Whether you're just starting your business, or celebrating your 5th, or 25th anniversary, writing down your goals is probably the single most important thing you can do. Think that sounds far fetched? Think again. Without goals, we don't know where we are going. If we don't know where we are going, how we will ever get there?

"Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination." - Fizhugh Dodson

If you were going to drive to another state to visit your Aunt Betty, wouldn't you have a plan? Wouldn't you bring a map? Surely you would! Otherwise you could end up in Georgia instead of Colorado! Both places are nice, but Aunt Betty would be disappointed if you ended up in Colorado and missed that delicious apple pie she spent all day preparing! Writing down your goals is like deciding your destination. From there you can draw your own 'map'.

"If you don't know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else." - Laurence J. Peter

So, how do we go about setting goals? Write them down! Whether it's on your computer or a napkin from your local deli or a sticky note - get it down. It's not important where you write them, just that you do. The act of writing your goals down (or typing them out) helps you visualize your goals, and gets you thinking about how you will reach them.

"A goal properly set is halfway reached." - Zig Ziglar

Need a lesson in goal setting? It's easy... Get your pen and paper, or computer and keyboard, in front of you and remember these key ideas;

• Begin with the end in mind - Your goal shouldn't be something so huge it seems unattainable. Small goals to reach a larger one are often a more effective way of reaching them.

  "Without a goal to work toward, we will not get there." - Natasha Josefowitz

• Write down at least 5 goals you have for this month. Make them as simple as "Work for at least five hours each day" to "Pay all my bills early" or "Make sure I market my business in some way - every single day." Then you can work on your long term goals - For next year, 3 years from now, 5 years from now, and longer.

  "Happiness, wealth, and success are the by-products of goal-setting; they cannot be the goal themselves." - John Condry

• Prioritize your goals. Each goal is important, but some need to be reached sooner than others, and some will take more effort. What is your most important goal? Visualize yourself reaching that goal each day. Figure out what smaller goals you will need to reach in order to reach the most important.

  "Set your goals high, and don't stop till you get there." - Bo Jackson

Sometimes we wonder why we've had mediocre results in the past... Where did we go wrong? Many times you can attribute this to lack of goal setting. Simply wishing for things to happen won't make them happen. Writing down you goals, and in turn figuring out how you will reach them will make them happen.

"Those who cannot tell what they desire or expect, still sigh and struggle with indefinite thoughts and vast wishes." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Whatever you do, don't take your eyes off the goal. When you are driving to Aunt Betty's, you may come across a closed road - But you won't fret, because you have a map, and you will simply take another route. Many times you may have to change your path, but your focus should remain on the goal and how you will reach it.

"Obstacles are those frightful things when you take your eyes of your goals." - Hannah Moore

I believe in the power of thoughts. Whether you want to call it prayer, meditation, visualization, or anything else, there is power in it! If your having trouble reaching your goals, by all means, think about how you will reach them, step by step, until you have attained them! These thoughts will bring action. You create your own destiny, why not visualize the destiny you want?

"Picture yourself in your minds eye as having already achieved this goal. See yourself doing the things you'll be doing when you've reached your goal." - Earl Nightingale

Start a goal journal today!