Why Your Goals Are Setting You Up for Failure
Everyone loves setting goals. But what about actually achieving them?
That’s a lot harder.
We all love the idea of setting big, audacious goals for ourselves. But when it comes to achieving those goals, it’s easy to get stuck and overwhelmed.
I think it’s because people set bad goals.
Here’s why.
The Problem with Too Much Focus on the End Goal
Let’s say your goal is to become a successful freelance writer.
You have a vision of what it looks like — a thriving company with lots of clients.
But when you try to think about all of the steps it will take to get there
- Setting up a website
- Creating samples
- Marketing
- Pitching potential clients
- Doing all the writing
- Sending invoices
It’s overwhelming.
That leads to inaction. Everything seems too daunting.
The Solution: Break Down Your Goals into Smaller Pieces
This is where “chunking” comes in.
Instead of focusing on the end goal, break it down into smaller, more manageable pieces.
For example, instead of worrying about finding clients for your business, focus on the actionable, specific marketing tasks you can do daily:
- Sending out ten LOIs a day
- Spending 30 minutes each morning commenting on LinkedIn and Twitter
- Crafting five pitches a week
- Updating your website portfolio
- Contacting old clients and asking for more work
These smaller, more specific actions allow you to follow your progress, build momentum, and help you reach your ultimate goal.
Focus on Activities Directly Related to Achieving Your Goal
It’s also important to focus on activities directly related to achieving your goal. This means avoiding distractions or tasks that do not directly contribute to your progress.
So, no spending 4 hours a day reading blog posts or changing the colors of buttons on your website.
Are you going to get clients or money directly from those activities?
If the answer is no, it’s time to do something you can answer yes.
The Power of Consistency
Finally, it’s all about consistency.
Building anything — from a successful business or a new skill — requires consistent action. This means setting aside time each day to work towards your goal and sticking to a schedule.
It’s not always fun or easy. But the small, consistent steps you take daily lead to the larger goal.
And you just may be shocked that you got there a lot faster than expected.
TL;DR
Setting big, audacious goals is important, but it’s equally important to remember that reaching those goals requires small, consistent steps.
By chunking your goals into more manageable pieces and focusing on activities directly related to achieving your goal, you can avoid getting overwhelmed and increase your chances of success.
So don’t get stuck in Overwhemlsville — focus on the step ahead and take the actions that keep you moving forward!
