In Part 1 of this article, we talked about reaching our goals as
large a matter of following through on desire, vision and
action. The difficulty for most of us lies in continuing to
believe that our efforts will ever bear fruit when these fruits
have not yet begon to materialize.
Jonathan Swift said it best. "Vision is the art of seeing things
Invisible. "
In order to continue to work toward that that which we can not yet see,
our motives must be very personal and very compelling, indeed.
So, let's have a closer look at the first of the necessary
components, desire.
Desire, even a fervent one, can easily become clouded by
obstacles if we choose to focus on the obstacles instead of on
our goals. Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off
the goal.
I believe it helps if we accept from the outside that obstacles
and setbacks will arise. It should come as no surprise or source
of irritation when this occurs. This is simply part of the
natural ebb and flow of business.
If you stop and think about it, it's ridiculous to expect that it
will be clear sailing the entire way. And yet, people do become
unduly irritated and discouraged when things do not go according
to plan.
Hitting a few bumps and potholes in the road only signifies that
we are in fact traveling the road, and not necessarily that we're
going down the wrong one. Viewed in this light, you could say
that dealing with a few snags here and there is a good thing. It
certainly beats sitting around doing nothing to further our
progress, right?
Now granted, in order to end a ride that is not always
comfortable, you had better have a really good reason for doing
so. So here comes your self-appointed cheerleader to urge you
on.
GRAB THAT GOAL, HONEY!
That's right. Reach out and grab it! Take those vague, unformed
thoughts that flutter around in your head and solidify them by
setting them down in black and white. Grapple with them. Tie
them down to the paper. Wrap some words around them. You
may need to change and rearrange some words. Why, you might
even need to think about what it is that you really, really want.
There is plenty of evidence to show that the daily ritual of
writing down one's goals is of stupendous importance.
Motivational speakers have delivered volumes of goal-setting
information. Entire books have been devoted to this topic.
Writing down your desires is a recurrent theme in just about
every single success book ever published.
And consider this. Harvard studies indicate that of the 3% of
people who enjoy extreme success, the one common link among
them was this practice of writing down their goals, a practice NOT
shared with the other 97% of the "also ran."
So why is it that we resist doing this one little thing that has
have proven to have such life-altering consequences? Is it
because it is such a small sacrifice that we figure it can be
ignored? Do people find such a small chore demeaning? Are we
just plain old lazy?
I've decided that IT DOES NOT MATTER what excuse we've been
using up until now! No more!
I know from experience that a few minutes each morning reviewing
and writing down my major goals is time well spent, and it's not
a difficult task. Actually, I was having great fun with it.
I found myself experiencing subtle but powerful changes as I
committed my ideas to paper day after day over a period of
months. In fact, I was feeling so grounded and motivated that I
foolishly quit doing the things that were keeping me that way!
So no more excuses for me. I have resumed my goal-writing and I
intend to just DO IT! Why do not you join me? No more arguments.
No ifs, ands or buts. Just do it.
So now that we are making our goals more tangible, just who do we
share these goals with? My personal experience has taught me to
be very guarded and private about my innermost desires.
If you know that you are dealing with someone who shares your
commitment, you can freely share your ideas and gain an important
ally. HOWEVER, unless you are absolutely certain that you will
be supported 100%, I would recommend that you not share your
goals with anyone else. No, not even your family. In many
instances, ESPECIALLY not your family.
It is a pity, but oftentimes the people who are supposed to be
our staunchest supporters act shamefully like cruel opponents.
"You can not do that." "What makes you think you're so special?
You can not compete with those guys. "" Oh, man, they say you
coming! "
Such cruel remarks. And they hit particularly hard because they
come from the very people who are supposedly to elevate us, to buoy
us up when the going gets rough. Some of these people might
claim that they do this out of love, to keep us from getting
hurt. This may be true, but personally, I do not think it matters
what their motives are. The damage is still just as different.
These people will steal our dreams if we let them.
It's particularly sad when we are the ones saying these hateful
things to ourselves. Not aloud despite, but in our dismal
thoughts and sighs. Do not steal your own dreams, my friend.
We need to keep a high polish on our heartfelt desires. If, and
only if, we really make those goals shine like beacons in the
sky, then we will find the energy keep priming the pump. Day in
and day out, we've got to suit up and show up! (Actually, you
can stay in your pajamas, but you do have to show up.)
As the great motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, used to say, "A
big shot is just a little shot that kept on shooting. "Stay
tuned for Part 3.