Are You Glad You Did, Or Do You Wish You Had?

Another year has come and gone. They say that life is like a roll of toilet paper; the closer you get to the end, the faster it goes. It seems like I’m just getting used to the New Millennium, and it’s 2009! Where does the time go? All too often you hear people lamenting all of the things that they wish they had done, are you one of those people?

If you are one of those who wish that they had done this, that, or the other thing, then it’s time to stop and think about why that is. Could it be because you wander through life without any concrete goals? People say they have goals, they want more money or a better job or better house. But are they really goals? In most cases those so-called goals are merely wishes.

Someday Isle

I remember hearing a talk by noted corporate trainer, Zig Ziglar, which had a profound impact on me. The talk was about people who visited this magical place called “Someday Isle.” But in this case isle was spelled “I’ll.” He talked about all of those who said “someday I’ll do (fill in the blank).” However, it never happened. The reason these things never seemed to happen is because they had never set a real goal or created an action plan to achieve it.

SMART Goals

In their groundbreaking book, The One-Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard and Spenser Johnson introduced the SMART system for goal setting.

Specific: Goals should be as detailed as possible.

Measurable: This makes them easy to track.

Achievable: Is it something that can be done?

Realistic: Is the goal something that makes sense in terms of your situation?

Timely: Goals must have a deadline or they are merely wishes.

Looking Back at 2009

Now we are looking back at 2008, how did it turn out for you? Are you glad that you did the things you did or do you wish that you had done something different? In no time at all you’ll be looking back on 2009 and wondering where the time went. It’s the little things that you do that will determine how you finish. Start today by setting some SMART goals and take steps each and every day to make them happen. Imagine how you will feel on New Year’s Eve as 2010 approaches. Don’t you think that it feel so much better to say, “wow, I’m glad I did that” than to have another year of saying, “man, I wish I had”?

Every choice you make has an end result. – Zig Ziglar

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.