45 Examples of Personal Goals: Your Guide to Defining and Strategizing Your Ambitions
“The choices we make are the gateway to the actions we take, and those actions create the reality we live in. The good news is that no matter our previous choice—or our regret, frustration, disappointment, and self-doubt—there is always hope in our ability to change and grow.”
– Lisa Charles (Yes! Commit. Do. Live.)
Although what it means to accomplish something can vary from one person to the next, everyone has goals they’d like to achieve and dreams they’d like to see come true. But it’s crucial to understand that the benefits of defining, pursuing, and achieving your goals aren’t limited to the end result.
Actively cultivating the “yes” mindset that leads to success is the first step toward the happy, satisfying life you want. The brain-body connection is a very powerful thing. Get your mind properly focused on success and balance, and the body will follow.
Keep in mind that goals don’t have to be world-changing or take years to accomplish to be worthwhile. Setting and achieving smaller personal goals is a great way to turn goal-setting into a habit. In this empowering guide, we’ll go over a bit of everything you need to know to set solid goals and consistently achieve them.
Defining Achievable Personal Goals
“Become accountable to your authentic self, and you will realize when you are letting that self down. The connection between your brain and your body is your inner power source to sense your authentic self, hear when you are not true to it, and perform in ways that uphold it.”
– Lisa Charles (Yes! Commit. Do. Live.)
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While it’s commendable to dream big and set your sites high, goals don’t amount to much if they’re not pursuable and achievable. Using personal goals as a jumping-off point to success comes with many benefits.
- The act of setting personal goals helps you get in touch with your deeper motivations, aspirations, and values.
- Regular personal goal-setting gives you purpose, as well as an ongoing sense of accomplishment.
- Making goal-setting into a habit supports a positive, productive brain-body connection.
Ensure your future goals are realistic and attainable by also making sure they’re SMART goals. SMART stands for:
- Specific: Avoid setting vague goals in favor of setting specific ones instead. For example, instead of saying “I want to get healthy,” try, “I want to lose 30 pounds and lower my cholesterol by 10 points.”
- Measurable: If progress isn’t measurable, how will you know when you’ve finally reached your goal?
- Achievable: Good, positive goals are realistic and reachable. Make sure your goals are attainable and that progress is sustainable.
- Relevant: A great personal goal should align with your larger aspirations for your life, health, and general sense of well-being.
- Time-bound: Adding a deadline is a crucial part of making sure you ultimately reach a goal. Decide how long you have to do this. Break large or long-term goals down into smaller milestones to help sustain your progress.
Different Types of Personal Goals
“I knew if I was going to bring about lasting change, I could not focus on just fitness or just food. I had to commit to understanding my whole self, and I was ready to figure out how to experience sustained and substantial change.”
– Lisa Charles (Yes! Commit. Do. Live.)
Conceptually, personal goals can cover a lot of ground. They can be goals you set for your health or your professional life, your ongoing education your interpersonal relationships, and so much more. Here are a few broad categories with examples to consider.
Examples of personal goals for your career
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Everyone needs work in their life that not only pays the bills but also gives them a sense of personal fulfillment. Personal professional goals can be big or small and target any aspect of your professional life, including skill-building, leadership, or progress toward a promotion. Here are a few examples to consider:
1. Work on your networking
Relationships with industry peers can be incredibly beneficial when working your way up in your career. Set a goal to attend a certain number of networking events this year or to publish a leadership article in your niche of choice.
2. Show up early
Turning up to the office even five or ten minutes early (especially on big days) sends a powerful signal to managers and teammates – that you’re committed to your job and ready to take on the day.
3. Conquer a personal obstacle
Have you always wanted to speak in public or publish an article on a favorite topic but been too nervous to follow through? Pick something beneficial that you’ve always been afraid to try, and just do it.
4. Upskill yourself
Have you always wanted to earn a degree in a subject that would really help your career? Or maybe there’s a certain professional skill you’ve been meaning to level up for a while. Set a goal to make it happen.
5. Score a promotion
Instead of simply hoping your boss decides to promote you one day, set an attainable goal complete with milestones that will actually help you get there.
6. Mentor someone
Leadership skills are a crucial part of lasting professional success, so don’t sleep on opportunities to build yours. Mentor a new employee at work. Or consider helping out a social media contact who’s asked you for career advice.
7. Master professionalism
The ability to stay cool under pressure and maintain a professional demeanor at all times is incredibly valuable. Use goal-setting to actively cultivate ways to be better at this.
