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Evaluating our life is a must if we are to move forward in a positive direction toward a meaningful, fulfilled existence. A meaningful life requires setting goals and having dreams. Every so often we need to take a "time out" to evaluate the progress we are making in achieving our goals and making our dreams come true.

Whether we are just starting out, changing direction in midlife or retired and defining the purpose of our golden years, we want to take stock of where we have been, who we are today, and where we are heading in the future.

Evaluation is especially important if we are not happy with our current situation. Before we can resolve our dissatisfaction we need to first identify what is making us unhappy.

Steps to insure an accurate evaluation of our life:

* Identify goals

Make a list of all the goals we have aspired to attain in all categories of our life. Are we fulfilled in our chosen career? Do we have loving and satisfying relationships? Do we face each day with optimism and enthusiasm? If we answer yes to these questions, chances are we are closely aligned with our goals and dreams.

* List accomplishments

By writing down all that we have achieved, we can estimate how close we have come to attaining our desired goals and what we might need to do in order to continue in a positive direction. Fulfilled lives are planned out, they do not just happen. We are an accumulation of our experiences. Our past achievements and successes are often a good indicator of what the future holds.

* Measure satisfaction

No individual's life is happy all of the time, but if we are more content than not, we are putting our energy into the fulfillment of our goals. If we are not feeling positive about ourselves in one or more areas of our life, then our evaluation, or "progress report" is serving it's purpose. We can analyze what is preventing us from being productive and happy. We can take the necessary steps to improve or change our situation.

* Project future status

Where will we be with our career and relationships in a year, five years, or longer? Do we like the picture our mind presents? Are there skills we must acquire for our professional life, or adjustments we must make in our personal life, in order to reach our goals and dreams?

It is never too late to take stock of our life and change direction if we are not satisfied. Knowing what we want and visualizing our dreams is the best technique for realizing them. Before we can find solutions to problems, it is necessary to first identify the problems. Before we can achieve our dreams, it is necessary to identify those dreams.

By identifying our goals and planning with determination and optimism, we can reinvent ourselves several times over in the course of our life and garner satisfaction and peace of mind.

We each have only one life to live. We can retain power over our destiny through conscious planning, goal setting and periodic evaluation of our progress.

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." (C.S.Lewis)

Learn more about this author, Carol Gioia.
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