Have you ever asked someone how they were doing and they responded, “I'm having Groundhog Day”? Or have you ever reacted this way yourself?
This common response signals that you are not getting what you want from life . You are on autopilot and you don’t have a clear idea in which direction to develop.
In the whirlpool of things to do, you could simply forget what you really want, what you are moving towards. Dedicate more time to your family or get a promotion.
You can get carried away by the process and not notice the ups and downs, or passively go with the flow, and even despair of getting what you want from life.
Setting goals in major areas of life is a powerful process for creating an ideal future , and the motivation to turn this idea into reality.
Having a clear idea of what you want to achieve will give you better guidance when deciding where to focus your efforts.
Directing your own internal resources towards results will allow you to do what you love professionally. You will not be distracted by unimportant factors, improving your skills. Thus, the result will be effective.
Areas of human life: what they are, their characteristics and how to improve them
Every time you make plans for the future, set a goal for yourself. It could be something that seems insignificant in the grand scheme of your life (cleaning the house after work), or it could be something that would be very impactful (taking an MBA course).
No matter how small the task you set for yourself, you have created a goal. After this, move from a passive state to active participation in some area of your life.
However, this is not a reason to concentrate on just one thing. Various areas of life require development. Consider these important parts of your life: career, finances, health, leisure, organization, relationships, and spirituality.
If you set goals in all seven of these areas, you will not only feel a sense of purpose and progress. But you can also take control of your life and achieve what you want for yourself.
An effective goal setting method involves the drive and desire to achieve success. You may question whether the effort is worthwhile. After all, accidents sometimes rule the roost.
Let's consider an example of studying at a university, where the result is obtaining a diploma. It also requires self-organization in doing even the most favorite thing.
Financial goals
Setting financial goals is a critical part of achieving financial security. Without setting specific goals, you risk being reckless with your money. This can lead to problems when you face unexpected expenses or prepare to retire.
Reviewing your financial goals each year and updating them as needed will help you track your progress from the previous year and stay in a strong financial position that will eliminate the stress associated with life's inevitable expenses.
When it comes to finances, it's important to set short-, medium- and long-term goals . Setting short-term goals will provide you with the fundamental knowledge you need to have to achieve your long-term goals.
Creating a budget and determining a target amount of money to be in your emergency fund over the next 6 months is a good place to start. When you sit down and look at your income versus your expenses, you may be surprised at how much money you spend (or waste) in a certain area of your life. You can track expenses and funds to pay off any debt obligations in X months.
Once you get your finances in order and earn more than you spend each month, you can start with more moderate goals, such as paying off student loans or buying life insurance. Or you could set a goal to buy a home within the next year—these are things to keep in mind when considering your medium-term financial goals. Moderate planning will help you see the future more clearly.
To achieve your long-term financial goals, you really want to think about retirement. For example, there are plans to open a business.
How much will it cost you each year to live the life you want to live? At what age do you want to retire? What strategies can you use to increase your retirement savings?
These are all things to consider when making your long-term financial goals, and it's often helpful to consult with a financial advisor to get some guidance on these decisions.
Although you may not make steady progress when it comes to achieving your financial goals, it is important to be consistent in your efforts. You may have to adjust your plan if you lose your job or face a high medical bill, but as long as you get back on track, you'll be making progress toward your financial goals.
The meaning of setting goals in areas of life
You've already heard about SMART goals, but have you ever encountered them in reality? To set a smart goal, it must be: specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely.
You should then be able to evaluate your process and find a way to put your success into action.
Let's consider 7 main areas of every person's life in which it is important to set goals:
- Career.
- Finance.
- Healthcare.
- Leisure.
- Life
- Relationships.
- Spiritual development.
Biological activity
Within the framework of biology and the theory of life safety, this concept is understood as a set of biological processes that support human life. In this aspect, metabolism is important as a certain set of chemical reactions that supports the flow of life. Another concept that is associated with biological life is homeostasis. It means the system’s ability to self-regulate, to maintain stability and dynamic balance. In this interpretation, the main spheres of human life include production and household areas. In them, a person obtains his means of subsistence and ensures the renewal of his own resources in the process of rest and work.
