Long-Term Versus Short-Term Life Goals Writing Assignment (Essay Sample)

Long-Term Versus Short-Term Life Goals
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Long-Term Versus Short-Term Life Goals
Setting achievable and measureable life goals is one of the aspects that help individuals realize their ambitions. Whether it is physique, family, or education, each aspect of life must be planned for well. Divided into long-term and short-term, life goals focus people’s minds and visions on something they want to achieve. While there are some differences between long-term and short-term targets, both of them help human beings to organize their time in realizing set objectives. Although both long-term and short-term goals are instrumental in making life comfortable, their differences stem from the duration of time set for each, the amount of resources allotted, and the benefits that come from each set of goals.
Firstly, the time set for the accomplishment of certain ambitions varies from one task to another. While a long-term life goal takes more than 3 years to achieve, a short-term life goal takes less than 12 months to realize (Formato, 2016). The difference in the duration of time spent on each task stems from the fact that, short-term life objectives are just stepping stones to the long-term goals. For instance, someone who is planning to own rental apartments must first start by saving a certain amount of resources for each month. In this case, saving an agreed sum after every 30 days is a short term goal whereas the real dream of constructing rental mansions is a long-term goal. In as much as there are duration differences, the success of one set of goals depends on the other.
Secondly, the amount of resources spent on each task determines whether it is long-term or short term. According to Wicker (2008), a long-term life goal consumes a lot of resources while a short-term life goal only requires an easily affordable amount. For example, tasks like buying a car and choosing which subjects to do in college can be categorized under short-term objectives, mainly because they require little resources. Conversely, tasks like completing a degree course and planning for pension are regarded as long-term life goals because they require a lot of time and resources to achieve. Although these goals are differentiated on the basis of the resources spent, they are still interconnected to one another.
Lastly, the difference between a long-term and a short-term life goal stems from the benefits each process presents. According to Formato (2016), individuals set goals because they have been driven by some life situations, for example, changes in physical health. While it is possible to get quick benefits from short-term life goals, long-term objectives require patience. If, for example, some people want to lose weight, they can develop a six-month gym p...