Process Versus Goals

Failure, Goal Achievement, Habits, Planning

Back in December 2015 my Life Coach recommended that I set goals.  By the way I do recommend life coaching which is essentially having someone to ask you some great questions to make you think and also hold you accountable as you set out to achieve the goals you set for yourself.

Goals versus processI love setting goals and contemplating the future.  My life coach recommended that I set 5 year, 3 year and 1 year goals which I did.  I set goals for each of the categories shown above.  That is a lot of goal setting!  I later updated these goals in April 2017, nearly one and half years ago now.  The problem is that I have not looked at them since!  The reason that I never looked at them I think is because they were too many and too overwhelming.

Looking at these goals now is strange because my life today is so much different.  Only the one year plan has some resemblance to reality!  Perhaps that is because it is so difficult to see far into the future (even 3-5 years is far!).  The future is unknown and life takes unexpected twists and turns.    For example two of my close family members have passed away unexpectedly since I last updated the plan only one and a half years ago.   Career wise I have also taken an unexpected route and have learned new skills in developing and teaching online courses which I really enjoy and which is proving a successful side venture for me.  That was nowhere to be seen in my plans and just goes to show that we need to keep our antennae up at all times for new and unexpected opportunities.

Process

What I do focus on each morning and also review at the end of each week are my quarterly goals.  I have a maximum of three.  These goals are much more immediate and attainable.  Overall however I find that my success in life is related to how closely I keep to my process.  Your process is your daily set of routines and habits that drive progress in your life on a day to day basis.  This is where the rubber meets the road!  For example one thing that I follow religiously is my morning routine.  I find that as the day progresses it is harder to control what happens as there are more interruptions and also tiredness sets in.

Last quarter 2018

We are now in mid-September and 2018 is heading into the final stretch.   NOW is a great time to set yourself three goals maximum for the last quarter of the year  (October, November, December).  There are three months to make this your best year yet.  What three goals do you want to achieve before the end of the year?  Another question to reflect on now is how can you improve your process (daily habits and routines) which will drive progress towards your three end of year goals?

If you want to expand your knowledge and get great ideas on how to improve your process then check out my course “Experiments in Personal Change” which is packed full of ideas on how to improve your process.  The course also goes into more detail on the pros and cons of goal setting.  Please check out the free course preview.

Best wishes,

Tom

Let go & free yourself!

Goal Achievement, Planning, Procrastination

Catching monkeys who never let go

Letting go

Let me tell you a story about catching monkeys.  The story goes something like this.   A hunter puts some of the monkey’s favorite food such as a cherry in a jar with a narrow neck.  The hunter securely ties the jar to a wooden stake using a rope.  The neck of the jar is just wide enough for the monkey’s hand to squeeze into the jar though the narrow neck.  The monkey puts in his hand and grasps the cherry inside the jar.  Then the monkey goes to withdraw his hand but his fist holding the cherry will not pass through the narrow neck of the jar.  The monkey becomes trapped because he is not willing to let go of the prized cherry and escape.  The monkey is trapped by holding on to the cherry.

The lesson from the story is that holding on to stuff, even appealing stuff, can trap us and hold us back.

Reflection

What cherry are you holding on to that no longer serves you? What do you need to let go of that is trapping you?  Perhaps it is a job, career, hobby, relationship, self-perception, addiction or habit?  Like the monkey you need to be able to let go of the cherry to be free.  Letting go and reinventing yourself is a very important skill in today’s rapidly changing world.  If we are unable to let go of the cherry, then like the monkey, we risk being trapped which leads to stagnation in our lives.

Best wishes,

Tom

PS. For more great ideas on personal development check out Transform Your Life – Experiments on Personal Change