Main areas of life
According to the balance model proposed by Iranian psychotherapist Nossrat Pezeshkian, there are four main areas in a person’s life, the development of which helps to find natural balance and find the path to happiness.
- Meaning. The spiritual side of life or the inner world of an individual. This includes plans for the future, a built-in value system, designated goals, faith, and the general meaning of existence.
- Body. This is everything that concerns a person’s health, his appearance, and preferred lifestyle.
- Contacts. The direction that is responsible for interpersonal relationships, communication with people, family, friendships and love connections.
- Activity. Part of life dedicated to professional fulfillment. Reflects achievements in study, work, hobbies. Characterizes material wealth.
All four spheres are interconnected, inseparable from each other, and have a strong influence on a person and his self-identification.
To form a harmonious and happy personality, it is necessary to pay equal attention to their development. Neglecting any part sooner or later leads to problems, conflicts, and destruction.
Personal and spiritual growth
Strategies for behavior in conflict - what methods exist
This is the area of working on your inner world, consisting of many emotions, feelings and thoughts. Personal and spiritual growth involves trying to understand yourself, improving your positive aspects and working to eliminate your shortcomings.
What are these characteristics? They talked a lot about them in school social studies lessons: determination, generosity, kindness and others.
This also includes setting and achieving goals. In this area, there are the following criteria that characterize a person:
- How a person presents himself;
- How they see him from the outside;
- Does he have leadership inclinations?
- What kind of self-esteem does he have?
Important! Some psychologists share the concepts of spirituality and the sphere of personal development. The first is based on the education of moral qualities.
They help to react positively to failures, to correlate goals and means of achieving them. The second concerns the areas of creativity, business and communication.
They need to be considered as one, without tearing them apart. Personal growth without the development of spiritual qualities is impossible.
Friends and leisure
This is an area that includes everything that falls under the concept of “hobby”. This word often confuses people, because the modern rhythm of life often deprives a person of time for hobbies. All he has left is to watch TV and sleep.
This area shows:
- sociability of the individual (she is an introvert or an extrovert);
- erudition;
- positioning of a person in society;
- his hobbies.
Important! You don't need to have many friends or interests, just a few close ones. Everyone determines for themselves what is more important: the number of interests and contacts or their quality.
Career and finance
This area of life is often given special attention, placing it above the rest. This includes not only an increase in income, but also an increase in social status and the implementation of leadership qualities.
The following characteristics are present in this area:
- Ambition;
- Attitude towards money, ability to earn it;
- How motivated and active is the individual?
- Is the person capable of competently building business relationships?
If he doesn't have enough money, it makes him nervous. Problems in your career negatively affect your personal life. It is also important to look for a job that you like, because doing something you don’t like turns life into hell.
By the way. Any business can be made interesting. For this purpose, gamification techniques are used - the introduction of game elements in non-game situations. This can significantly increase motivation for any activity.
Health and activity
This important area is often remembered only when illnesses appear. The area of health includes not only visiting doctors, but also monitoring your lifestyle, playing sports, and taking care of yourself.
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The Wheel of Life Balance is an effective and efficient technique, which is even patented in the USA, and is used by many personal growth and effectiveness coaches. Despite its apparent simplicity, this method of organizing thoughts allows you to clearly look at the problem, see the imbalance and understand how to achieve balance. The main trump card here is clarity, which cannot be achieved when trying to analyze your life while sitting with your best friend or girlfriend at the kitchen table.
Using this exercise began to give me good results, and I took the idea of spherical development as a basis. But as I developed further, I realized that this exercise does not give a complete picture of the path of self-development, because it only contains areas of life. It was a piece of the puzzle that needed to be completed. And I decided to do it.
Firstly, self-development is based on 3 sections: self-knowledge, self-realization and self-improvement. This was the top, and this was where it was necessary to start. Secondly, each section helps a person answer 3 important life questions: “Who am I?”, “What is my mission?” and “How will I accomplish it?” Thirdly, a person always uses words such as harmony, happiness, success and wealth in development. I connected these aspects with both sections and spheres. Fourthly, development is a path, and any path has a vector of movement from point A to point B. And fifthly, to achieve the main aspects of life, clear skills were needed that I identified. Thus, after a few years the puzzle was completed!
