This is a living document of my understanding and progress with learning to set effective goals and achieve them. Over the years, I would like to update this post with what I learn, both from my experiences and via other sources.
The types of goals I am trying to achieve include those about my physical health, social life, career, creative hobbies and entrepreneurial aspirations.
If you’re like me, you’ve tried setting goals for yourself before. Maybe they were part of a new year’s resolution. In my case, I have found that I meet some of my goals, and miss many of them. If this sounds like you, maybe this blog post will help you too. I will be writing this post to my future self, so my writing style may sound a little strange at times.
Up to 2024, what I’ve learned so far is based on my own experiences, and conversations with the generative AI tool Copilot, my friends, colleagues, mentors and helpful redditors in different subreddits (/artbusiness and /Entrepreneurship).
Figure out what you want and why
This is probably the most important part because it determines your motivation.
Preparing for a world of Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI)
Given the current advancements in technology around artificial general and super intelligence (AGI and ASI), and the rate at which we are currently seeing new advancements, there might come a time one day soon, where the work in achieving goals might not be the hardest part, but instead, understanding what you want to accomplish, and why.
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How will reaching your goal benefit you? How will it benefit others?
As a disclaimer, not everyone needs to always have a goal that they are actively striving towards. I have met people, sometimes rather successful people, who have let the winds of life take them wherever, and they have made a happy successful life of it.
If you’re reading this post though, you probably have something you want to achieve.
Perhaps you want a healthier body, a more active social life, a better career, a new career, or maybe a new business.
Can you clearly define what you want and why?
I think the clarity will help you understand your drive and level of dedication, and help you realise more explicitly what you’re willing and not willing to do in order to achieve your goals. Until we reach a super-intelligence utopian society, a large gap between the destination you wish to reach and where you currently are likely requires an equally large amount of effort and discomfort to close that gap.
Reflective exercise on what I want and why
A reflective exercise can help you clarify what exactly your goal is, and why you want to achieve it. The stronger the reason, or the stronger the urge, the more drive you will have to reach your goal.
Reflection in start of 2025 What do I want to do? I want to make an income generating business out of some of my creative projects. In particular, I want to make money out of my 1000 Paintings project and my stories after that.  Why do I want to do that? Well, more money is nice. But, I think there are better ways to make money than through art, is money making was the only reason. I think, deep down, I want to learn the skills to start a successful business, any business. I suspect this stems from my parents in both positive and negative ways. They were entrepreneurs, and growing up I saw how starting and running a successful business could change the fate of a family. However, times weren’t always good, I and saw the stress of trying to save a struggling business too. If I learned the skills to build a business from nothing, in any industry, I feel I would be less stressed about money.  What is the benefit to me? I think I found my answer by the end of the previous question. I will feel less stressed about money What is the benefit to others? I’m not sure…yet. |
Understand your core values
If you are not sure what you want to do, or not clear about your motivation, maybe understanding your core values could help. Based on conversations with Copilot, some examples of core values are:
Achievement: Striving for success and accomplishment.
Adventure: Seeking new experiences and challenges.
Authenticity: Being true to oneself and honest in interactions.
Balance: Maintaining a healthy work-life balance.
Community: Valuing connections and relationships with others.
If none of those resonate with you, here is their rest of the examples Copilot made.
Compassion: Showing empathy and kindness to others.
Courage: Being brave and standing up for what you believe in.
Creativity: Valuing artistic expression and innovation.
Curiosity: A desire to learn and explore new things.
Dependability: Being reliable and trustworthy.
Fairness: Treating others justly and with equality.
Freedom: Valuing independence and autonomy.
Friendship: Prioritizing meaningful relationships with friends.
Generosity: Being giving and charitable.
Gratitude: Appreciating what you have and expressing thanks.
Growth: Valuing personal and professional development.
Health: Prioritizing physical and mental well-being.
Honesty: Valuing truthfulness and integrity.
Humility: Being modest and acknowledging your limitations.
Innovation: Embracing new ideas and technologies.
Joy: Finding happiness and pleasure in life.
Justice: Seeking fairness and equality for all.
Kindness: Being compassionate and considerate.
Knowledge: Valuing education and lifelong learning.
Love: Prioritizing affectionate and caring relationships.
Patience: Exercising self-control and tolerance.
Perseverance: Persisting in the face of challenges.
Respect: Valuing and honoring others.
Responsibility: Being accountable for your actions.
Security: Valuing stability and safety.
Service: Helping and serving others.
Simplicity: Valuing a minimalist and uncomplicated lifestyle.
Spirituality: Seeking a connection with a higher power or purpose.
Trustworthiness: Being reliable and deserving of trust.
Wisdom: Valuing insight and sound judgment.
