wall was completed on the twentyfifth of the month Elul, in fifty-two days” (Nehemiah 6:15). Observe his careful and constant evaluation of details, resources, progress, and scheduling to see if his plan was working. In achieving goals, one must stay on course.

Closing Thoughts • State goals as declarations of intention, not items on a wish list. "I want to apply to three schools" lacks power. "I will apply to three schools" is powerful and intentional. • Attach a date to each goal. State what you intend to accomplish and when. • Be specific. "To find a job" is too general; "to find and research five job openings before the end of the month" is better.

Closing Thoughts Write down your goals and put them where you will see them. The more often you read your list, the more results you get. Writing down your goals creates the roadmap to your success. Although just the act of writing them down can set the process in motion, it is also extremely important to review your goals frequently. Remember, the more focused you are on your goals the more likely you are to accomplish them.

Closing Thoughts • Sometimes we realize we have to revise a goal as circumstances and other goals change. If you need to change a goal do not consider it a failure, consider it a victory as you had the insight to realize something was different. • Make sure the goal you are working for is something you really want, not just something that sounds good. • By all means, make sure your goal is high enough.

Closing Thoughts Shoot for the moon, if you miss you'll still be in the stars.

Closing Thoughts • When attempting to achieve a goal that involves others, be sure that everyone is singing from the same sheet of music. • The odds that you’ll succeed without taking action are about the same as winning the lottery without buying a ticket. A good plan will get you in the door, but it’s ACTION that seals the deal. • You simply can’t afford to wait for either perfect conditions or the perfect plan.

Closing Thoughts • Opportunities are easily missed by holding off for the exact right moment. • Without deadlines, it’s far too easy to let important goals become nothing more than unfulfilled good intentions.

Closing Thoughts

If there is any doubt or fear in your voice, those around you will sense it…and be more likely to adopt the same negative, self-defeating perspectives.