Those of us who are involved (or have been involved) with the work of Dr. William Glasser are a step ahead of other people when it comes to setting goals.
Why?
Dr. Glasser first created Reality Therapy© in the 1960’s. For a definitive look at the process he developed read Jim Roy’s William Glasser, A Champion of Choice. Those of us who were involved in The Institute in those early days, first learned the 8 Steps of Reality Therapy© and then learned Choice Theory© as Dr. Glasser’s creative mind figured out the basic of How and Why People Behave.
Since many people use January as the time to set goals or make resolutions for the coming year, it’s useful to know that applying the concepts in Reality Therapy©, one can be assured of success.
First: What is it you want? Make sure this is what You want and not something Someone else thinks you should want. I encourage you to stop and rate what you want on a scale of 1 – 10 and ask this question:
How Important is it to Me to be successful? 1 = low and 10 = high.
Did you rate this at an 8 or higher? If you did, you are highly likely to be successful using the following process.
Second: What have you done or tried to do previously to successfully meet this goal?
Perhaps it worked for a while and then – not so much.
Perhaps a piece of it worked and then – didn’t.
Perhaps your plan depended on a partner or helper, someone who’d – and then they didn’t.
Third: Once you’ve assess what worked and what didn’t, think about your goal. Is it something you want enough to find another way? Check back at your First and Second answers. Be honest. It isn’t unheard of for people to set goals in order to please other people, society, etc. In order to be Successful, the entire plan Must revolve around your wants, goals and aspirations.
Fourth: Make a Plan. You know what you tried or thought about doing and abandoned. Now it’s time to take a look at a different way to move forward.
Here are some ideas:
+ What – Clear and specific goal
+ How – details
+ Simple, Measurable details – lead to a more successful outcome.
+ Why – What will you gain when you are successful?
+ When – Your proposed completion date
Here’s an example:
Goal: Write a blog post for the GIFCT-US website that is focused on the monthly topic the Difficult Discussions in Diversity group will be discussing.
Details: Post needs to be written and sent to Denise early in month. Goal is to have it to her no later than the 5th of each month. Also need to include the Zoom link so people who read post can easily join us.
Why? Our monthly (3rd Saturday) discussions are diverse because we are a diverse group of people. We’ve folks from around the US that show up. Since we each have diverse backgrounds, any topic has a level of diversity to it. We are committed to discussions that honor differences and encourage connections.
When: Yep, I’m typing this on January 4, 2024 so I’m right at my deadline.
Never Give Up – Using this process means there is No Blame or Failure! That’s right, we do Not Fail. We assess, we recalibrate, we update.
If I wasn’t writing this today, I’d stop and take a look at what happened that I wasn’t going to meet my January 5th (or first Friday of the month) deadline.
What was going on?
What can I do different for next month?
What was the flaw In The Plan? Not the flaw in me, but the flaw in the plan. That small almost insignificant part of the plan makes a huge difference.
Want to learn more? I’ve a link to a Plan Making handout on my website. You can download it here: https://judithashley.net/resources/
You are invited to join us Saturday, January 20, 2024, when the Difficult Discussions in Diversity group is talking about Goal Setting and how Choice Theory© and Reality Therapy© can assist us in being successful. We start at 2 p.m. Eastern, 1 p.m. Central, 12 Mountain, 11 a.m. Pacific. You are invited to join us! Here’s the link!
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86846055313?pwd=emtiWTNpSVExdDRpWEFtTWtoUXkyZz09
Meeting ID: 868 4605 5313
Passcode: 662804
Judith attended her first Basic Training in August 1978. She was certified in Reality Therapy© in August 1979 and became an Intensive Week Trainer and Practicum Supervisor in 1981. In 1991, Judith was approved as Senior Faculty by Dr. William Glasser. She has taught all phases of the Certification Program and presented workshops at Conferences in the United States and Internationally. Currently Judith is the Northwest Region’s representative on the GIFCT-US Board as well as president of the NW Region.