The best way to get clarity around the goals that are the most meaningful to you is to work backward from the future.
This process of “Reverse Engineering” your best life can be both fun and surprising. Once you are clear on the long-term goals you want to achieve in your life, you can break them down into short-term, bite-sized goals to focus on today.
Let’s kick things off with a powerful goal-setting exercise (special thanks to Pat Flynn who developed this exercise in his excellent book, Will It Fly).
The 4 Quadrant Exercise
Start by taking a piece of paper and divide it into 4 quadrants (or use the worksheet we’ve provided under this lesson).
At the top of each quadrant, I want you to write down a life area that is a top priority for you right now.
This could be:
- Family
- Marriage
- Kids
- Work
- Finances
- Hobbies
- Learning
- Spirituality
- Home
- Travel
- Etc.
For example: your top 4 priorities right now might be Marriage, Work, Home, and Finances.
Choose the 4 that matter most to you and write them down on your worksheet.
OK. Now, read the following visualization, then close your eyes and really imagine what your answers would be:
It’s 5 years into the future and you are at the airport that’s closest to your hometown. You are sitting in a coffee shop, reading a book with a cup of your favorite coffee in front of you, waiting for your flight to start boarding.
Suddenly you see a familiar face at the counter and you realize it’s your best friend from high school who you haven’t seen in 5 years! You hug and insist he sits down so you can catch up on each other’s lives.
- How are you? he asks.
- I haven’t seen you in 5 years, last I heard you were taking some goal-setting course on the internet and getting ready to do some exciting things with your life!
- Oh my goodness – so much has happened – let me fill you in! you say.
And then you start to tell him all about these amazing goals you have achieved, concentrating on the 4 quadrants of your life that you wrote down on your worksheet. Go into as much detail as you can, telling him all about your amazing spouse and marriage, all the success you’ve had at work, the beautiful home you live in, and how your financial strategies have resulted in a tidy little nest egg.
Now open your eyes, grab your worksheet, and write down all those wonderful things you envisioned for yourself that you told your best friend about in the airport coffee shop.
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