One day, a soldier guarding the road stopped a Buddhist monk. Snatching his sword, the warrior sternly asked the traveler: “Who are you?” Where are you going? Why are you going there? The monk thought for a few seconds, and then timidly asked: “Can I ask you a question?” “Ask,” the soldier allowed, frowning. - How much does the shogun pay you a week? — Two baskets of rice. “I will pay you four baskets of rice if you promise to ask me these questions every day.”
Every day you need to ask yourself these questions in order to be conscious and not stray from your individual path. You can answer these three questions with the help of 7 areas: spiritual growth, personal growth, health, relationships, career, finances and brightness of life. All 7 areas will help you achieve 3 aspects: happiness, success and wealth. And as a result, the 4th – harmony. And for each aspect there is a skill that you must develop in order to complete the path. This is constant learning, analysis, concentration and efficiency.
Interrelation of spheres of life
All areas of life are closely interconnected. For example, it will be easier for a person who has achieved success in his career to build a strong family and find great friends.
The opposite statement is also true. People often found success when they got married or found a friend who helped them start a business.
The same goes for health. A successful person can afford expensive treatment and high-quality prevention. In turn, health is the key to career success. This is true in all areas of life.
Wheel of Life Balance
To understand the overall picture, structure and improve the quality of life, psychologists suggest visualizing personal areas of activity using such a concept as the “balance wheel”.
The approach is as follows. The circle is divided into segments-spheres, which are filled based on the depth of “pumping” in the chosen direction.
The resulting wheel cannot be perfectly round - it is impossible to succeed equally in all areas. But it must fulfill its immediate function - the ability to move forward, to roll.
The model clearly shows which areas a person needs to pay special attention to in order to balance his life and avoid possible crises.
Social life
In addition to the biological idea of life in the humanities, we can talk about the social aspect of this phenomenon. Within the framework of social relations, population reproduction occurs, and people are provided with the necessary resources to meet their needs. Man is not only a biological system. He also exists in society and this makes him a person with specific needs and requirements. To be satisfied, to develop harmoniously, a person needs various areas to apply his strength. The realization of a person in different spheres is a condition for the fullness of his life and happiness. All spheres of human activity must be harmoniously interconnected.
Diagnosis of the state of life spheres
Now that we have reviewed the entire list of areas and studied their characteristics, you can independently assess the condition of each. Answer the following questions honestly for each area:
- Have you achieved any success in this area?
- Does it bring you pleasure?
- Do you spend time with her at least once a week?
- Do people around you praise you for your achievements in this area?
Be completely honest with yourself. Only in this case will you have a chance to improve your life and get a boost to development. Those areas in which the majority of answers are positive, you are doing well. And those with more than two negative answers will have to be worked on.
Leisure goals
If you don't have leisure goals, you can end up leading a pretty boring life when you're not at work. Leisure plays a big role in benefiting both you and society. Participation in leisure activities provides an opportunity to focus on your skills, hobbies and interests, and perhaps interact with communities in some way. A goal can help you achieve a dream, such as improving your skills in sports.
Participating in leisure activities not only enriches your life, but also provides the opportunity to acquire new skills. This activity is also an effective way to reduce stress and allows you to meet other people who share your interests.
One leisure goal you could have is to try something new once a month. The best way to discover what you like is to explore new activities, even ones that didn't interest you before.
Without effective leisure time based on interests, there may be no meaningful work. This is a big risk of emotional burnout due to lack of impressions. If you learn to give yourself a break, it will become a powerful recharge. Things will get better.
Choosing areas of life
The section above suggests the most important areas of life interest for most people. Let's look at them in more detail.
Health/energy/appearance – without good health it is difficult, and often impossible, to achieve success in any area of life. Sports, nutrition, and balance between work and rest are important for this area.
Work/career/finance is everything that brings money and material well-being.
Family/relationships/children - in many ways this is what gives motivation to move forward.
Your environment/friends are something that greatly influences you. There is an opinion that a person is equal to the arithmetic mean of the people around him.
Spirituality is an attempt to understand the World around you and the meaning of existence.
