5 Facts About Goal Setting

These practical tips on goal setting can help make it easier to set and reach goals:
1. Specific, realistic goals work best. When it comes to making a change, the people who succeed are those who set realistic, specific goals. "I'm going to recycle all my plastic bottles, soda cans, and magazines" is a much more doable goal than "I'm going to do more for the environment." And that makes it easier to stick with.
2. It takes time for a change to become an established habit. It will probably take a couple of months before any changes — like getting up half an hour early to exercise — become a routine part of your life. That's because your brain needs time to get used to the idea that this new thing you're doing is part of your regular routine.
3. Repeating a goal makes it stick. Say your goal out loud each morning to remind yourself of what you want and what you're working for. (Writing it down works too.) Every time you remind yourself of your goal, you're training your brain to make it happen.
4. Pleasing other people doesn't work. The key to making any change is to find the desire within yourself — you have to do it because you want it, not because a girlfriend, boyfriend, coach, parent, or someone else wants you to. It will be harder to stay on track and motivated if you're doing something out of obligation to another person.
5. Roadblocks don't mean failure. Slip-ups are actually part of the learning process as you retrain your brain into a new way of thinking. It may take a few tries to reach a goal. But that's OK — it's normal to mess up or give up a few times when trying to make a change. So remember that everyone slips up and don't beat yourself up about it. Just remind yourself to get back on track.

Obedience

Obedience to our Lord in every facet of our lives is the key to inner security and experiencing the presence of Christ.
I recall one wealthy and influential businessman in California who sacrificed everything he had to care for his dying wife. Eventually he spent his fortune seeking to find a cure for her disease.
By the time I learned of their situation, they had lost their entire fortune including their palatial home. They were living in modest circumstances in a little trailer on a parking lot in Hollywood.
I went to see them with fear and trembling. How in the world could I, a healthy, young Christian businessman, identify with this poverty-stricken husband? He had already lost his large fortune and was about to lose his most precious friend and mate of nearly forty years.
The trailer was neat as a pin. When I stepped into their humble home, it was as though I were entering a corner of heaven. There, sitting beside his dying wife, was this man holding her hand. Both of them had radiant faces. The joy of the Lord filled the place.
I had come to minister to them, but they ministered to me instead. They were trusting God with their lives. Like Job, they were saying of their Lord, "Though he slay me, yet will I hope (trust) in him..." (Job 13:15).
I will always remember the peace of heart and mind that this couple enjoyed because they had learned to trust and obey the will and ways of God even in the midst of tragedy.
Many people hope to find security in their possessions when only a right relationship with God can bring abundant life. Through the years, I have become increasingly convinced that there are no unhappy obedient Christians. Furthermore, I have never met a person living a disobedient life who can honestly say that he is happy. I have observed many Christians like the businessman and his dying wife, however, who have found peace and blessing in tough times because they were walking with God in faith and obedience.
We can find no lasting security in a life apart from God as the Lord of our lives. God alone is the owner of all that we possess and the total source of our supply. Are you experiencing the joy of Christ in your life? His love? His peace? The sense of His direction? If not, could it be that you are not obeying His commands? When you withhold the resources that God has entrusted to you for His work, He has little with which to bless you, and your life becomes unfruitful and unhappy.
We are not our own anymore; we have been bought with a price, the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:18-20). Giving Him control of our time, talents, and treasure is our way of expressing gratitude to our great and glorious God and Father for all that He has done to fill us with His presence.

Children, Obey Your Parents

God's Word, the Bible, teaches children to respect, honor, and obey their parents.
COLOSSIANS 3:20 says Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.
EPHESIANS 6:1-3 says Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: 3 "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."

Submit To Parents

1 TIMOTHY 3:4 ....... having his children in submission with all reverence
Children should submit to their parents and show them respect.
Even if your parents do not serve God, you still must respect and obey them. However, God does not expect you to obey them when they tell you to sin by doing wrong things. (see Acts 5:29)

Rebellious Children Were Killed

From the Old Testament we learn how serious it is for children not to submit to their parents. The punishment was very severe. In those days children who refused to submit to their parents were killed!
We are not living under the Old Testament law, but it was written to teach us. It shows us what God thinks of rebellious children.

DEUTERONOMY 21:18-21 NKJ 18 "If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and who, when they have chastened him, will not heed them,

19 "then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city, to the gate of his city.

20 "And they shall say to the elders of his city, `This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.'

21 "Then all the men of his city shall stone him to death with stones; so you shall put away the evil person from among you, and all Israel shall hear and fear.

