Why do you think most people obsess over setting goals?
I don’t know about you, but I have a deep, burning desire to realize my full potential. I want to know how much I can accomplish. I want to see how much I can add to this Life.
We want our lives to be a certain way. So, we set goals. But there’s got to be another reason why people go absolutely BANANA PANCAKES for setting goals.
Often times, I’ve seen (and it may seem counterintuitive), it’s because people don’t really have a goal. Instead, they have pie-in-the-sky dreams of some “big” achievement, a fantasy, with no practical idea of how to make it into a reality.
The typical advice in that type of situation is to endlessly break your dream down into smaller steps until you figure out a path forward. But that leaves you with a plan that is both rigid and fragile. Peanut brittle dreams.
Don’t think about steps 1,2,3 in your plan–that’s the fastest way to get mired in the muck. Instead, focus on the most basic action that keeps you moving. Let that be your goal: to live by a system in which you achieve your goal every day.
Make your goal achievable by asking these questions:
What is the most basic tenet of my long-term goal?
Break it down.
If a company’s 24-month plan is to grow revenue by 25%, the most basic intent is to grow revenue.
If you want to lose 30 pounds before that next reunion, your base goal is: lose weight. You can’t say, “I’ll lose one pound every day for…” because, what if you don’t make it one day? Then, you’re off-track the next day.
Just be simple. Make it a command. “Lose weight.”
What action will best help me achieve my intent today?
Without putting limits or minimums on it, what action can our hypothetical company take today to grow revenues? How can I build on the actions I took yesterday to add more tallies in the on-target category?
You get the picture.
The main question is…
How do I LIVE my goal every day, in every way?
It can be scary at first, but you have to take your eye off the horizon. Keep the whole ideal in mind, but focus on the step right in front of you. Take the step in front of you RIGHT NOW, and trust that you’ll be able to take each step as it comes.
It’s about creating an entire structure within which your goal can come to fruition. Structures support systems. Systems support wholes.