Examples of personal goals for personal development
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Your ongoing development doesn’t (and shouldn’t) stop when you graduate from high school or college. Whether you’re interested in pursuing additional formal education or simply leveling up a few personal qualities, it’s important to keep learning and growing throughout your life. Here are some goals to support that:
8. Say “yes” and mean it
One of the most important things a person can learn is not only how to say “no” to commitments they don’t want, but how to say “yes” to what they do want. Set a goal to do exactly that sometime soon.
9. Cultivate a morning routine
How you start your day matters, so adopting a morning routine that truly serves you is a terrific step toward getting your life together. Be sure to add something positive, like meditation or positive affirmations.
10. Pick up a new skill
Everyone has something they’ve always wanted to learn but never quite got around to. Pick something you like the sounds of – a new language, a musical instrument, etc. – and take steps to become a master at it.
11. Take a class
Classes and workshops aren’t just great ways to learn new things or level up valuable skills. They’re also solid ways to connect with other passionate, like-minded people. Pick one out and go for it!
12. Start reading regularly
Reading is the way to keep your mind sharp, engaged, and hungry for information. Challenge yourself to read a new book every week or two, and watch your mind blossom.
13. Embrace daily gratitude
Attracting more abundance into your life starts with practicing gratitude for the abundance you already have. Adopt a habit – like gratitude journaling or daily affirmations – that encourages this.
14. Go somewhere new
Travel is a wonderful way to open your mind up to new possibilities, experiences, and ways of living. Set a goal to travel somewhere new, whether that’s an entirely different country or a new city nearby.
Examples of personal goals for health and wellness
“If you’re waiting for your pain to magically go away before you get on the path to health and full physical function, you will spend a lifetime waiting. To get over your fear, no matter how it tries to stop you, you just need to act.”
– Lisa Charles (Yes! Commit. Do. Live.)
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Never lose sight of the mind-body connection when setting goals. Just as the mind influences the body, the body influences the mind. For that reason, staying healthy and fit should be a top priority. Here are some example goals to consider:
15. Practice daily self-care
Self-care is about more than simply taking a bubble bath and having a glass of wine once in a while. It should be a daily part of your life. Make it one by adopting a habit like stretching, doing something you love after work, or practicing daily affirmations every morning.
16. Schedule a checkup
When was the last time you went to the doctor or the dentist just for a checkup? If it’s been a while, schedule one. Then continue going at regular intervals moving forward.
17. Sign up for a local event
If you’re already fairly fit, consider challenging yourself by signing up for a local event like a marathon or a holiday run. Then start training. See where it takes you.
18. Get up and get active
Daily movement is as much a necessity for your body as air or food. Set a goal that gets you working toward daily movement. Schedule a morning or evening walk, or sign up for an aerobics class.
19. Embrace eating fruits and vegetables
Don’t just start eating fruits and vegetables daily. Find a way to fall in love with the idea. Start a vegetable garden, visit a local farmer’s market, or take a healthy cooking class.
20. Work toward a healthy weight
Maintaining a healthy weight helps lower your risk of developing certain conditions as you get older, as well as keeps you healthier now. Adopt a new goal to help support this and turn it into a priority.
Examples of personal goals for finance
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Money may not be everything in life, but financial stability is still an essential part of a good life. Here are a few example goals to help you cultivate, maintain, and work toward greater financial stability for yourself and your loved ones:
21. Set up an automatic savings deposit
Turning saving into an ongoing habit, whether you feel you can afford to save or not, is a terrific way to start working toward a better future. Set up a weekly or monthly automatic deposit to your savings account to simplify the process. It can be any amount you like.
22. Take a bite out of debt
Just as you should be saving every month no matter what, you should also be working toward paying down debt. Come up with a debt repayment plan, either on your own or with the help of your bank.
23. Level up your income
Turning making more money into a goal you’re actively working toward instead of just a vague wish is a major power move. How you do it is up to you. Ask for a raise. Start a side hustle doing something you love. Open an online store.
24. Improve your credit
If your credit score could use some work, now is the time to set actionable goals that align with that objective. Pay down debt, use credit wisely, etc.
25. Give back
Giving is just as big a part of cultivating an abundance mindset as receiving is. Look for ways to share some of what you have by helping a friend, giving to charity, or otherwise paying it forward.
26. Prioritize experiences over things
When you do splurge on something special, make it something that will add lasting meaning to your life. For most people, that’s best accomplished by spending on experiences instead of things.
