3 Ways To Achieve Personal Goals And Growth

By Doug Bennett with special guest Gwen Riley

When it comes to your personal goals and growth, it’s natural to feel burned out or like you haven’t made any progress at all.

But have you ever wondered what might happen if you simply chose more?

This might sound vague, but it’s the idea behind Gwen Riley’s company, I Choose More. Gwen is on a mission to help people like you and me enjoy the little things, pursue memorable ventures, and achieve their big dreams.

And it all begins with making a solid commitment to choose more in all aspects of your life.

You can catch our full conversation on the Goals Do Come True podcast.

In this blog, I’m going to share three tips (from Gwen) to help you make headway with your personal goals and achieve end-to-end growth.

Making the right choices

Gwen: “We choose things every day, and we’re the result of all these choices. I Choose More is about understanding that we all have personal choices and then making a conscious decision to direct our future selves and our future path.”

I particularly like the idea that we’re all a result of the choices we’ve made over the years. All of your decisions – whether it’s starting a new business or sneaking away from your personal trainer to enjoy a “naughty” treat – eventually culminate into one big pathway.

That’s why it’s important to constantly reflect on your personal journey and ensure you’re on the right track. 

Gwen identified three key ways you can get the results you want and achieve even bigger goals.

1) Carve out time for “Me Moments”

Gwen describes “Me Moments” as those “rare, quiet instances where the world feels like it’s yours alone”. Those moments where you set time aside to do things just for yourself. I was keen to delve deeper into what this entails and how you can commit to enjoying these precious little moments.

Gwen: “As a young person, you don’t have commitments, and your time is yours to do whatever you want with it. But as you get older, other people (family, spouse, clients) now own your time. You’re constantly serving the people in your life.

So, “Me Moments” are those committed times that you set aside for yourself. They don’t just happen to you. Instead, you’re committed to making them happen. For example, you could decide to go on a walk, grab some lunch with a friend, or just stay indoors all day and watch a movie. It could even mean taking out time to sort out the critical things you need to do, such as going to a doctor’s appointment. 

When you set these times aside for yourself, it’s not just the event itself that’s exciting to you. It’s also the anticipation that builds up as you get closer to the D-day.”

While we often get snowed under with work and daily struggles, making time for a breather can be beneficial.

In 2011, a friend suggested that we go motorcycling in the Himalayas. It was an expensive trip – one that I couldn’t quite afford without breaking a sweat. But I did it anyway, and it was one of the most exciting moments of my life!

Since then, I’ve ticked even more things off my vision board, such as hiking up Mt Kilimanjaro, running half a marathon, and even surviving a motorcycle accident earlier this year! The last bit wasn’t exactly on my bucket list, but it’s since spurred my personal growth and given me the courage to do even more.

2)  Find a goal-setting system that works for you

Gwen: “I always thought I was a horrible journaler until I actually started it. I realised I was looking at other people with stacks of journals and thinking that’s how I needed to do it, too. But, in reality, I have my own unique style of journaling. I have 20 years of calendars, sticky notes, and to-do lists – that’s how I journal.

And it’s the same thing with goal setting. We look at how other people set their own goals, and we think: I’m going to fail. I can’t do that. But that’s not how it should be. We really need to stop comparing ourselves with other people. Instead, find what works for you and stick with it.”

3) Surround yourself with a community

In our quest for personal growth and fulfilment, nothing’s quite as important as creating a community and surrounding yourself with the right people: people who can cheer you on and provide you with some much-needed support.

I was pleased to find that Gwen shares a similar perspective.

Gwen: “What has made me successful over the years is community. You need a community surrounding you and your goals. Personally, I want a community of people who know me, what I’m going through and what I’m trying to accomplish. I also want a group of people who may have no idea what I’m doing but are still my supporters. 

We must ensure we have the right people with us as we go along and equally have advisers to keep us on track.”

A supportive community also comes with the added benefit of accountability – which is an important requirement for goal setting. On bad days when you don’t feel the urge to carry on with your goals, it certainly helps to have an accountability buddy to remind you why you started in the first place!

Moving forward

Which of these three tips do you relate to the most? I like the first one: Carve out time for “Me Moments”. It’s easy to keep this in mind, but it’s also an obvious one where people slip up. 

How often do you focus on other people’s needs without taking some time for yourself

Even aeroplane safety briefings tell us to put on our own masks first before assisting others in emergencies. This means that you need to be satisfied and excited about your life first. This way, you can keep moving towards your goals and support the people around you.

If you’d like some professional support to achieve your personal goals, get in touch by emailing me at doug@dougbennett.co.uk. And if you’d love an accountability group with free access to a weekly dose of inspiration, join The Wealth Tribe today.