The Secret to Achieving Your Biggest Goals ( It’s not what you think)

Let’s take a trip down memory lane. It was December 2014. Ten years ago, to be precise. I had just returned back to work from my maternity leave. The twins had just turned four months. Our oldest was two years and ten months. My husband and I were sleep- deprived working parents. We had a live-in helper, but with three kids, all below three years and demanding jobs, it was not easy.

A few days ago, I was going through my 2015 journal and  what I had as goals for 2015. I realize I was doing it all wrong. We were doing okay as a family. We always had dreams of owning investment properties, so we were in the process of buying a piece of land to begin our property investment journey. Our main goal for 2015 was to finish paying  off for the land. I will fast forward and let you know that it took us three more years to finish buying that piece of land. This brings me to today’s topic. 

The problem with short-term goals. As most of us are busy with new year resolutions and setting goals,  we tend to overestimate what we can do in a year and underestimate what we can do within ten years. Examples include setting unrealistic weight loss goals or expecting instant career success and relying on willpower to  achieve these goals. When things don’t go according to plan, you toss goal setting and call it ineffective and useless, yet the real problem is you are doing it wrong.

Crafting your ten year plan: Instead of taking a short-term approach, how about taking a long-term approach, such as a five or ten year roadmap with a clear step by step guide of all the actions that you need to achieve your goals? In 2025, let’s set SMART goals that have a longer-term horizon. Here are some actionable steps to help you set impactful 10-year goals.

• Identify your core values  that will ground you as you work on your 10 year goals. Write these down.
• Define your ten-year goals across the following buckets. Write these down.
  • Health and wellness goals.
  • Financial goals.
  • Career goals/business goals.
  • Personal development goals.
  • Family/ social goals.
• Under each bucket, set a maximum of two to three goals. This might look like a lot, but over a ten year period, this is not a lot and is achievable. Write these down.
• Break down each goal into smaller manageable steps that you can take on a weekly and monthly basis. Write these down.
• Set realistic timelines to achieve each step. Again, write it down
• Start taking small everyday steps towards achieving your goals.
  • At the end what you should have is a table with about 15 top level goals in the first column, the steps for each goal in the second column, the target timeline for completion of each goal and finally a status column which you should complete every month as you track monthly.

Habakuk 2 vs 2 ” And the Lord answered me. Write the vision and make it plain on tablets that he who reads it may run”

Turning big goals into daily actions: Ten years might seem like a lifetime, but it goes by so fast! You have to remember that the cumulative impact of your actions, whether positive or negative, will, over time, produce results. It’s known as the compound effect.  The secret to achieving your goals is found in consistency.  Small daily actions, executed consistently, over time have the power to bring you great success personally and professionally.

Building Habits That Last
Goal setting is not only about what you do but about who you will become in the process and the habits that you need to build throughout the year. One of the most overlooked aspects of goal-setting is the role of habits. Goals give us a direction, but habits are the vehicle that gets us there. Think about the daily or weekly habits you need to cultivate to achieve your 10-year goals. Maybe it’s setting aside an hour each week to work on a skill. In our case, it was  saving and investing a  portion of our income each month to go towards paying off the land. Habits don’t need to be grand gestures. They just need to be consistent. Over time, they become second nature and pave the way for long-term success. I read a piece today that said $300 invested each month with a return of 12% per year becomes $1 million in 30 years! That is the power of compounding effect. Your habits will either propel you toward your goals or pull you away from them.

Embrace Flexibility and Learn from Setbacks. A long-term plan doesn’t mean rigidity. Life happens and often presents unexpected challenges and opportunities. When things don’t go according to plan, don’t abandon your goals entirely. View setbacks as lessons. For us, buying that piece of land over three years taught us patience and financial discipline. Flexibility in your journey allows you to pivot and adapt while still keeping your eyes on the big picture. After all, the road to success is rarely a straight line.

Conclusion. So ten years later, I can tell you that we have built a reasonable portfolio of properties that are generating income. We are still continuing, and I know if I was to write again in another ten years, the portfolio would have multiplied significantly into a big property company ( I am calling things that are not, as if they are…it’s called faith).  As I look back on that sleep-deprived mother of three in December 2014, I’m reminded that success isn’t just about achieving a goal but about who we become along the way. Your 10-year goals are not just a plan. They’re an act of faith in your potential. They are a declaration that you are willing to invest in the future version of yourself one day at a time. As you set your 2025 goals, ask yourself what legacy you want to build over the next decade.  Commit to the journey, embrace the process, and compounding effect will do its magic!. The next 10 years will pass anyway. Why not let them be the years that transform your life?

Gratitude: This week, I am grateful for the gift of family. Their  love and  belonging is not something I take for granted 🙏

Gratefully