Personal growth – different types of development of skills and abilities, learning something new.
Rest/new experiences/travel - this allows you to “reboot”, fills a person with energy, and brings new ideas.
Creativity/hobbies – creating something new, the ability to look at familiar things and processes from a different angle.
How to make a list of 50 goals in life?
There are an unlimited number of desires, so the main thing is to highlight the highest priorities. The deadline is of no small importance. Fifty tasks is quite a lot. The optimal time is a year.
This does not mean that they must be completed in only 12 months. The main thing is that they are completed within this time period.
To make a list, you can use a simple technique:
- Sit in a cozy and calm environment, so that there are no distractions. Without trying to concentrate, write by hand or type on the computer all the goals that come to mind, as much as possible. They can be big or small.
- Try to be inspired. Write down your current, potential, global, absurd and even seemingly most incredible dreams. This greatly expands the possibilities for subsequent selection.
- Now you need to show maximum attention and concentration. Look again at what you wrote. Highlight priority ones, the implementation of which will not only bring benefits, but will also fully satisfy your wishes. Break down your goals into short-term, medium-term, and long-term.
Ask yourself the questions “why?”, “why?”, “what will this give me?” Consider whether you will be completely satisfied with the result. This will motivate you to achieve your goals.
Important! You can set goals for your entire life, but this is not the most serious approach. Truly important tasks must be implemented at least a year in advance, but it all depends on desire.
If you want to become a millionaire, it may take several years, but every step should lead to this result from the day you decide.
Short term
Such desires and dreams are achieved in a short period of time. They do not require careful planning. To achieve the goal, 1-2 weeks are enough. Often it’s even less, for example, signing up for swimming lessons. The main thing is to clearly understand that everything will not end there.
Long-term
These are life priorities. They require a clear and well-thought-out plan. You need to know exactly what actions to take to get results.
Such goals are divided into several stages and completed one after another. Otherwise they will remain unfulfilled.
Career goals
The average person spends 90,000 hours working over the course of their life . So this is a critical area of your life where satisfaction is key. This is the part of your life where you need to break down your big goal (like becoming a lawyer) into much smaller goals. Create a career plan and then write down the short-term actions you need to take to complete that plan.
For example, if you want to eventually become a lawyer, some short-term goals associated with this would include studying, developing skills, practicing, gaining experience, and obtaining all the necessary degrees.
Each of these short-term goals is then broken down into several tasks. When it comes to learning, you can start talking to three experienced lawyers over the next week to come up with a list of recommended books to read, famous cases to study, seminars to attend, etc.
When it comes to skill development, set a goal to spend at least 30 minutes a day working on self-improvement . This can be either an individual motivation or communication or borrowing experience. Planning can be done by reading books on lateral thinking, the Five Whys technique (which can lead to the creation of a continuous improvement habit), or working on developing a problem-solving mindset (which includes objectivity, developing a plan, creativity, and flexibility).
The point is that each step towards achieving your ultimate goal of becoming a lawyer will include many mini-goals that can be checked off as you achieve them so that you can stay motivated and feel like you are making progress.
After that, you must follow your career plan. You will find that it constantly requires revision, improvement and development. You may encounter bumps in the road or need to switch to some activities that don't necessarily work for you. This is part of the stages of assessing and adjusting to smarter goals that are important when you are looking to build a career.
Objectives and plans. When to start working?
Life is determined not only by the internal essence (the human body, soul, intellect, intuition), but also by external factors: resources that reflect capabilities. The full implementation of both most effectively shapes the personality. By filling our being with activity, we strive to acquire values, as well as preserve them.
It is they, along with vocation, that determine the true tasks of life. So what is the starting point? Having realized your purpose, you should create your own list of goals in life.
And also check what this list means for the meaning of life and begin to implement it.
Goal setting methods
The technology for converting a task from ordinary to smart (SMART) was discussed above. Methods for achieving goals, as well as setting them, are presented in greater variety. Let's look at a number of other popular practices.
- The goal frame connects the unconscious: the intention is processed in a form that is attractive to all facets of a person’s personality (physiology, intelligence, spirituality). The result of understanding the goals is agreement between them. After this, resources are turned on: consciousness and subconsciousness. Efficiency increases significantly, which predetermines rapid progress towards implementation.
