It’s been said that “The purpose of goals is to focus our attention. The mind will not reach toward achievement until it has clear objectives. The magic begins when we set goals. It is then that the switch is turned on, the current begins to flow, and the power to accomplish becomes a reality.” As I recently thought about my life, I realized that I had work goals but was missing established personal goals. I have been feeling really good when it comes to my work life but was less enthused with my personal life. My weight had gone up, my sleep had been lacking, and my overall fitness had diminished leaving me feeling sluggish.
Because of my work goals, I have been wanting to focus on work. I have had no problem putting in the extra hours to accomplish the goals set for my professional life. Every year my supervisor challenges me to look at my next year goals. He does a very good job of setting up things that stretch me professionally but that with the extra effort are achievable. We have regular meetings to check progress, make adjustments as necessary and celebrate successes. However, I have not done the same for myself outside of work.
Recently our pastor has been going through a series entitled “The Story I’ll Tell”. Each week he has challenged us to think out five years from now and what will our story be. In order to achieve this story, what do we need to start doing? What do we need to stop doing? One of the challenges is to not get overwhelmed by setting too many goals at once. Instead, we need to focus on one at a time and then move on to the next. Creating sustainable habits that move us in our desired direction. I have taken this to heart. I have started to write out my goals again personally, break them down to achievable steps, and celebrate them as they are accomplished.
So, do you, like me need to evaluate where you are going and how you will get there? How many goals do you currently have set? How powerful is your desire to achieve them? What things do you need to start? What do you need to stop? My challenge to you is this…start by setting one achievable goal and let that success propel you to doing one more, followed by one more, followed by one more. As Jim Rohn said, “The future does not get better by hope, it gets better by plan. And to plan for the future we need goals.”
Tim Geels – SVP of Instruction and Corporate Implementation
