About now, you might be experiencing “goal withdrawal.” It’s that time of year when you begin to lose the momentum and drive you had on Jan. 1. Many of you have already given up the ghost.

Because you didn’t call it a goal in the first place (you called it a “resolution,” remember) and you really had no plan to achieve it anyway, it (and you) wallowed.

Some of you were more ambitious at the first of the year – you made a list of 10 goals. Have you achieved any of them yet? Close? Are you working on them at the same level of intensity you had on Jan. 2?

Many of you started to achieve, but the “real world” has now kicked in. Some of your goals and dreams of achievement have been kicked to the curb.

As a service to everyone, I’m going to give you the shot in the arm – OK, the kick in the butt — necessary to maintain “SUCCESS MOMENTUM” and help you achieve your goals and dreams.

Prune. Make a “get real” decision as to which goals you want to achieve. Ignore the others. When too many goals are on your mind, achievement of them gets bogged down.

Dig in. Make a commitment to yourself to do whatever it takes to achieve your goals.

Harness your personal power. Discipline yourself. Laser-focus on your commitment to achieve. Practice with a small achievement every day.

Enlist the help of others. Not to do the work for you, but to work with you and to encourage you to get the job done. You must have the support of others in order to achieve your goals.

Give. It’s easy to get support. All you have to do is give support.

Shields up, Capt. Kirk! Don’t be vulnerable to the negative influence of other people. Find more happy, successful people to hang around with. Choose your associations.

Work on two of your goals every day, even if only for a short time. Short bursts of accomplishment set a work tone and give you that great (and consistent) feeling of accomplishment.

Visualize yourself doing the steps necessary to achieve your goal.

Visualize yourself actually achieving your goal.

Visualize yourself enjoying the benefits and rewards of achievement.

NOTE: I recommend a book called “Creative Visualization” by Shakti Gawain. The title tells you what the book is about, and I promise it will help you to accomplish your goals through visualization.

Be relentless. Don’t quit in the pursuit of your achievement — even if your rear end falls off. This attribute is the definition of “success momentum.” Your drive to achieve must be relentless. Your desire to accomplish your goals will determine your outcome.

Find the time. Don’t tell me you “have no time.” Everyone has the same amount of time: 24 hours a day. The question is: How are you investing yours? Try substituting time. Twice a week, substitute goal achievement time for TV time.

Find the “Why.” There are two “why’s” that will unlock the secret of achievement. Why you want it, and why you haven’t done it so far. What will you do, or what will you change for the better after you achieve, and what has been preventing this achievement so far?

The secret is in the daily dose. Do a little toward your goal every day. Write down how much (or how little) you must do each day in order to achieve. THEN DO IT.

If you look at your goals as the stepping stones to your success, you at once realize their significance in your life. You also realize that the task is up to you.

Others can help you, but the responsibility for completion, for achievement, is 100 percent yours.

Others will be jealous. People will try to rain on your parade because they have no parade of their own. Don’t let other people tell you “you can’t.” Tell them how you will, and ask for their support!

If you would like to know the three types of goals and how to create the right type, go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the words GOAL TYPE in the GitBit box.

Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by phone at (704) 333-1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com.

© 2006 Jeffrey H. Gitomer