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How to Make Progress In your Life

How to Make Progress in Your Life

How to Make Progress in Your Life

"Progress flows from a clear aim, bold action, and the grit to keep going when ease whispers ‘stop’." - Chris Farmer, lead trainer

Here are our top tips to help you make progress in your life:

  • Specialise
  • Eliminate non-essentials
  • Set specific goals.
  • Never guess.
  • Never give-in. Soldier-on.

1. Specialise

The economic world is based upon two key ideas;

  • the "division of labour"
  • "specialisation".

In order to be successful, you need to be better than the others around you.

And in order to do that, you must specialise.

Don't be a jack of all trades, instead, be a master of one.

Specialise at being the best at what you do.

Make yourself an expert.

2. Eliminate the non-essentials.

In order to specialise, you must eliminate everything that does not relate to your specialism.

You have a limited amount of time, but you face an unlimited demand.

You need to be NOT distracted by the countless things that do not relate to your purpose.

Throw out everything that does not contribute to your progress, in other words, "Skip the trash"

3. Set specific goals.

Massive progress is built from achieving subset goals.

The winner wins only after years of achieving smaller, subset goals.

  • The athlete sets goals to lift a certain weights in a certain time.
  • The salesperson sets goals to make a certain number of prospecting calls today.
  • The business owner sets goals to create a certain amount of profit each month.

You need to develop a similar goal focused mentality.

Your goals should be specific, numerical, well defined and time bound.

4. Never guess.

If you want to make more progress, then base your actions upon a logical evaluation of all the available evidence.

You should never act on whim, guess or transient emotion.

Never trust to luck. Instead, find the facts.

5. Never give-in. Soldier-on.

You can never know all the facts, and so things will often go wrong.

It is during these trying times, that many people give-in.

Never give in.

No matter what the circumstances, keep going.

Successful people are those who have overcome the greatest number of setbacks and disappointments.

Those who surrender too soon are forever doomed to failure; because goals of high value are difficult to achieve and are therefore, reserved only for those who soldier on.

Definition: specific goal

In personal development, a specific goal is an objective written in clear words that leaves no room for doubt. It tells exactly what you will do, gives a number or other measure, sets a due date, and fits your main purpose. If any one of these parts is missing, the goal stops being specific.

Show CG4D Definition
Context: Personal development
Genus: objective
Differentia:
  • Stated in plain, unambiguous language
  • Includes a measurable figure or result
  • Has a fixed completion date
  • Aligns with the person’s main purpose or focus

Article Summary

Progress is simple yet hard: master one skill, cut the noise, write clear goals, trust facts not luck and keep moving when life pushes back; follow these five acts each day and you will make progress in life that grows into lasting success.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some questions that frequently get asked about this topic during our training sessions.


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Did You Know: Key Statistics

The 2024 Asana State of Work report finds that teams who write clear goals are 2.9 times more likely to reach their targets than teams who do not. Microsoft’s 2023 Work Trend Index shows employees who block at least two hours of focus time each day report 50% less distraction-driven stress.

About the Author: Chris Farmer

Chris

Chris Farmer is the founder of the Corporate Coach Group and has many years' experience in training leaders and managers, in both the public and private sectors, to achieve their organisational goals, especially during tough economic times. He is also well aware of the disciplines and problems associated with running a business.

Over the years, Chris has designed and delivered thousands of training programmes and has coached and motivated many management teams, groups and individuals. His training programmes are both structured and clear, designed to help delegates organise their thinking and, wherever necessary, to improve their techniques and skills.

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Further Reading in Goal Setting

  • How to Make Progress in Your Life
    Discover five steps to make progress in life: specialise, cut distractions, set measurable goals, act on evidence and persist. Use them to unlock growth.
    Read Article >
  • Eight Part SMART Targets
    Learn how the 8 Part SMART model transforms vague aims into clear, measurable and achievable goals, giving you and your team a proven map from idea to result.
    Read Article >
  • Get There Faster: Our Guide to Achieving Goals by Slowing Down
    Achieve goals faster by slowing down. Learn how the slow down to speed up method cuts mistakes, lowers stress and lets you work smarter not harder in daily life
    Read Article >
  • Where Are The UK's Most Ambitious People In 2021?
    Discover the 2021 ranking of the most ambitious UK cities, see why Wales leads the way, and get six clear goal-setting tips to boost your own ambition today.
    Read Article >
  • How to Create Smart Goals
    Create SMART goals that stick. Use eight questions to set specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound targets and plan success with our goal tool
    Read Article >

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