After a book signing or speaking engagement, I’m often asked what the secret to goal setting and achieving goals is. What the person really wants to hear is something they can apply to their life or business now and see the results start to take shape.
During the times I get to meet face to face after an event, I usually don’t have the proper amount of time for explaining the numerous nuances of setting and achieving goals. I also don’t have enough background information about the person to determine what types of goals are appropriate for that individual. Goals are highly personal, and one person’s goal cannot be transferred to another. Only you can determine what is right for you.
So, when I have to keep it short and sweet, I bring up the one most important thing that will help anyone set and achieve any goal they desire.
Whether it’s in personal or business life, the most important thing is that you must have a reason to achieve the goal and in your reason to achieve your goal, two things must be present.
First, it must be a compelling reason.
Let’s use the goal of losing weight as an example.
In one case, your doctor says you have to lose 40 pounds – or you’ll die. In another case your spouse wants you to lose 10 pounds to fit into some new clothes. Even though the first case requires four times more weight loss, you will be more likely to achieve the goal of losing 40 pounds, because living is a pretty compelling reason.
In the second case, if the loss of 10 pounds is simply to make your spouse happy, this is not a compelling reason for you to lose the weight. Odd as it seems, we often find ourselves chasing goals that will make other people happy.
Your Goal Has To Be Your Own
The second component of your reason to achieve your goal is that your goal has to be your own.
You will have a harder time losing weight for the benefit of your spouse, than you would to save your life. Even if it was your doctor who told you to lose the weight, you will quickly take that goal on as your own because you can easily see the benefits of achieving that goal.
It’s the same way in business.
If you had orders for a product at the rate of one per day and you were currently producing one product per day, you’d have no reason to change your production rate. If, however, you had orders for fifty products per day and if each product sold was an additional $100 profit, you now have quite a compelling reason to set an increased production goal of 50 products per day.
Is your “Why” strong enough?
If you have a strong enough why, it will fuel your passion to find the how.
If you feel invigorated and it feels like you could go on working forever, then you are on the right track. That’s the gut feeling that you’re doing the right thing. That’s how you know your goal is in alignment with your core beliefs. This tells you that you are pursuing your goal and that gives you a compelling reason to achieve this goal.
If you struggle to get out of bed on a consistent basis, always feeling drained, dreading what you will face during the day, this is a good indication you may be chasing goals that are not truly your own. You will come up short on this type of goal all the time. You will either fail to achieve it, achieve it in a poor manner or if you do achieve it, you will never feel fulfilled about accomplishing it. If this is you, it may be time to take an honest look at what you are chasing.
If you have a compelling reason to achieve your goals, you will find, almost magically, ways of achieving things you previously never thought possible.
About the Author
Randy ‘Positive G’ Ganther is an author, speaker, and coach, specializing in the area of setting and achieving life and business goals. He can be contacted through the Positive Education Network, LLC website at: www.123PositiveG.com