Lofty goals, simple steps

lofty goals,

simple steps

As the highest free-standing mountain on earth, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania presents a tough challenge for any climber. The ranks of those who have failed in their attempts to reach the summit include experienced mountaineers, professional athletes and ultra-fit marathoners. This makes Kyle Maynard’s accomplishment all the more amazing and inspiring.

Maynard, 30, was born with no lower legs and arms, but he successfully summited Kilimanjaro’s 19,341 feet in 2012. “When I saw it for the first time, I realized this is a monstrous mountain and thought it was the worst idea I ever had,” he said.

But he didn’t turn back. Over 12 days, Maynard literally crawled to the top of the mountain popularly known as “the roof of Africa,” one slow grasp at a time using custom, protective fittings for his appendages.

He ultimately traversed all 25 miles of the trail leading to the top, passing through five climate zones along the way. “Just imagine walking on your elbows and knees for that length,” said Maynard, who has also reached another one of the highest peaks in the world: Aconcagua in Argentina.

He ultimately traversed all 25 miles of the trail leading to the top, passing through five climate zones along the way. “Just imagine walking on your elbows and knees for that length,” said

Maynard, who has also reached another one of the highest peaks in the world: Aconcagua in Argentina.

Maynard’s story is a great example of how tasks that seem overwhelming can be accomplished if we break them into more manageable steps. We may not all try to climb almost 20,000 feet into literally thin air, but we all have life goals that can be reached with the same approach—whether it’s getting fit, learning something new or saving for a home or retirement.

The six steps

If you want to achieve a daunting objective, you have to break it down . These moves will help get you to the summit of your ambition.

If you want to achieve a daunting objective, you have to break it down into small steps. These moves will help get you to the summit of your ambition.

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1. Assess Your Goal

Experts say the most important part of goal-setting isn’t achieving it, but defining it.

From writing a novel to saving for retirement, the same thought process can apply to anything you want to accomplish in your life. Ask what effort needed to attain this goal, and am I willing and able to work to achieve it? What sacrifices will I need to make? How will this affect other aspects of my life, such as my job, my family? Once you are confident in your answers, you can begin your journey.

2. Have a plan

A goal is a great thing, but if you don’t have a roadmap for getting there, it’s going to be a long slog. If you were taking a year to travel the world’s seven continents, you wouldn’t arrive at the airport without a ticket or plan.

Ask if your goal is achievable with the time and resources you have. If not, how can you alter your roadmap? Will you need a career change or a new skill to achieve it? Measurable milestones show your progress and encourage you to continue, or adjust as needed.

3. Prioritize what’s needed

Now comes the hard work of attaining your goal. If your goal is monetary, that might mean following a spending plan and avoiding some big-ticket items. If it’s time-based, such as earning a degree, it might mean studying an hour every evening instead of watching TV.

Take training for a triathlon. In preparation, ultra-athletes forego social activities the night before, or set their alarm several hours before the workday to fit them in. Making sacrifices to meet your own goal is no different.

4. Be disciplined

Becoming proficient in a new language means many hours over the course of a year. You’ll likely need the same kind of self control to meet your own goal. That means steadily maintaining the course, and avoiding the temptation to deviate.

Understand your obstacles and plan for them. If you intend to save $20,000 and need to meet your goal in a year, you will look at your annual spending habits and anticipate, then correct, for periods that might throw you off course. To stay on track, think long term versus short term. Forego immediate gratification by visualizing yourself meeting your goal.

5. Always be open to adjustingif necessary

That said, even the most well-laid plans go awry. Ask any entrepreneur the key to his success and, in addition to late nights and hard work, he is likely to say his business plan. But even the most solid document needs tweaking to keep up with changing conditions or roadblocks. The same is true for your goal. Keep constant tabs on your progress and change your track if you are short of your target goal. Revising your plan can help keep it up to date and might even uncover new opportunities.

6. Transcend discouragement

Let’s use the example of serious mountain climbers trying to reach a high summit. Trekkers on fast routes can reach the summit in four to five days. But many face altitude sickness, frostbite or seemingly impenetrable conditions, forcing them to take a step back before forging on.

People who make it to the top persevere, while others might succumb to a perception that they are powerless, and allow that to distort their thinking. A perceived sense of control enables you to take action. Avoid excuses. Don’t procrastinate. Stay the course.

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Plan for success

The key, experts say, is to define the objective, break it into smaller pieces and create a plan to go forward. “It’s important to take a step back and realize it can take an extended period of time to reach a particular goal,” said financial planning expert Eric Tyson, author of five national bestsellers, including “Personal Finance for Dummies.”

Tyson said it’s best to follow a strategy of measuring progress in intervals. “Saving for something like retirement can seem daunting, but breaking that into monthly savings goals can make it seem a lot more manageable.”

It’s important to take a step back and realize it can take an extended period of time to reach a particular goal

Indeed, when it comes to saving for the future, even small contributions can add up quickly. For example, any amount invested at a hypothetical 7 percent return^* will double in just 10 years. Watching that growth on a monthly basis is a way to regularly achieve short-term goals on the way to your larger goal of saving for a home or retirement, for example.

Follow through and motivation are key

Establishing objectives and creating a plan are essential steps to achieving a goal, but it’s the follow through that counts—and it’s where many of us fall off track. The problem often stems from not truly believing in ourselves or knowing in our hearts that we are capable of reaching our objectives. “You can break something down into a million pieces, but if you don’t have the belief that you can achieve it you won’t stick to it,” said Carol Dweck, psychology professor at Stanford University and author of “The New Psychology of Success.”

Fortunately, there are ways to alter our belief systems. “We need to use failure as information, rather than as an indicator of our underlying abilities,” Dweck said. “That means having a growth mindset, and we have a lot of research that says this is a quality we can learn at any age, whether we’re athletes, business managers or anything across the board.”

More of us need to take that initial step. Financially, one in three Americans have no money put away for retirement, and more than half have less than $10,000 saved, according to a recent survey by GoBankingRates. Meanwhile, the percentage of U.S. residents owning their own home fell to its lowest level in 50 years in the second quarter of 2016, with ownership down to 62.9 percent, the U.S. Census reported.

Build in flexibility

One reason why many of us fail to reach our objectives is that unexpected events knock us off course, such as a layoff, medical bills or an unplanned pregnancy. The key to getting past these is to build some flexibility into your planning. Manageable steps to larger goals should be written down, but not be considered set in stone. “It’s important to view plans as flexible and something you should consider updating from time to time,” Tyson said.

Manageable steps to larger goals should be written down, but not be considered set in stone.

Finally, even a plan that maps out a path to a goal one meticulous step at a time is unlikely to come to fruition if the planner isn’t motivated. Success is more likely if our objective is linked to a higher purpose that goes beyond ourselves. That could mean wanting a better life for our children or having the means to give back to the community.

For Maynard, who has worked closely with the U.S. military as a trainer and motivational speaker, his goal in climbing Kilimanjaro was to raise awareness about post-traumatic stress disorder and the growing number of veteran suicides. “You need to know why you’re doing what it is you’re doing,” Maynard said. “If you don’t have a good answer, you’re going to cave.”

* This hypothetical figure does not represent the performance of any specific investment or other financial product, nor does it take into account the impact of any fees or taxes.

AXA is the brand name of AXA Equitable Financial Services, LLC and its family of companies, including AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company (NY, NY), MONY Life Insurance Company of America (AZ stock company, administrative office: NY, NY), AXA Advisors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC), and AXA Distributors, LLC (member SIPC). GE-120808(11/16)(exp.11/18)