Success Lesson 5 – Goals

As an entrepreneur, goals give you focus, they give you direction, they give you a reference point to make decisions by, and a target to work towards. They are written statements of what you want to achieve by a stated date. They are messages which are used to programme your mind for success. Written goals are the most powerful tool you can use to realise your dreams.

The power of goals can be seen first hand in the words of President Kennedy when he stated on 25th May 1961, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth.”

On 21 July 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first man to set foot on the moon. He and his fellow astronauts returned safely to earth days later.

It was the power of this goal which brought not just a whole team, but a whole nation, and arguably the whole world, together to achieve this seemingly impossible goal.

Written, Stretch Goals

The power of goals can work for you just as they did in the space race. However, your goals should be both written down, and they should be stretch goals.

Most people drift through life with no clearly defined or written purpose. It is therefore unsurprising that they fail to achieve the success they are capable of.

It is widely recognised that an uneducated person with clear  written goals and a burning desire to achieve can outperform an educated person who lacks direction and ambition. It is the power of goals that allows this to happen.

Writing goals down programmes them deeply into your conscious and subconscious mind, it is only when they are written down that they become concrete and can be absorbed into subconscious mind.  It will gives you laser sharp focus which act as a magnet for success with your subconscious mind working overtime driving clearer decisions on whether your actions are taking you closer to your goals, or further away.

Written goals can deliver results like no other means. Think only of President Kennedy’s statement of goal back in 1961, this simple phrase encapsulates the very essence of goal setting. It is specifically defined, it is hugely ambitious and a considerable stretch, and it is supported by a time frame.

By making your goals stretch goals, such as landing a man on the moon, you challenge yourself to achieve the seeming impossible.

Jim Rohn the late godfather of personal development said that you should set a goal to make a million pounds, not for the money, but for what it makes of you.

This is a goal which is worthy for any entrepreneur, aspiring entrepreneur, or even non-entrepreneur to set, as it brings out the best in you.

One action you can take right now is to write ten goals down on a piece of paper, put the letter in an envelope with a stamp on it and mail it to yourself.

This very act of writing your goals down, and putting some distance between you and the letter will help crystallise your ambitions and programme your goals deep into your subconscious mind.

Just like what motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar said, “The great majority of people are “wandering generalities” rather than “meaningful specifics”. The fact is that you can’t bit a target that you can’t see. If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else. You have to have goals.”

When setting goals, there’s a classic approach to ensure that you give yourself the best chance of success. You may be familiar with this approach called “SMART’ method for setting goals.

SMART stands for goals which are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and can also be attained within a specific Timeframe.

Focus and persistence goes hand in hand with goals. Without them, it is only too easy to get distracted by other opportunities or to lose sight of what’s trying to be achieved. Precision focus  is paramount.

Here’s a summary of setting and achieving your goals:

1. Have clearly defined written personal goals that you are constantly working towards.

2. Review your goals daily and make sure you still have the passion, belief and motivation to achieve them.

3. Break larger goals down into smaller steps and create a plan of action to achieve them.

4. Goals should be a stretch and almost unachievable, think big, think of landing a man on the moon.

5. Written goals programme your subconscious mind like no other tool.

6. A goal is a dream with a deadline.

Just remember this quote, “The only thing standing between you and your goal is the bullshit story you keep telling yourself as to why you can’t achieve it.”—Jordan Belfort

 

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