The effectiveness of goal setting has been criticized recently but many still believe that goals create achievers. They give direction and focus to the frenetic who might otherwise waste their time in pointless activity. They help the over busy to focus on their priorities rather than the next urgent problem that arises.

On the other hand, goals can create energy amongst those who love to plan what they will do but never follow through. As they begin to visualize their goals vividly, the energy will start to flow in.

If you have energy but no goals, sit down long enough to write down some possible goals and the steps to achieve them.

Jim Rohn teaches that we should never begin a day until we have 'finished it on paper'.

If you have goals but no energy take one first step towards your goal and you will start to feel energy. As you press on other people and even events will help you.

Get excited about a goal or, at least, pretend to be excited and energy will follow. One way to get excited is to vividly visualize the accomplishment of your goal and the benefits that will follow. See yourself achieving your goal now.

There are several helpful acronyms about goal setting. One I created is the acronym DAWNING. If you start to achieve your goals, you will see the dawning of a new day and a new year.

The words that create the DAWNING acronym are as follows:

Detailed - Make your goals detailed e.g. I will make an extra 1000 or $2000.

Achievable - If you don't believe you can achieve your goals, you are unlikely to achieve them. If necessary, set an easier and smaller goal e.g. I will make 100. Enlarge it later.

Win Win - Make sure that your goal is not achieved at the expense of some one else. If you are selling something, make sure it has real value. Try to over deliver.

Now - State your goal in the present tense: "I now have 1000 or $2000 in my account." When you imagine a goal as if you have achieved it already, it becomes more compelling.

In The Future - Even though you are imagining that you have achieved your goal already, you still, strangely enough, have to set a date for its actual achievement. The subconscious mind pulls you toward a deadline. You could say: "I will have an extra 100 or $50 by the end of this month." Write down what you have to do each day to reach your deadline and take action to do it.

No Negatives - The subconscious mind ignores negatives and focuses on whatever the negative is about. If you say: 'I do not want to have a debt of 1000', your mind will latch on to the idea of debt and will bring you into debt.

Goal Achieved - Focus on the moment when your goal will have been achieved e.g. when you receive news on paper or online that the 1000 or $2000 is now in your account. Imagine how you feel and what you see as vividly as you can. If you have felt you were a loser in the past, change your self image and start seeing yourself as a winner.

There is only one way to find out whether goal setting is effective. Give it a try and see what happens.