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Any good grant writer has had plenty of practice writing goals and objectives - and can tell you the difference between the two!  Chances are you have written lofty change-the-world vision statements (goals) for organizations and then written several measurements of change, or stepping stones, to that goal (objectives).  However, when is the last time you did this for yourself?

Whether you are a full-time grant writer for a non-profit, a consultant, or someone who has a dream they would like to fund some day with grant money, you need to have both goals and objectives for yourself.  This will give you focus, and remind you of where you are headed on those days when you feel overwhelmed with choice or are at an impasse or important decision.  Why not take some time over the holiday weekend to sit down and write down your goals and objectives?  As you would with any grant you wrote - make your goals S.M.A.R.T : Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-specific.

Wendy Piersall wrote a great entry on her blog about using this system for personal goals.  She reminds us to focus from positive to negative.

You can’t manage what you do not measure.

I found, even less than a year ago, that when I thought about what I wanted in the future, I was STILL focusing on what I didn’t want ….

Well, I didn’t overcome these things until I shifted the way I focused on my outcomes:

Setting goals is a must for any business, entrepreneur, or person committed to developing  and moving forward.  Be sure to set yours, and not just those of the organizations for whom you write grants!