Not enough time or lazy?
Have you ever tried to make a goal but that goal never gets done because of not enough time or you become lazy? If you haven’t, then I’d say you’re goal orientated. But I’m pretty sure that 80% of goals are made, but never done.
I read a lot of online articles about goals and things, and one of the reason why goals don’t get completed is because the goal is too big, too broad, and not specific enough. Take this goal… lose weight. I’m pretty sure everybody has had this goal once in a while in their life. Well… losing weight is too broad of a goal. You need to specifiy something. I think of it as having a lot of mini goals within a bigger goal.
So, how would one “lose weight”. Well, set a goal of a certain weight that you want to lose. But goal can’t be too big where you get overwhelmed and quit before you get started. If you say lose 1lbs every week for one month, does that sound easy? Then after the first month, lose 2lbs… and so on and so forth. Also, you need to read more on the goal. The internet is like a giant library, so research if you’re doing it right.
Another reason why goals are often abandoned is because after a while, it’s just a routine. I gets boring. Well, while reading more articles, they suggest that after you have completed your goal, reward yourself. It’s always a nice feeling to get rewarded.
I think another reason why goals are broken is because of motivation. Have you heard of the phrase “two heads are better than one”? Well two people with the same goals are better than one. So try to get a partner to do it with you. You both can encourage each other. And competition is always a good reason to complete a goal.
Choose your partner wisely too. If you choose a partner that you know might flake out the future, then don’t do it. You’ll flake out as well.
I think a big reason why goals are never done is because the initial start of the goal is not started. Lets forget about losing weight. Lets say it’s to learn more about something, picking up a hobby, be more active… Again, that’s too broad and not specific enough.
Last year, I wanted to learn more .NET stuff. I bought a book. I searched the internet for articles and examples. The initial start was hard, but I didn’t learn a lot. I was thinking about signing up for classes. I had the papers to do it too. But just the initial signing up and looking up classes were overwhelming. I would start to fill out the paperwork, then “something else” came along and I put it to the side. One day I told myself that no matter what, I would fill it out. And so I did, and I also signed up for my first .NET class.
I’m glad I did, because I learned so much from it that I signed up for 2 more classes. After that, I did 3 more classes.
I didn’t just learn about .NET. I learned about how other company works, and some problems they had. My network grew. Learned a few tricks that I can apply to other languages.
It was a good experience, and now when I want to learn about something else, I will not hesitate to sign up. Cause I know at the end, I will get a lot more than what I expect.