You could read through these example core values and create a shortlist. In my case, the shortlist wasn’t very short. What ended up helping me greatly was to ask Copilot to create a list of survey questions to help me decide which core values resonate the most with me.
Example Core Value Survey questions
You have a free weekend with no obligations. How do you choose to spend your time?
A) Explore a new city or try an adventurous activity.
B) Volunteer at a local charity or help someone in need.
C) Spend time reflecting, meditating, or engaging in spiritual practices.
D) Plan a creative project or work on a hobby.
A) Adventure; B) Compassion, Service C) Spirituality; D) Creativity
You receive a substantial bonus at work. What do you decide to do with the extra money?
A) Save it for future security and peace of mind.
B) Treat yourself to an experience or trip that you’ve always wanted.
C) Invest in a learning opportunity or personal development course.
D) Donate a portion to a cause you care about or help a friend in need.
A) Security; B) Adventure, Joy; C) Growth, Knowledge; D) Generosity, Compassion
A close friend shares a personal problem with you. How do you respond?
A) Offer practical advice and suggest possible solutions.
B) Listen empathetically and provide emotional support.
C) Encourage them to take courageous action and support their decision.
D) Help them see the situation from different perspectives and find a fair resolution.
A) Dependability ; B) Compassion, Friendship C) Courage; D) Fairness, Justice
You have a big project at work with a tight deadline. What approach do you take?
A) Plan and organize your time efficiently to meet the deadline.
B) Collaborate with your team and delegate tasks to ensure success.
C) Think creatively and come up with innovative solutions to tackle challenges.
D) Stay true to your principles and ensure the project aligns with your values.
A) Achievement, Responsibility; B) Community, Teamwork C) Creativity, Innovation; D) Authenticity, Integrity
You witness an unjust situation at work. How do you react?
A) Stand up and speak out against the injustice, even if it means taking a risk.
B) Seek to understand all sides and find a fair and just solution.
C) Support the affected individuals and show compassion.
D) Take a principled stance and advocate for change.
A) Courage, Justice; B) Fairness, Justice; C) Compassion, Kindness; D) Authenticity, Integrity
5 questions, though far from statistically significant, was enough for me to realise the core value for my artistic goal. In each case, you should review the questions, your answers and the core values attached to each answer to see if you agree with them all.
Receiving a set of core values from the exercise that don’t resonate strongly with you is also good feedback. If these core values are not it, what core values do you more align with?
Large Language Model (LLM) Prompt to create your own survey questions
If you want your own survey questions, here is a prompt that can help you create the types of questions shown above.
Generate a set of {five} situational survey questions to help identify core values. The survey should consist of multiple-choice questions with four answer options each. At the end of the survey, list the core values associated with each answer choice. Example output : Situational Survey Questions:
Core Values: A) Adventure B) Compassion, Service C) Spirituality D) Creativity |
I used Microsoft's Copilot to create the survey questions and prompt. If you have another Generative AI tool, you may want to adjust the wording of the prompt for better results.
If you also want to use Copilot (as of writing, it's free), you can do so via Microsoft's Edge browser, or any browser if you have a Microsoft account of some kind (eg email).
Reflective exercise on my core values
How the survey questions helped me better understand my goal.
What is the benefit to others? For my creative goal of the visual stories, the survey questions helped me identify the core value that hopefully helps me understand the reason for my stories coming into existence from the audience’s point of view. This question has troubled me for a while. I have very personal reasons for creating my stories, but from a business point of view, what’s the value for my audience? Yes, there’s entertainment, but entertainment is already fiercely competitive, and there is already plenty of supply online in various forms. Can I do better? Well, when I look at some stories out there…yes I can. However, realistically there are still plenty of great options that I certainly cannot directly compete with. There’s also the other question, of time. I could spend my time on more productive projects, on things that could help other people and society more. At least that is my gut feeling, so what’s the benefit to others of me creating these stories? Reflecting on why I enjoyed stories when I was growing up, and why I want to tell these stories as a member of the audience, I came up with this reasoning for my drive. Stories I've enjoyed in the past have touched me emotionally, sometimes deeply. They didn't always have a specific lesson that they were trying to preach, so I don't want my stories to be preachy either. However, with at least some of my stories, my hope is that viewers will learn [REDACTED] |
Work on achieving what you want
After you figure out your goal, you need to put in work to achieve your goal. Here are some tips, advice and frameworks that might help you do so.
Break down large goals into specific tasks
Start with the end in mind. Then break down your big picture goals into smaller and smaller, more concrete and actionable tasks.
Big ambitious goals can be a strong motivator, but you have to be ok with not achieving them in the timeframe you initially planned. Also consider setting multi-year goals instead of one-year goals.
