Questions to Help You Set Meaningful Long Range Goals
While research shows that setting and accomplishing short term goals, and building habit systems to support those goals is optimum, there is some value also in looking at long range goals that are aspirational.
You can accomplish this better by engaging in answering a series of questions which are provided below.
The questions emphasize the importance of creating meaning in your life, not just the accomplishment of things or seeking pleasure.
1. “What are the tempting “parking spaces” to avoid? Our lives can be inadvertently taken up with safe places that feed your habit of procrastination for achieving meaningful goals, or you are caught by “traps” that derail you into doing something that doesn’t serve your meaningful goals. Write down these safe places or traps and reflect on why you’ve been pulled into them.
2. “How can I live a life true to myself and my values, and not the life others expect of me?”
Bonnie Ware, a former palliative care nurse, and the author of Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing, describes how the number one regret of the dying patients she had was living a life that someone else wanted them to live, rather than their own. To create meaningful long range goals, it’s essential that you look at being true to yourself and validating your most important values in what you do.
3. “How can I work on my life, not just in it?” We can get so caught up, in routine activities and daily requirements of living, leaving time only for eating and sleeping and socializing. That leaves precious little time for self-reflection on the deep meanings of life for us, and a commitment to doing things for personal growth. Your goals should not be just about living day to day but also about “becoming” who you want to be.
4. “What’s the difference between a good week, month or year and a good decade, or even a lifetime.” What do you want the next decade to look like? What the legacy you’ll leave behind at the end of your life. Starting to answer those questions can help you determine meaning in your life.
5. “What are my superpowers and how will I use them for good?” We all have things we are good at, that we do with ease and with positive effect. Think about setting meaningful goals that use your superpowers, and not just for yourself, but for the benefit of others and the world.
6. “What part of me hasn’t shown up in my life yet?” Is there some superpower or talent or skill you have that hasn’t showed up yet, that you have hidden or are waiting for the right time to use it? If so, what are you waiting for?
7. “What have been my most meaningful moments in my life?” These can be happy moments, or moments where you’ve overcome obstacles or challenging events. What can you take from these to insert them into longer meaningful goals?
8. “What is your purpose in life?” Why were you put on this earth. This has nothing to do with your career or job, but with who you are as a person and what you were meant to do during your lifetime. From knowing this purpose you can create your personal mission in life, which is what you do that has a positive impact on others and the world.
These self-reflective questions can help you set that long range view, one so important in finding meaning in your lifetime.
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