7-30-90 Day Goals
Identifying your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL is, obviously, an important part of starting to tell the story you’ve always wanted to tell. But, it’s only the first part. While this process takes take, in many ways, setting your goal is often the easiest part.
Transforming your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL into a BIG GOAL and achieving it is about taking action — doing the little things — on a day-to-day, week-to-week, and a month-to-month basis.
So, we’ve developed a tool to help you with this process.
7–30–90 Day Goals Worksheet
Note: Download worksheet here.
It’s easy to believe that goals are achieved in one fell swoop. Unfortunately, with this mentality, it becomes too easy to give up on your goals when you don’t see the unrealistic progress you are expecting.
Transforming and achieving your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL is about being systematic, methodical, and meticulous in the daily actions you take.
To be systematic, methodical, and meticulous, use the following technique — far from rocket science — to allow time and consistency to work their magic in achieving your goals.
1. Identify your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL
First, you obviously need to know your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL that you want to pursue to begin telling the story you’ve always wanted to tell.
If you need help with this, we offer 1-on-1 coaching to guide you through this process.
2. Lay a Stake in the Ground
Once you know your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL, it’s important to think of the stepping stones that will ensure that you’re making progress. Some are bigger than others. Let’s start with the biggest.
What we’ve found most helpful is to think in 90-Day periods. Typically, BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOALS reach out as far as 12-months from when clients initially identify them. 90-Day periods encourage a long-term mindset when chasing after your goals. Change, and progress toward goals, takes time.
Download worksheet here.
Starting at the bottom of the worksheet, identify your first set of 90-Day Goals that feed into your BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL. This is where it becomes important to be systematic.
With each 90-Day Goal that you set, ask yourself,
“How does this directly or indirectly feed into my BIG, SCARY, HAIRY GOAL?”
Doing so will ensure that the actions that you are setting for yourself are both purposeful and focused.
#3. Set a 1-Month Target
In a similar process to what you did above, identify your first set of 30-Day Goals that feed into your 90-Day Goals. You’re building your system here and being methodical about your approach.
With each 30-Day Goal that you set, ask yourself,
“How does this directly or indirectly help me achieve my 90-Day Goals?”
You want to make sure that the actions you’ll take over the next 30 days will incrementally move you toward your 90-Day Goals. This process encourages you to stay focused for the long-haul and avoid the distractions of thinking that you can achieve BIG things in your life in a short period of time.
#4. Think Meticulously
This is where you can finally start thinking small. At the top of the worksheet, identify your 7-Day Goals that feed into both your 30-Day Goals and 90-Day Goals. It’s important to check in on both timeframes to hold yourself accountable to taking actions that are purposeful:
“How does this 7-Day Goal directly or indirectly feed into my 30-Day Goal and 90-Day Goal?”
Goal achievement is about generating and maintaining momentum. This worksheet is designed to help you map out your momentum path.
Some Tips
When listing out your goals, use open circles or squares next to each goal as bullet points. This way, when you complete a goal, you can fill in the circle or square (or cross it out) so that you have a visual cue of your progress.
The worksheet is purposely ordered with your 7-Day Goals at the top so that you are reminded, on a daily basis, of the little things that you need to do each week to start making progress toward the BIGGER things that you are trying to achieve.
We recommend that you print off a new worksheet each week so that you consistently update your 7-Day Goals. Additionally, we recommend that you print off a new worksheet each week to updated your 30-Day Goals.
At the end of the 90-Day period, you will simply identify new 90-Day Goals and repeat Steps 2–4 above.