- Brian Tracy's methodology is a 7-step training.
- The Jose Silva technique helps control the mind, increasing performance. The technology for processing goals is the joint work of both hemispheres of the brain. The author recommends programming the necessary events and then acting.
- The way to achieve your goals is reality transurfing, which gives the process power. A person must choose a version of events, imagine what he wants, and create an intention for implementation. After this, the task is transferred to external targets. And this fact works to create the required events. A person practically does not need to spend working time for implementation. The main thing is to find the desired reality.
How to develop the main areas of a person’s life?
Now we need to determine the steps that need to be taken to develop one or another area of a person’s life. Of course, this is a big topic, so here will be a brief description of this process, plus a video in addition.
Development of the physical sphere
In the physical realm, we need to learn how to treat our body correctly. This is the area from which the process of personal self-development usually begins.
Be sure to bring it here:
- Correct daily routine (read the article);
- Proper nutrition (read the article);
- Any physical activity, but in moderation (running, gym, fitness, dancing, etc.);
- Cleanliness of body and environment;
- Harmonious sex life;
- Eliminating bad habits.
This is not all, but start working in at least these areas.
Development of the social sphere
In this area, there is one simple recipe for how to build the right relationships with people. First, remember an important rule:
You must always invest your strength in relationships with all categories of people, who can be divided into elders, equals and juniors.
How to properly invest energy in relationships? Someone needs to devote time, someone needs to say a kind word, and someone needs to give something.
But be that as it may, we must know the general rule:
- Show respect to people who are older than us in age, position, and career ladder (but only if they deserve it);
- We need to be friends with people who are equal to us (if they are worthy people and friendship with them does not destroy us);
- People younger than us need to be given support and care, and sometimes punished if there are reasons for this.
Try not to do the following:
- Don't envy your elders;
- And do not quarrel with equals;
- Also, don’t humiliate your younger ones.
Development of the intellectual sphere
To develop this area of life, we need to constantly improve in our professional activities. It is desirable that this area be a favorite activity for us.
It is also necessary to develop in related areas, thanks to which we can advance in the main direction.
I also recommend that you read wise books (certainly not detective stories and science fiction), listen to lectures on self-development, relationships, etc. This will also develop your mind.
If you want to become one of the best in some field, then find someone who is already the best and start learning from him.
Development of the spiritual (evolutionary) sphere
The first thing to understand is that I am an entity (soul). This does not always happen easily or quickly, so below are points to help you do this.
To develop the spiritual sphere, it is necessary to gain knowledge about the essence, the laws of nature, the Universe, and real development.
Methods of correct evolutionary development:
- Constantly receive diverse information and knowledge;
- Develop positive character traits and eradicate negative ones;
- Learn to live according to conscience;
- And much more.
There are even more useful free videos on self-development on the YouTube video channel. I recommend.
Relationship Goals
It takes a lot of work to create and maintain healthy relationships. If you are in a relationship, you should have common goals to work with your partner to improve your life together. If you are not currently in a relationship with another person, then perhaps your priority in life is your career. These areas of life are interconnected.
The main role is played by a harmonious inner world, which allows you to build effective communication. Until you are satisfied with who you are and become the best version of yourself, you will not be able to be the partner you want to be for someone else.
Often couples make it a goal to improve their communication. Discuss problem areas, celebrate successes that each partner has. By listening to and addressing each other's needs, you can set goals together. Reach them in love.
Let's say your partner feels abandoned outside of your relationship. Ask him what area he could excel in and how you could share it with him. This could be going to the gym together or to a restaurant. Make concrete plans to fill this gap.
Or maybe you have a goal to stop arguing about money. If so, sit down and agree on an objective and firm budget to eliminate any room for mistakes or questions. Whatever the problem that stands in your way to a peaceful relationship, find a way to solve it. Reasoned goal setting with a specific action plan can help you resolve the issue.
Work to improve results
It is not enough to understand the places where we have problems. We need to find a way to change the situation. To do this, it is proposed to use the so-called SMART method of goal setting.
