Welcome to The Top 5%

Here we are, wrapping up yet another year and facing a new one. This is the perfect time to set goals for the year ahead. (Actually, I happen to think anytime is a good time to set goals, but a lot of people seem to be motivated by the new year.)

Did you know that less than five percent of people have clearly defined and written goals? You can either envy this group (Those darn over-achievers!), or you can decide to join them.

So start today with a simple but vitally important step: Write down your goals. It’s been proven that we become more committed to what we have written down. Yes, write them down and take action. Otherwise, your goals are only wishes.

One of my goals for the new year is to finish development on our newest acquisition, Philanthropy.org. I plan to make it the go-to site for everything philanthropy—and to ensure I stay on track, I’m practicing what I preach by writing down each goal I have for the site.

So, what’s one goal you have for yourself for the next 1-3 years? Write it down and focus on it for the next month. All it takes to form a habit is to repeat something for 21 days. Read them at night and again in the morning. Make your goals as specific as you can and read them over and over until you’ve internalized them. For example:

• I would love to tour Africa in January of 2024 and help Charity XYZ with their mission of educating children there.
• I want to establish a scholarship fund of $750,000 for 12 students between the ages of 18-21 by January 3, 2026 with 18 members of our legacy s
• I would like to own beachfront property in This Beach Town, by This Age, so that I can sit with my spouse and watch the sunset every night.
• I will purchase that 1954 Corvette by next September.
• I would like to be the VP of Development, of XYZ nonprofit, earning $375,000 a year, by age 52.
• I’m not going to tell the board yet, but I want to exceed our campaign totals by $225,000 by July 1st of next year.

I’d love to know what goals you wrote down. Drop me an email and tell me what you’re working on! (And welcome to the Top 5 percent!)