Examples of personal goals for relationships
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Healthy relationships form the foundation of a wonderful life filled with abundance and gratitude. This makes personal goals to improve yours incredibly worthwhile. Here are some ideas to consider:
27. Learn the other person’s love language
Learning a loved one’s love language and speaking it daily is a game-changer. Do it for friends and family members, as well as romantic partners.
28. Never stop dating your partner
Dating doesn’t and shouldn’t stop once you commit to a partner or get married. Commit to at least one or two date nights every month, and spend those nights doing something you both love.
29. Communicate well and often
Communication is an essential part of every healthy relationship, so it’s worth mastering how to do it right. Turn ongoing, open communication into a daily habit, especially when it counts the most.
30. Start a habit with a loved one
Try setting a goal that not only encourages you to spend more time with a partner or loved one but that serves you both. A daily evening walk is a good example, as is a weekly meal you cook together.
31. Plan little surprises
You don’t need to wait for a birthday or holiday to surprise a loved one with something special. Set a goal to surprise someone you love soon with a special gift or a blessing when they least expect it.
32. Resolve issues quickly
If you’re in the habit of sulking and letting resentment fester, set an actionable goal to do otherwise. Life is too short to allow anger to build up in important relationships. Resolve problems quickly and diplomatically.
33. Make time for friends
Platonic friendships are valuable parts of any well-rounded life, but they can fall by the wayside as we get older. Incorporate regular friend time into your ongoing schedule and make it a priority.
Examples of personal goals for mental health
“The road to finding hope is through the choices we make. Choices open the window of opportunity. When the choices you make close that window, you end the possibility of change and enter a world of false living and limited thinking.”
– Lisa Charles (Yes! Commit. Do. Live.)
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Mindfulness, self-awareness, and clarity are crucial parts of an ongoing “yes” mindset. Here are some example goals to help you develop yours:
34. Consider therapy
If you’ve ever wondered whether you could benefit from seeing a therapist or a counselor, there’s no time like the present to explore it. Therapy can be a wonderful way to process trauma, overcome emotional obstacles, etc.
35. Take up journaling
Not only does journaling help you level up your writing skills and self-awareness, but it’s a great way to make meaningful use of leisure time. Set a time that works for you, and try cultivating a daily habit.
36. Set a boundary
Maybe you know someone who needs a better sense of your boundaries, or maybe you need to set better boundaries with yourself. Whatever the case may be, personal boundaries always make a good basis for goal-setting.
37. Do something you love daily
Don’t save your favorite activities for the weekends. Set a goal to spend a certain amount of time every day doing something that makes you feel happy and fulfilled.
38. Unplug regularly
Social media and the internet in general can be fantastic ways to spend some of your time. But it’s good to set healthy limits on the amount of time you spend online and available.
39. Prioritize positivity
This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to feel happy-go-lucky at all times. It does mean that it’s worth focusing more intently on what’s going right with your life than what’s going wrong. We tend to attract what we focus on the most.
Examples of personal goals for leisure
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Although work is an important part of any life, it’s important not to think of your free time as somehow less important. Here are some fantastic examples of personal goals that revolve around enhancing your leisure time:
40. Spend time out in nature
Humanity’s connection to nature is powerful, which you realize when you start spending more time out in nature. Take up a hobby or set a goal that requires you to get out and touch grass more often to experience the benefits firsthand.
41. Get out and get social
Even the most introverted people benefit from being around other people they like and feel comfortable around. Set a goal that gets you out of the house and encourages you to connect with other people in your area. Join a book club, attend a community event, etc.
42. Work on reducing stress
Stress is a natural part of any life, but it’s important to keep it in check. Look for ways to cut back on stress and keep it at bay as far as how you spend your free time. Relaxing hobbies – like gardening or baking – can help.
43. Explore mindfulness
Mindfulness comes with many benefits and is something everyone could stand to have more of. Carve out a chunk of time each day to spend on mindfulness. Meditate, journal, or spend time simply existing in peace.
44. Take a vacation
When was the last time you took a vacation or even an extra day off? If it’s been a while, consider setting a goal that requires you to carve out some free time for yourself soon.
45. Create something beautiful
You don’t necessarily need to be a master artist to be creative. All people benefit from a creative outlet, so pick one you like, and get started.
Of course, these are just a few examples of personal goals you can explore to make goal-setting into an ongoing habit. Try the ones that speak to you, and don’t be afraid to come up with more of your own. You’ll be basking in the benefits in no time.
