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[Ep 196]\n\n\n\nLast time, I asked: Where do you want to be in a year?\n\nYou may have read that and set a big, hairy, audacious goal\u2014a BHAG. Or maybe you called it a \u201cstretch goal.\u201d You want to aim high and not settle for mediocre.\n\nYou\u2019re excited! You\u2019re an optimist.\n\n\u201cIn a year, I\u2019m going to be at the top of my game, more successful than I\u2019ve ever been.\u201d\nBig, Fast Success\nIf you want it bad and can handle a focused, year-long push, you may nail it. If you have big resources to support big goals, this stretch-goal approach may be the way you level up fast. In a year (or less!) you may be the one saying:\n\n \t\u201cI built a substantial author platform in six months and landed my book contract in eight. I\u2019m on track to launch next year!\u201d\n \t\u201cI\u2019m making a full-time income through my website now that I\u2019ve quadrupled my blog traffic.\u201d\n \t\u201cI\u2019m the keynote speaker at two major conferences thanks to my podcast taking off after just a few months.\u201d\n\nFalling Short of Goals\nBut if your time, money, energy, skills, experience, and support are limited, you might not achieve a big, hairy, audacious goal\u2014even if you want it bad. And falling short of your goal can be demotivating. You may end up saying:\n\n \t\u201cI set out to gain 100,000 subscribers on my email list in three months, but I only have a thousand.\u201d\n \t\u201cMy plan to submit an essay each month fell way short.\u201d\n \t\u201cNo, I didn\u2019t finish writing my novel in three months.\u201d\n\nThe macro plan sets us on a course toward a goal. We see the target. We take aim.\n\nThe good news is that even if we fall short, we may be further along than if we had no goal at all.\n\nThe bad news is that we may end up so discouraged and disheartened at what seems like lack of progress or failure, we give up.\n\nIf we\u2019re setting an aggressive goal that is too much of a stretch, we may need to re-examine it before we form the plan to get there.\nHalve a Goal\nAfter Jon Acuff wrote a book called Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average and Do Work That Matters, he realized people may not need as much help getting started\u2014after all, the beginning of projects and resolutions is the fun part. It\u2019s the middle and the end of projects where we sag and feel stuck and give up.\n\nAcuff wanted people to see their goals through to the end, so he wrote a follow-up book called Finish: Give Yourself the Gift Of Done.\xa0For Finish, Acuff commissioned a study with the University of Memphis that concluded \u201csmall goals, when you cut your goal in half, are 63% more successful than big crazy BHAGs.\u201d1\n\nSo if you set out with a BHAG last week, consider chopping your goal in half.\n\n \tYou can adjust the time and give yourself twice the time to complete it: instead of a two-month deadline, extend to four; if you think editing a draft will take 30 minutes, allow an hour.\n \tYou can adjust the task: instead of committing to 2000 words a day, drop to a thousand; instead of six Instagram posts per week, try three.\n \tYou can adjust the number of goals: if you\u2019re trying to raise visibility and name recognition by speaking, posting on social media, starting a YouTube channel, writing guest posts, appearing on podcasts, and pitching articles to mainstream magazines, drop half of those activities and focus energy and attention on a few.\n\nResearch to Plan\nFind out what your writing world is like. What do people expect in that world? What are the successful people doing? Do you want or need to follow a similar path? What do you need to do first to move in that same direction? What level are you at and what\u2019s the next level?\n\nCould you connect with people in groups and meetups or at conferences and retreats? Could you find a mentor or coach? Could you partner with someone to collaborate?\n\nMake lists.\n\nMake decisions.\n\nMake your plan based on your goal.\nEnact, Evaluate, and Adjust the Plan\nWhile your plan may be aggressive and you\u2019re prepared for a aggressive burst of activity to level up fast, play the long game.