You’ve been asked this question before: “What are your goals?” You rattle them off as you would a well-rehearsed poem back when you were in primary school. “Let’s see…I want to renovate my home, I want a little more freedom, I would love to travel and see new places, I definitely want a new car and if I didn’t have to work another day in my life – that would be excellent!”
Or maybe you have your goals written down in detail. You look at them every day. So you take out your well-worn goal’s list and recite, starting with the first and ending with the fifth.
When businesses are underperforming, the department that’s most looked at, is the sales department. The question is – why are they not achieving their sales quotas? The management team would then discuss ways to get them to perform better. They may review the commission structure – paying higher commissions on product lines they’d like to get moving. I remember one insurance company offering incentives to not just those directly responsible for selling policies but to everyone in the company. Once you referred business to the company you got a commission.
Individuals find themselves at the beginning of the year with the same goals not yet achieved. Companies find the same thing. If they were truthful, the sales figures are pretty much the same regardless of the incentives. Spikes in sales let’s say during March, and at Christmas; the occasional unexpected windfall no more than once or twice for the year. Business as usual – averages about the same.
Why then are you not getting results?
It is one thing to set an ambitious goal and quite another to figure out a process that when followed would lead to results – EVERY TIME! Many teach goal setting, yet few students actually achieve the goals they set out to achieve.
I think that everyone knows and understand that goals need to be S.M.A.R.T – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. Having this knowledge alone is not enough; if it was enough more of us would find fulfillment in our work and achieve the goals that we set for ourselves.
If we are not getting the “fruit” we desire then we need to examine what we are planting.
Take for example what we say we want – is that REALLY what we want or is it something we thing we SHOULD want because it’s socially acceptable to WANT it? You think you’ll look stupid if your goal isn’t matching some standard dictated by an outside influence.
Too many of us are not sure what it is we want for ourselves, or what we want from life. We have no faith in ourselves. We don’t believe that we are capable and fully equipped to achieve that which we set our minds to achieve and that we have everything that we need.
How many of us have chased the corporate ladder or a plum position based on influence from others rather than determining ourselves what would be the best options for our particular talents?
Here are a couple questions that you must have the answers if you are to achieve any goal that you set:
Do you believe that you could achieve the goal? Belief is very important. If you do not believe then you won’t achieve it. Your beliefs also affect your behaviour. Look at your self-talk. What are you telling yourself? Take notes. Ask yourself – is what I’m saying to me, helping or hurting my progress? You need to think from the place of a person who is already achieving the results you want. Look at your habits? Are you keeping promises that you made to yourself regarding walking every day, saving a percentage of your salary, paying down your debt, learning a bit more about the side-business you want to start, getting the help you need to figure out what is really involved in getting what you want?
Do you think that you deserve to achieve this goal? Many of us don’t think that we are worthy. We don’t think that we are good enough. So although we set the goal, and we may WANT it, we’re in fact pushing any possibility away of achievemnt with our thinking.
Do you know why you want what you want? Is it a “should”? Sometimes we need to ask ourselves “why?” five times to get to the root of our motivation. For example you might want a million dollars but when you keep drilling down after asking why, again and again following each answer, you might realize that what you really want is independence and freedom and you may be able to achieve that on $350,000.00. Or you may find that the freedom and independence you seek can be had through another goal and does not need to be tied to money.
Do you understand your own giftedness and worth? We might know about some of our talents and
gifts, yet I’ve seen many talented people still lost and unsure of their purpose on earth. We have to unlearn what we believe to be true. We have to look at ourselves with beginner’s eyes. We need guidance in coming up with a more accurate assessment of who we are and how we uniquely operate. You have no idea what you are truly capable of!
What are some of the things that might stop you from taking action on your goals and what are you going to do when those things occur? Most times we don’t do things because we don’t FEEL like doing them or we get distracted by something someone says which makes us doubt ourselves and our capability. Before long we give up. We need to set ourselves up for success! If this happens to prevent me from achieving my goal, I will do that. I will respond in this way. I will repeat this mantra that’s going to keep me motivated to keep on stepping forward. If my plan does not work, I will try something else and I will definitely keep those things that are working for me, instead of starting from scratch every single time.
If you want to achieve the goals you set you need to tap into you and quit letting the influence of the outside world dictate your feelings and desires and stop you from getting what’s meant for you!
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