Got big plans for 2018? All fired up and ready to go? Just one small problem – no idea how to make your dreams a reality?

Here are 5 tips to keep you on track throughout the year and reaching your goals!

1. Motivation

This has to be the cornerstone to getting started on anything really! If you don’t have the motivation to do something you simply will not do it! The question is how will you motivate yourself to do it?

Sometime just wanting a goal isn’t enough. Getting up at 5am to smash out a gym session might seem like a great idea the night before but when crunch time comes will you actually get up?

So how do we find this motivation? It must come from within us. If you really want something you will find a way to make it work. You must make sure you don’t place limitations on yourself, or create a negative mindset.

Decide to be happy, be motivated and leave your comfort zone. A positive attitude will always triumph over a negative one.

Above all, make sure you keep motivating yourself through self-development. Read, search, find motivation in what you are doing and why you want to do it!

If you are able to gain motivation this is a massive hurdle to gaining your goals!

2. What goals to pick

It is important to WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS! This is probably the most crucial part of any change you embark on. Do not simply think these goals. Stop NOW and write them down. They don’t have to be perfect but it makes them much more real than if they are just sitting in your head.

Even if you think this is not worth it, do it! You are more likely to succeed in your goals if you make them tangible! It seems illogical but it really helps make your goals a reality!

3. SMART Goals

Once you’ve written down your goals you can break them down and make sure they are SMART.

S(pecific): Specify exactly what the goal is here:

M(easurable): State how you will measure the goal here:

A(ttainable): State how you will make these goals attainable:

R(ealistic): Check if these goals are realistic given the information you have put forth:

T(ime managed): Add your time frame for your goals here:

4. Have a plan a review

Once you have the basic structure of your goals you can start to create a plan around how you will actually achieve these goals.

You can break your goal down into manageable chunks, which will enable you to build on the goals step by step rather than being daunted by the whole process as one big lump.

Make sure you set deadlines and review what you have accomplished within that time frame. Then you can reset the next chunk if necessary.

5. Positive mindset and rewards

One of the key elements in reaching a goal is a positive mindset and reward the success whilst learning from the failures. N

ever be afraid of failure and always learn from the mistakes. You might fail and you need to be prepared for that, but if you get up, brush yourself off and move on, you will succeed.

Keeping a positive mindset and rewarding success is also important to keep you going on your journey. Positive affirmation from other people or from yourself is a great way to start.

Make sure when you reach a milestone you reward yourself with something suitable.

For example, if your goal was to lose 16kg and you got half way at 8kg, buying some new clothes is a better reward than a chocolate cake!

Finally, (and you might roll your eyes at this) but believe that it is possible for you to reach your goal. You will have already set yourself up for failure if you think you can’t do it.  Your mindset has an incredible influence on your life!

Make it work in favor of you!

“The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.”

- Michelangelo