Once you have your goals and tasks, look at what resources you have (time, energy, money, people, skills) and analyse how you will complete the granular tasks with the resources you have. You might not be able to do everything exactly how you want to, so this process may become iterative in nature.
You want to regularly review your goals and your progress to them.
Analyse the following:
What’s working
What isn’t working
How well your concrete tasks are helping you reach your bigger picture goals
How much your stated bigger picture goals are indeed what you want
Celebrate when you achieve your milestones. I admittedly am quite lacking here. I don’t remember the last time I celebrated one of my creative milestones. I suspect it is better to celebrate the successful execution of your tasks, rather than the accomplishment of your goals, as the goals can be less in your direct control versus the tasks you think will lead to those goals.
I was also recommended a Bingo vision board, which may be a simpler, less structured way of setting various goals for the year. I think the idea is a nice way to set up rewards for celebrating successes. Perhaps I won’t use the Bing vision board as it is, but the boards I’ve seen online have inspired me to make a similar visual representation of my goals.
Analyse when you don’t achieve your milestones. I do this and it often turns into a spiral of sadness where I blame myself for these perceived failings. That shouldn’t be the point of this analysis. As mentioned before, you need to be ok with not achieving your goals, as long as you are figuring out why and how to achieve them better in the next round.
Sometimes sacrifices are necessary when you have big dreams. Be clear on what you are sacrificing and be conscious of the choice you are making. Similarly, you need to be ok with feeling uncomfortable, especially if where you want to be is very far from where you currently are.
Reflective exercise on breaking down large goals
In the case of my creative business goal: I will start a business around my fictional stories in 2025. This goal I think is ambitious, and I realise that it may take more than 1 year to achieve, and I need to make peace with that. My breakdown to achieving this goals is by:
I don’t know how long any of these tasks will take. I will need to experiment early in the year to figure out likely timelines. I can and should break down these sub-goals into even more concrete and detailed steps. For brevity of the first version of this blog post, I will leave out the more detailed plans. |
Find accountability buddies
Finding and regularly meeting with people who will hold you accountable in some way has been a very effective way for me to make more progress in reaching some of my goals. Similarly I have heard this advice from others in my social circle as well.
Here are some of my personal examples from 2024.
Joining a creative writing club that meets weekly
I had a goal of making more progress with my story planning in 2024, which I set as [xx] words of story planning written in 2024.
I planned to go to the writing club every week, but in practice only went every 2 weeks, due to work, life and my energy levels. However, in the weeks where I did not attend in person, I still tried to meet my target of 1000 words written in story planning that week. I didn’t always meet my goal every week, but in most weeks went above my goal by a little.
In August 2024 I realised I had already written double the number of words of my goal for the year and stopped going to the writing club so I could prioritise my other creative goals.
These sessions were about 2-3 hours long.
Joining a drawing club that meets weekly
I had a goal of improving my painting skills through my 1000 paintings, which I set as making 200 paintings in 2024. I tried to go to the draw club every week, but again did not always make it due to work, life and energy levels.
On the days where I planned to go, I would try to squeeze out more paintings whenever I could. Often I would end up making a painting early in the morning, or after work on the train back from the office. On average, when I did go to the draw club, I would make more than 1 painting (though on average less than 2)
I also developed acceptance in not finishing a painting in 1 sitting. Ideally I do finish a painting in 1 sitting, but that’s not always so easy or possible to do. Now, just trying to make progress and keeping track of time spent via my recordings seems to work better for me
In 2024 I made 52 paintings, which is a far cry from the goal of 200 paintings, but 10 times more than I made in 2023.
These sessions were about 2 hours long.
Having catchup meetings with a friend who has similar creative goals
I had many creative project goals, which I managed with these regular catchups with my friend. We tried to have these meetings on an evening every 2 weeks, but sometimes we had to reschedule to life things happening.
At the start of each session we would catch up with each other in general, since we live in different countries and spoke to each other only during these catchups. Then we would present what progress we made to our creative goals since our previous catchup meeting. After that, we would review how well, or poorly, we met our goals for that period. Finally we would decide on what goals we would set for the next period and agree on when to meet next, usually in 2 weeks time.
For most of the year, I felt like I was setting goals and not meeting all my goals, and therefore feeling like a failure. However, these were the goals I set for my year in 2024, and this was the progress I made:
Goal | Progress |
200 paintings | 52 done |
Complete current story planning project | Done |
12,000 words story planning | Done |
YouTube art tutorial series for beginners | Done, went further to make a mixed media series (blog posts + videos) |
11 more YouTube videos | Not started |
12 data or AI related projects | Not started |
Make money in some way | Technically yes, but no |
Conclusion
I hope the ideas presented in this blog post helped you this cycle in your quest to set your goals and plans to achieve them. Please add your insights and new learnings so this post becomes even more helpful over time.