Do you set goals?

I'm one of those people who's always laid off things until the last moment. My life at the moment is a mess, financially as well as socially.

I find that I can easily just spend days "doing things" on the computer without getting anywhere. I have low energy many times and oftentimes just can't get myself to do things that need to be done. If I'm left to my own devices, things just get out of hand.

I've found that it is probably life threateningly crucial that I become harder for myself, and set goals for myself, in order to steer away from disaster. To plan time and get things done that need to be done.

I wonder how other people here do this. Are you disorganized people as well or do you just "hang in there"? Do you set goals or is this not necessary for you and you automatically do things?

I'm similar. I have set goals but they are pretty broad. Nothing too specific. Setting goals can help give you direction.

I generally follow the rule of playing smarter, not harder. Smaller goals that can be checked off daily, working during one's best hours, and allowing a reward at the end. It's nice to actually strike something off a list that you can do in an afternoon.

I've learned that it's vital to learn how to do all the things that are necessary for life itself, and that if you rely on others to do them for you, you're in trouble if they're not around. Goals can become overwhelming if your current life/emotional/psychological situation doesn't allow you to achieve them (like wanting to run a full marathon while overweight). If you don't break down your larger goals into smaller, more achievable goals, you will become overwhelmed, and you will procrastinate much more.

Let's say you are overweight and that you do want to run a marathon. You can either think "I'm too fat, I need to lose at least 30lbs if I want to run that marathon and it's just too much", or you can think "okay, I want to run that marathon and I've got at least 30lbs to lose, better start today and just take it half a pound at a time".

I've also noticed that if I tell myself that I'm overweight and that I need to shed some pounds, it doesn't really help if I'm vague about it. I can tell myself that I'm overweight and I can establish a certain goal, but it can easily become "too far away" to a point where I'll tell myself it's not worth the trouble and I just go back to procrastinating, whereas if I approach it in a more direct and present fashion, I can much more easily allow myself to take it one day at a time and use that one day at a time to choose my meals wisely and also to exercise, because that way I'm adopting the smaller goals in order to, progressively, achieve the bigger ones.

In a similar fashion, if you tell yourself you're low on cash and need a steady job and this or that amount of money in order to be stable, it can be too overwhelming. Instead, if you break it down into smaller goals (getting fit, working on exposure and social/work skills, reading some books on things you need to improve and learn, learning more about yourself and what you can do every day in order to have a more stable life), you're starting off at the first step of the ladder, instead of jumping about and trying to reach that last step without having the ability to reach it (yet).

Take a deep look at yourself and allow yourself to realize your true potential, and then organize your day by filling it with all the tasks required for you to be the person you want to be. Look fear in the eye and turn it into excitement towards new and fulfulling adventures that will fill you with joy and good spirits.

And whatever you do, keep going. A small step is always better than no step at all.

I don't set goals. It is a fashionable idea from the 80's and it sort of filtered down from big achievers. Not applicable here. If you think about it, when you set a 'goal' - how can you be sure it is a realistic one. Naturally, if it isn't realized the result is a feeling of failure - just what we need...
If we are talking about weight loss, when we set out to lose weight it means exercise and eating less. Painful, and can make one feel very insecure. The process is that instead of utilizing sugars for 'fuel' the body is deprived of this so must metabolize stored fats. This takes longer and during the resultant down time you will feel very tired. Second problem - When fat cells are created, even if they are emptied they are not destroyed. So if you feel the sudden urge to munch a 300g chocolate bar (who wouldn't) you will gain several kilos of weight. Due to the sudden influx of high energy sugars, the body can forget about metabolizing fats for a few days and on go those pounds.
The point being that this is only about weight loss. Pick another topic, factor in the science and what can seem a simple 'anyone can do it' task turns into 'actually, that's why it is a significant target'. Just remember, if being financially secure, physically desirable and happy was easy, we'd all do it.