This article is a excerpt from the highly acclaimed book "It's Your Turn! The Success Blueprint For The Dance Teacher"

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

Not too long ago I had a conversation with a dance teacher about the topic of setting goals. She had mentioned that in order to set a goal and to be sure that it actually happens, making a list of things one wants to change might be a good way to achieve success. I agreed, but with a few stipulations. Thinking you want something to change, and actually taking the steps necessary to see that change through can be two totally different things. It all comes down to the reason why so many of us don't see our wishes, hopes and dreams come true and it has everything to do with the difference between saying you'll do something and actually doing what it is you originally said you would do.

So here's something for you to consider. I was recently speaking to a large group of people about the topic of setting goals. I asked them that if they said were going to do ten things over the last month or so, how many of those ten things actually ended up manifesting in their physical world? Few responded by saying five out of ten, more said two to four, but most said only one or two at the most. "So why do you think this is?", I said to them. The most common answer I got in return had to do with the fact that after putting the wish, the resolution out there, nothing else was done to see it through. There was no follow-up. In other words they stated what they wanted to occur in the near future, not then dropped the ball because they didn't take the steps necessary to see it through to completion so that what they wanted actually happened.

I thought about this for a while because so many times in my own life experience, I was faced with the very same results when I wanted a whole bunch of goals to manifest themselves into my life's path. What I realized was that the most common issue we have when we set goals up is the fact that we don't take the necessary steps to see them through. It's like we just say something and certainly mean it at the time, but then we all to often just leave things there, expecting someone or something else to swoop in and, like magic, turn our statements of dreams suddenly into reality...just like that! Not only that but we often get disappointed when things don't magically happen as we wonder why we are continually left in the dark when it comes to our wishes, hopes and dreams. What good is making a resolution if it isn't seen through to completion? We are wasting our time and setting ourselves up for disappointment if we only get the job half done. It's like asking a question without ever getting the answer.

So it goes without saying that any goal that you want to set in motion has two parts to it; the saying of it and the doing, the seeing through of it. My mother always used to say, "Don't say you'll do something unless you are actually prepared to see it through!" What she was saying was that I always need to say what I mean but also mean what I say. How right she was. But how do you make a goal for yourself and make sure it comes to pass? The same way you teach a student a dance routine. There are usually two parts to this type of a teaching process. First you state what it is that you want your student to learn. But as you very well know, saying it is only half the battle. Most of the time you need to show them what you are talking about so they can see how to do the routine for themselves. Once they see you do it, then they will get up and do it too. In so doing, you make sure that they understand exactly what you were demonstrating so you can fix anything that doesn't look right. So now the goal has been realized. You've stated your intention and then saw it through to completion. You put actions to the original words you stated and the job was complete. One step can't exist without the other. When you make an intended goal, you must take the steps necessary to make sure you see it through. It's got to be actualized otherwise your original request just melts away in thin air. Making sure your words have the proper support after you've stated them is exactly how you go about realizing a goal.

How many times have you said something and then not taken the steps to make sure it happens? If you are like me, more times than you'd care to admit. We are only human so saying things without a follow-up to see if what we said is being realized is often part of what we do. We have the power to change that and it's up to us to do it. How so? It's actually easier than you might think.

When you state a goal that you'd like to see happen, state it and then outline the various steps you'll take to make sure that it comes to pass. Here's an example; say you want to help attract more students to study at your dance studio. The studio's been doing fine but you really want to look at more ways to shine as a teacher there so you figure that finding a way to get more students into your studio to study with you will do the trick. So now you say your goal out load after formulating it in your mind and you even write it down; "I will (not "want to") get twenty-five new students into these doors within the next six months. Most of these new students will end up studying with me since I'll be teaching jazz by that time." Great! You are now half way there. As I've already stated, what's the use of saying something like this if you aren't going to take the steps to make it happen? That's Part Two of the formula. So here's how that might look and what you might say to yourself to make things happen;

1) In a week's time I'll have a plan as to how I'm going to let the world know that I'll be teaching jazz at my studio and why perspective students should study with me

2) Once my plan is ready, I need to make sure it has dates as to when I'll have my main mode of publicity, social media ads ready and the dates as to when they'll appear and the tracking I'll do to see if those ads have brought in any takers

3) By the fifth month of my campaign, I'll re-evaluate to see where I'm at and how things are going. If I need to step things up a notch or two or change some parts of my strategy, I'll figure out what to do based on where things are at that point in time

4) Most important of all, I will NOT drop the ball. I fully expect to see at least twenty-five new students in my new jazz class when all is said and done. I will hold myself to the days and dates I've set up in my timeline and make sure things are always moving forward

What's the most important aspect of this plan? Seeing it through! This is close to the goal-setting plan that the dance teacher I mentioned at the beginning of this chapter created to get more students to study with her. It worked only because she stuck to her word and made sure that things were happening. She kept her word to herself and fully understood that the only way she was going to be successful was using the two-part goal-setting process. Stating what you want to occur and then making sure that it does according to the steps you plan to take to get there. Just like in the example above, she assigned specific dates and times out into the future as to when certain steps to attaining the success she was looking for would be accomplished. When the small steps were successful, she got all the encouragement she needed to know that her end-result was near.