Reviewing Goals – How Often Should I be Checking in?

Setting goals is a topic I have covered (and plan to cover) frequently on this site. However, just as important as setting goals is keeping them. Reviewing goals often is a key component of following through with the objectives you have created for yourself. It’s obvious that setting goals once a year and then not looking at them until the following year is unhelpful. But how often should you be reviewing your goals?

Daily Goal Review

Those that have purchased my Next Level Goal Setting PDF know that I advocate for a quick daily revision of your goals. Even a quick glance at your goal sheet each morning can increase your motivation and keep your goals top of mind. You don’t need to spend an extended amount of time reviewing every day, nor do you need to analyze all the ways you will carry out your goals. A minute or two is all you need to make sure that your goals are fresh in your mind before starting your day. Some goals that we set are easier to keep than others – perhaps you’ve already created a habit. Others can be more difficult to remember, and a daily look at your goal sheet will be necessary until that goal becomes habit.

Reviewing Goals – Weekly

On Sunday night, at the beginning of each week, I spend a little longer (5-10 minutes) reviewing my goals. How many did I accomplish? How many did I fall short of? What goals would I like to specifically focus on that week? It can be almost impossible to work towards every single goal every day. Instead, I look ahead and consider which goals are most in line with my meetings, schedule, and plans that week. If I excelled at keeping a certain goal the past week, perhaps I should shift my focus to another goal. Alternatively, if I completely forgot about one of my goals, it might be best to emphasize it this time.

Monthly and Quarterly Goal Review

Goal review at the month, three-month, or six-month time intervals can be a little more involved. It’s important to evaluate your goals throughout the year on a more in-depth level. Dedicate 30 minutes to an hour to really dive into your progress. Are there some goals you easily surpassed and have left in the rearview mirror? Are there others that you haven’t made any significant progress toward? Quarterly or biannually you can take the time to actually modify your goals to the appropriate level of difficulty. Your goals should be challenging but not impossible. Goals without progress should be made more realistic. Goals that you flew past should have their difficulty increased. Balance is key when it comes to goal setting.

Reviewing Goals – Yearly

Reviewing goals yearly is the most obvious interval for most people. For Next Level Goal Setting system users, yearly goal setting is a 1-2 hour process where you completely revamp your goal list. You take a serious look at the areas of your life you want to improve and strengthen before creating your goal sheet. You can create large shifts in the focus of your life or small revisions to your plan from the past year. Yearly goal review is the biggest and most important goal setting time of all, hands down.

To make this crucial yearly goal setting time a success, I’ve created the Next Level Goal Setting system. It’s a simple, easy-to-follow PDF guide that you can use to create and keep powerful goals in your own life. The best part? It’s available for a one-time purchase of $7.