The word SMART is an acronym that stands for:
- Specific – specificity of the goal. Here we need a clear criterion that the goal has been achieved. For example, you want to be in good physical shape. It’s better to write not just “be in good physical shape”, but “do 50 push-ups per set” or something else that is more suitable for you, but equally specific.
- Measurable - the measurability of the goal. Again, in terms of fitness, this should look like “run 3km in 15 minutes”, not just “run 3km”.
- Achievable - the achievability of a goal. Goals must be feasible for you, or you need to perform understandable actions to achieve them. For example, if you want to have an expensive car, but now you do not have the opportunity to buy any car, then it is better to first set a goal to buy a budget car.
- Relevant - relevance of the goal. Ask yourself the question, why do I need this? This is really your desire, or maybe just the result of advertising suggestions. If you are not sure that this goal is really needed for you, at the first stage it is better to set some intermediate, easily achievable goal in this direction in order to understand your feelings and finally decide.
- Time-bound – time limit on the goal. I think this is clear without explanation.
Household purposes
If your home situation is in disarray, you most likely live in a constant state of stress or rush. You can help yourself stay on track with organizing goals to get your life in order and make sure it stays that way.
An example of an organizational goal is to spend 3 hours a month cleaning your home: closet, kitchen, office, living room, garage, car, any space where you spend a lot of time and things start to accumulate. You can keep a calendar to ensure you stay on track with organizational goals to help you organize your daily life.
Think about a physical area that is causing stress. You may be afraid of not having time or not being able to solve all everyday issues. Because of this, things pile up, and you need to start with the little things. Cleaning the windowsill will stimulate inspiration to do a long-delayed bathroom renovation.
Areas of a woman's life
I don’t know why this information is sought separately, but I monitor popular queries in search engines, and I can say for sure that the areas of a woman’s life are a question that interests many users. I hasten to surprise: the spheres are exactly the same! But it would be unfair if I don’t mention the nuances.
Everyone knows that women and men are “from different planets” (even a book has been written about this). Nature has made the female sex emotional and sensitive so that its representatives can take care of their offspring. What do we, women, lack for harmonious development in all areas of life?
- We want to like ourselves in the mirror. We can talk a lot about how appearance is not important, or that we strive to be beautiful only for the attention of men. But scientific research shows that attractive people are more likely to succeed in life and feel happier. Therefore, taking care of your appearance cannot be neglected.
- We need to do what we love. Believe me, any job can be approached creatively - from cleaning apartments to designing bridges. But it is very difficult for a woman if her soul is not in her work. And she projects her dissatisfaction with work onto relationships, self-esteem and even health (psychosomatics).
- For women, unlike men, all areas of life are intertwined. Men are able to switch: run from personal problems to work, and after a busy day at work, calm down by watching a movie or talking with friends. For us girls, everything is more connected: I quarreled with my husband - I can’t focus on work, my boss yelled at me - I yelled at my child, and then I cry because of the feeling of guilt.
- The first weapon against such intertwining is the very awareness of this fact.
- The second is honesty with yourself and with others. Admit and correct mistakes as quickly as possible when you make mistakes. Saying “no” when the body asks you to say “no”. Discuss conflict when there is tension in the air.
Institutions regulating spheres of social life
A social (public) institution is a form of organization of relationships between people, formed historically or created purposefully. A classic example of an institution is the family - a form of relationship between close people, which is structured the same almost all over the world.
Each of the spheres has its own social institutions designed to manage the processes occurring in it and regulate relations within it. Let us consider the main institutions of each of the subsystems of modern society.
- Social institutions. The most important institution of this subsystem is the family. Most people grow up and are raised in families, and their future lives largely depend on how they were raised. A significant role in the life of society is played by such social institutions as educational institutions, medical institutions and sports organizations.
- Economic institutions. The main institutions of this subsystem are manufacturing and trading enterprises, banks and exchanges. These institutions are responsible for the production and distribution of wealth, as well as for the management of funds.
- Institutes of the spiritual sphere. This group includes spiritual and educational institutions, various creative associations, the media, religious and other organizations.
- Institutions of the political sphere. The main political institution is the state. The institutions of presidency, parliamentarism, executive power, civil service and judicial proceedings are subordinate to him.