Here's today's proven step to success!

Step 4. Integrity

Not doing what's wrong is a given, most people understand this. Ifyou're not doing this already, it's probably a good idea to start.

Integrity is more than that though. It is also doing what youconsider to be right.Keeping your word is an important part of integrity.

To be asuccess you will need the help of people. Who would you rather wantto help? Someone who is unreliable? Makes excuses? Goes back ontheir word? Or, someone who reliable and trustworthy? Being knownas a person of your word will get you farther than almost anythingelse on the path to success.

Take responsibility. If you make a mistake, the right thing to do isadmit it. A person of integrity does even more; they try to fix it.Taking responsibility does not mean making excuses. Just saying you are wrong may not be enough either.

Take charge and do your best tomake it right.Act with integrity and you will attract those with a similarmindset to your own!

Just to recap, we've discussed the following proven steps to leadyou to never-ending success:

Step1. Honesty

Step2. Seek Proper Advice

Step3. Enthusiasm

Step4. Integrity

Step5. ...check your Email tomorrow!

To your success,

Gary EvansGood To Feel Goodhttp://www.goodtofeelgood.com

SECOND STEP TO SUCCESS

The second proven step to success is knowing where to seek GOODadvice... Everyone's got an opinion these days, but why should youlisten to their opinion?

Step 2. Seek Proper Advice

Most people feel advice is worth what it costs - nothing. This is probably true in most cases. Do you want to know the ultimate secret about seeking advice?
It is very simple, but often overlooked. Here it is. Ask the right person for the right advice. Don't let the sheer simplicity of this statement trick you.

It is very powerful, but also easy to overlook. This technique works in any field - studies, exams, health, spiritual matters, business, finances,relationships, and so on.Let's say you are having some small problem with maths. Would it make sense to complain to a language teacher and then ask for his advice? Or, would it make more sense to seek the advice of a Maths teacher who has been teaching for 30 years?
Obviously, if youwant to have success, the latter choice makes a lot more sense, yet people tend to be care free in asking for and giving advice. Here is some advice that may actually be worth something. Starting now, try to ask yourself this question before seeking advice.

"What makes this person qualified to give me advice".To be fair, when someone asks you for advice that you are less than qualified to give, let them know and try to steer them in the rightdirection to someone who is well experienced with the subject.Be warned though! If you are asking someone who has "been there and done that", then you have to be willing to follow their advice.
After all they've already mapped out a route that successfully worked for them. Should you seek a second opinion? Yes! Take advice from the professionals in that field and take advice from many of them. If the response is congruent with the majority of them then you know you've just found some good advice.
It is easier to be carefree in seeking advice, but it is alwaysmore productive when you seek it from experts.
wish you all the Success.

FIRST STEP TO SUCCESS

Success is something you have to practice and so these 7 importantproven steps will provide the perfect foundation for you to build upon. So, to get you started immediately, here's your first success principle.

Step 1. Honesty

Lying for personal gain always ends up being counter-productive inthe long run. Why? Because truth is the foundation upon which ourdealings with others are built. Being a person of your word is a vital element to success. In thewords of William Shakespeare: "The good I stand on is my truth and honesty".

Success is not achieved entirely by yourself. On your way tosuccess you will undoubtedly be aided by other people. If you arenot honest with them you will only create feelings of bitterness.If you are not honest with yourself you will wonder why you arewhere you are. Any success you achieve using dishonesty will beartificial. What is really surprising is that sometimes the truth is just aseasy to tell.

For whatever reason, people still choose to lie. Thefirst step to shifting to a more honesty centered self isrecognizing the lie and correcting it right away. Ask yourself, "How does this impact my life?" If you are beinghonest with yourself, you will see that you probably have a lot ofwork to do. I feel it is easier to be objective than it is to behonest. You should consider adopting the approach that your words are gold.As a deliberate creator you must realise that in order to createyour world just as you want it, your words and thoughts will play ahuge roll in that.

If you are using your words without any realmeaning behind them, then why should the universe take your wordsas serious requests?Statements such as:- I'll call you back tomorrow- I'm too busy to chat right now- I can't see you tonight, I have too much onAll of these can cause the power of your word to weaken, if you saythem without attaching any truth to them. When you give your wordand don't mean or honour it, you detract from your power to deliberately create your own experiences.

The concept of being truthful with others is promoted from a veryyoung age; sometimes successfully, sometimes less so.What about white lies? What about lies of omission? What about truth that is delivered without tact? What about truth that is intended to harm? These questions are all valid and point to the apparent difficultyof what real truth is. The answer can be summed up with thisintentionally thought provoking and vague statement: "It is always best to tell the truth, sometimes".

