Category Archives: Goals

“If you wish to be out front, act as if…”

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“If you wish to be out front, act as if you were behind.”

—Lao Tzu, ancient Chinese poet and philosopher

How competitive are you in your personal or professional life? What factors motivate you to do your very best and achieve remarkable results? Some people are motivated to avoid pain or punishment. Others are goal or future oriented, setting their sights on pursuing and achieving a worthy objective ahead of them.

La Tzu’s coaching is to set our sights on just such an external person or objective, to create a “come from behind” victory, and be out front.

EXERCISE:

Where are you currently behind in the race to achieve some worthy goal or objective? How can you use this position to motivate you to pursue and surpass your highest expectations?

Remember: when you are are out in front, find something else to pursue, or others will quickly be on your heels.

“It is always your next move.”

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“It is always your next move.”

—Napoleon Hill, American writer one of the great writers on success

Photo from Flickr by Wyoming Jackrabbit

Photo from Flickr by Wyoming Jackrabbit

Do you play board games or video games? How about other types of games?

If you do, you know that what keeps us engaged is the goal of winning, and celebrating each achievement along the way.

What about the game of life, where professional or personal achievement is the goal? Sometimes when we feel stuck or stopped, when we become frustrated or discouraged, we forget that our next move might be the one that shifts the world for the better.

EXERCISE:

Notice where you are stopped, stuck, or plateaued in your professional or personal life. Explore and courageously choose to make your next move in at least one area, toward a more desirable future.

Feel free to reply to this post and let me know what happens.

“If you know what to do…”

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“If you know what to do to reach your goal, it’s not a big enough goal.”

– Bob Proctor,  Author and Speaker

Photo from Flickr by Beth Jusino

Photo from Flickr by Beth Jusino

Do you find yourself thinking a goal you’ve set is just too far beyond your reach or capabilities?

Today’s quote suggests that we must strive toward the goals we think are too big, too far away, too hard to realize, even when we are not certain how to reach them. Everything else is just “playing it safe.”

EXERCISE:

Review your list of current goals. Is there enough “stretch” in them to truly support the achievement and personal growth you desire? If you find your list a bit lacking, consider working with a coach, mentor, or committed colleague to go a bit bigger.

“The man on top of the mountain didn’t fall there.”

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“The man on top of the mountain didn’t fall there.”

– Vince Lombardi, American football coach

Image of a man standing on a mountain top

Image from Flickr by Matty Bishwam

When I think of mountain climbers, I think of people pursuing adventures and challenging themselves to achieve a new level of greatness or accomplishment.

Take a look at your own progress towards the summits of your professional and personal goals.

Exercise:

Are you getting where you want to go? Have your mountains recently been more like molehills?

What planning is required and what people or gear will you need to achieve the satisfaction of reaching the top of your most important life summits?

“A good goal is like a strenuous exercise. It makes you stretch.”

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“A good goal is like a strenuous exercise. It makes you stretch.”

– Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics

image of young girls stretching in ballet outfits

Image from Flickr by tom@hk

Just as a personal trainer helps stretch their clients physically to support their fitness goals, coaches stretch people beyond their comfort zones to achieve their professional and personal desires.

In both cases, the stretching beyond our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual limits provides a catalytic stimulus to support new growth and the development of capacities previously not available.

Exercise:

Where do you want or need to stretch beyond your current abilities to pursue and achieve even more than you previously thought possible?

“Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you will land among the stars.”

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“Shoot for the moon, even if you miss, you will land among the stars.”

– Unknown

479Image from Flickr by dingopup.

Have you seen Westerns, military shows or movies which included the phrase “ready, aim, fire?” Whether it is shooting at the moon or focusing on a critical goal, your desire to take each of these steps is necessary.

Some people and organizations suffer from the paralysis of analysis where the phrase might sound like “ready, aim … aim … aim …”

The act of taking the shot or taking action allows us to see what happens when we miss the mark, and also allows us to adjust our aim to hit our target the next time around.

Exercise:

How can you take more shots today toward your intended target? Look for ways to learn what there is to learn when you miss – and also adjust your aim to hit the mark on your next attempt.

“Don’t think of your goals – think from your goals.”

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“Don’t think of your goals – think from your goals.”

– Unknown

We are entering the holiday season and before you know it, we will be into a new year filled with promise and great opportunities. It’s that time again to reflect on what we have accomplished this year and begin the journey forward.

Quote 417Image from Flickr by Lara Cores

Regardless of how much or even how little may have been achieved, consider a new approach to goal setting for the coming year. This quote suggests that we use our goals as a magnet to attract and pull us forward in thoughts and deeds to realize them.

Exercise:

Begin with the end in mind and think from your goals and you will see the action steps and milestones more clearly than ever before.

Consider picking up a copy of Stephen Covey’s famous book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and pay particular attention to Habit #2 which is “begin with the end [goals] in mind.”

You may wish to watch this video, which starts with the above quote: vimeo.com/23265082

“There ain’t no rules around here! We’re trying to accomplish something!”

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“There ain’t no rules around here! We’re trying to accomplish something!”

– Thomas Edison, inventor

How often have you noticed that many projects take quite a bit longer to complete than expected? Sometimes these efforts are thwarted by organizational complexity and misalignment and never see the light of day.

I fully support the use of appropriate systems and procedures when there is alignment among the group. This is often not the case, however, and issues remain unresolved due to the underlying disagreements.

Exercise:

Next time you are part of a committee, task force or project team that’s having difficulty getting something across the goal line, try using the following technique:

Step #1: Ask, “What do you think we should be doing differently, that would work better?”
Step #2: Try on the ideas of others to see if you can align with their suggestions.
Step #3: If for some reason you don’t align with their suggestions, make a counter-proposal and start again.

This iterative process will have the group challenge out-dated or dysfunctional rules – and hopefully get it back on the road to greater accomplishment.

“Don’t tell me the sky’s the limit when there are footprints on the moon.”

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“Don’t tell me the sky’s the limit when there are footprints on the moon.”

– Paul Brandt, country music singer

A colleague of mine, Sandy, was once asked a question – what was her favorite place to go in the entire world?

Her answer was, “The space between my ears.”

Sandy is a highly creative and imaginative person who realized the only limits that truly exist are those our own thoughts place on us.

Exercise:

Spend three to five minutes writing down some of your limiting beliefs about yourself and life in general.

Investigate where others have gone beyond these limits in their own lives, as a way of demonstrating new possibilities that can exist for you in your life.

“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high…”

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“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.”

– Michelangelo

Image from Unsplash by AJ Yorio

I guess spending five years painting the ceiling of the Sistine chapel is an example of reaching consistently for new heights. In fact, most of Michelangelo’s works are examples of extraordinary achievements.

  • What have been your proudest moments in life?
  • Where have you dared to achieve greatness, or a higher purpose?
  • How did stretching or reaching for these seemingly out of reach goals help you grow?

Even if we fail on attempt after attempt, we can try again.

Exercise

Where in your professional or personal life are you playing too small and too safe?

What goals in your life are worth greater risk, even the risk of failure?