Long tern goals are life goals. They are goals we work to achieve slowly over time. We work on them part by part to achieve the main objective.
Long-term goals are necessary to find fulfillment in your life. Having accomplished a long-term goal is one of the greatest feelings and will always be a memorable moment in your life. You challenge yourself and strive to achieve that goal whether it be finishing a career, traveling, or getting your dream career.
This is a topic that is near and dear to the hearts of my readers, researchers, and website visitors. So much so that one of them were kind enough to share their own personal opinions. I don’t claim to be the best interviewer in the world, but I do promise some good, raw, and honest answers from normal people like you and me. I do my best to NOT filter these answers, except for the bad words and hateful speech.
With that little blurb out of the way, let’s dive right into the juicy bits of (potentially) life-changing insights.
Current Topic: Long-Term Goals
‘R’ = Richard N. Stephenson (me!) ‘I’ = Interviewee (anonymous by request unless otherwise noted)
[This interview is inspired and fueled by research done for my book: Staying Motivated at Work.]
R: What would someone really get out of this?
I: I will loss weight and be healthy and can spend more time with my nieces. I can improve my health and help reduce my risks of heart disease and diabetes, which i have a family history for both. I also have a goal to make more money. If i make more money i can buy Christmas presents and it will improve my self-esteem.
R: Sometimes, I think this kind of stuff could really help people in life – what do you think?
I: Long-term goals could change someone’s life if, for example, they know for sure what career path they want to take. If they decide in high school that they want to be a doctor, they will have to change their life to study hard and make good grades, to try to get into medical school, to get a good residency, etc. When you make a long-term goal that is that important, a lot of other parts of your life have to change to work around your most important goal.
R: Please tell me about your own experience with this topic and how it helped someone be better.
I: Having long-term goals aids in becoming a better person by giving you something of a measuring stick for your actions. If you are choosing whether an activity or action would be a good idea, you can check with your goals to see if it would be beneficial towards where you want to go in your life. So, for example, if your long-term goal is to be heart-healthy at 65, it allows you to make better eating and exercising choices in the meantime because you know where you want your body to be when you’re older.
R: Who do you think is best when it comes to this topic?
I: My partner is excellent at long term goals. When she wanted to buy a house, she put other financial incentives away to focus on what she thought was most important. She stopped going out to restaurants, started clipping coupons for groceries, and did whatever it took to save money. I could not have done all of the things that she did in completing her long-term goals, and am proud of her as we now have an amazing house that we didn’t think we could afford.
R: Do you know anyone who could use a little more help on this?
I: A person who is the worst at long terms goals is a person who doesn’t take life seriously and only parties and tries to have fun. For instance, many college students go through a phase where all they want to do is party. They let partying get in the way of their homework, studying, and work. They are just looking at their short term goals (partying) rather than their long term goals (good career).
R: Can you tell us what it’s like to have this subject in your life?
I: One of my long term goals would be to respect myself and to respect others.Another one of my long term goals is to be honest and trustworthy and considerate of others feelings.Another one of my long term goals is to kind and helpful to those in need.
R: When do you think new folks should get into this topic?
I: Long-term goals should be established during young adulthood. During this period, many people start a career and get married and start a family. During young adulthood, it is important to establish long-term goals such as saving money so that your children can attend college. Early in life, it is also advisable to start a long-term investment program that will grow over the years. By doing this, it will be possible to have the money needed for peace of mind during the retirement years.
R: Are there any times when you think it is a bad idea to bring this topic into our lives?
I: When you have certain problems or issues that you need to address in life, it’s probably not the best moment to introduce any long-term goals to the picture. For example, if you’re about to get laid off and your family is in a crisis, it’s probably better to focus on simply getting a job and taking care of the family’s situation before attempting to hit up any long-term goals.
R: Where’s the best place someone can bring this topic into their life?
I: An education is probably the most relevant aspect of my life that I would make long-term goals a part of my daily life. Right now I’m a senior and I still don’t know what I’m going to do in life, and I feel like if I took my education more seriously, I would have a closer idea of it, so I’m considering grad school to see if it can change my mind.
R: Describe the worst place to bring this subject into your life.
I: The worst place to make a long term goal an active part of your daily life to me is when you are mad. The reason why I chose being mad is that people tend to make decision when they are mad with a particular situation for instance when I didn’t get along with a certain person on my job and by the feeling that I had towards this particular person I wanted to leave this particular job without even taking into consideration about how my family was going to survive.
R: What kind of person would benefit from looking into this subject further?
I: One group who could use more help with long-term goals are recent college graduates who have just entered the workforce. This group are just starting out in their careers, so it’s important that they are provided with guidance on how to handle their finances, life and career goals.
Often they are inexperienced with how to manage their finances and how best to set themselves up for the future. Getting help with long-term goals, and helping them to understand the importance of long-term goals, will set them on a path of greater success.
R: Give me an example of something we can do to discover more about this subject.
I: Perseverance and stamina to see a task done to completion in spite of obstacles is my most useful advice. No one knows what the future brings. But if one stays on course with a positive attitude and the strength to see a task accomplished to completion means that there is a 100 per cent chance that the goal will get accomplished. One has to be strong minded to reach goals and to not falter by the wayside because of obstacles that always are prevalent even when plans are made to perfection.
R: What’s something people should avoid if they’re looking into this subject?
I: People should avoid rushing to get conclusions without realizing the time factor involved. Time is important to long term goals because of the phases involved in the accomplishment of plans that can not get accomplished right away. In than regard having patience and not rushing is the number one thing to avoid in regards to long-term goals.
R: This topic is broad and the readers will need some focus. Can you help guide them along with an example of what to do next?
I: Knowing that you are capable of being part of the problem or part of a solution, wake up tomorrow and tell yourself : Today I am going to be an agent of change. Today I am going to start a community exercise program.
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Thank you for reading this personal journey into becoming a better person and having a better future ahead of you. I hope you enjoyed this interview conversation and found golden nuggets you can immediately apply to your daily life.
If you want to get more productivity (and fulfillment!) out of your work, career, and life through being more motivated, then check out Staying Motivated at Work.
Please feel free to share your thoughts, comments, or personal life-changing wisdom below.