So, your first proven step to success is to be more careful withyour words and only ever make statements that you truly believe tobe true.

How to prepare for exams

The most important thing any student can do to prepare for exam is to start early. The days of studying for an exam on the bus going to school are over. Even if you got A's this way, it's not going to work very often with college material. College courses require far more effort.
Start preparing for the next test the day after you take the prior one. Daily preparation is crucial. At a minimum, review material once every week between exams.
How much time is needed? The classic question. Some recommend 2-3 hours outside of class for every hour of class time. In some cases homework problems will require this much effort. For a straightforward lecture course try the following:
Every day before class, preview the material for 15-20 minutes.
Attend every lecture. Seems simple but it's the biggest misteak students make.
Take good notes. Learn how.
Spend another 20-30 minutes after class going over the notes.
Use this time to get any confusing points cleared up in your head; much better now than later. This will make later exam prep. MUCH easier.
Once a week, review the material to get a more complete overview of the information.

Preparing to take an exam:
If you've been keeping up on everything on a daily and weekly basis you're in good shape when it comes time to get serious about preparing for an exam.
The first thing you need is a plan. You need to answer some questions:
What is my schedule like during the week of the exam?
Do I have other exams or papers due?
Will I have all week to prepare or will I have to study over the weekend?
How many pages of notes are there?
How many chapters do I have to read?
All of these questions will help you answer one basic one: How much time will I need? The answer will depend on how much work you have done so far. It's a crucial question because the next step will be to come up with a plan.
Start with with the day one week before the exam. That's the first day to start studying in earnest. Literally plan out how many hours you will spend each day studying until the exam. Make a schedule and stick with it. Be sure to leave time for group study or review sessions. Also break up the material in to parts and cover a little each day. Consider these questions:
How much material will I cover each night?
How much time will I spend studying with a friend?
When are the review sessions?
Will the Prof. or TA be available to answer any questions that come up?
Once you have a game plan it's time to get to work. There is no one way to go about this. Remember is important to come up with a system that works for YOU. Here's a suggested plan of action:
Step 1
Get a blank piece of paper and outline the material you need to study. This helps develop a "big picture" overview of the material. Start with big topics and leave room for subtopics. Fill in the information as best as you can. Get another sheet of paper and start over if necessary. Once you see all the units of information in front of you it will be easier to organize your studying. This will help you with the next step.
Step 2
Break the material into smaller chunks and study each one. Only once you understand each one should you move on to the next. Do this part alone in your quiet study place. This is when you start to memorize the information you'll need later. Write down any questions that you may have.
Step 3
The next step is to work with someone else to clarify anything that's confusing. Work with others, go to review sessions, see a tutor, or work with the professor or a TA. At this point it's important to make sure that everything is clearly understood. This is crucial. If this step is skipped then you're left with trying to memorize hundreds of useless factoids. It will never mean anything to you later.
Step 4
Now it's time to put the information into your brain for retrieval. If you've been working all along you will already remember much of it. Make sure nothing is left out. Review the tips on memory. Many students focus on this step exclusively. It's called cramming. Just say no.
Some thoughts on cramming (or why cramming bites)
Step 5
This next step is not needed by everyone but it's useful if you are having trouble with the course. You've been studying for hours and hours but, do you really know anything? Try working with someone else who will ask you questions about the material. If you can answer and explain concepts without too much effort then you're in good shape. Usually this help to expose areas that require more attention and study.
Step 6
If the previous step went well then all you have left is to work on weak areas and a general overview the material. If you didn't do well explaining the material you'll need another round of steps 4 and 5. Hopefully you left time for this in your study schedule.

If you planned well and kept up with the work there should be little anxiety the night before an exam. If you started late or waited to get questions answered then you'll be busy the night before. This will add extra stress and you'll likely make stupid errors on the exam. At the very least you'll be more susceptible to getting sick which will worsen your situation.
The only thing that should be going through your mind the night before is a sense of confidence. It's ok to be a little afraid or anxious but not panicky.

Below are listed some other specific suggestions.
Other tips:
Flashcards - help to memorize facts NOT understanding
Groups - good to work through difficult material, quiz each other for understanding
Review sessions - only go to early ones, last minute reviews sometimes cause needless confusion
Tutors - get help early, waiting till the last minute only fosters aggravation and panic
Professors/TA's - same as above, don't email about material the night before, do it early