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Terry Set
Setting and Achieving Goals, Getting it Done
If you were to ask most people if they were doing what they wanted in life most would say not really. The majority seem to run on the same old, same old feeling. 9 to 5 never quite keeping up. However when you ask the same people what they could do, most will tell you that if they had the money they would set up a business. Having your own business is a great idea, so why don't most people do it? It seems that just about everyone I talk to is going to become an entrepreneur, some have excellent ideas but they do not get done.
I worked with two people to help them set up good workable plans towards what they wanted. They are both bright intelligent people. One wanted to be a chiropractor, the other their own art and craft store. It started out well, I spent a couple of hours with each of them and set a good working plan, with all the needed steps to reach their goals. They could see how it would work and were very excited. I thought great, that has got them moving and left it at that.
A few months later I went to see them, they had hardly DONE anything. I was amazed, these were not lazy people and they were quite capable of doing the actions. What went wrong? What had stopped them? I must admit that at first I felt annoyed and almost gave up on them. Well if they can't be bothered to do it.....
My goal in life is to help people win. If I could not help these two achieve their goals then it must be my failure. What had I done wrong? Had I missed an important factor? Back to square one. Did they still want those goals? Yes, we had found the right passion for each of them. Were the plans we set up workable? Yes, we had broken it down to simple steps. Alright keep digging.
The apparent reasons came out, time and money. I have to say that I get really frustrated when I hear those two excuses because they are excuses. Bluntly put, time and money are never, ever, the reason for not working towards goals. They are apparent reasons and if you wait until you have enough time and money then you will die waiting. A more real reason is lack of time and money CONTROL.
I needed their agreement that we would get them to their goals, no matter what. We even wrote that agreement down and signed it. I knew that I was going to have to push them and they would probably get annoyed with me at times, that's alright, I could just refer them to the agreement. It was actually quite easy to figure out where they had wasted time and money, too much television, too much eating out. We worked out how to cut down on the waste, not completely eliminate it, people need a break once in a while. Now the tough part...
Comfort and Pain
It seems that people are quite content to sit in a known 'comfort' zone, which is not usually that comfortable. Moving out into a new endeavor takes effort and facing the unknown. In physical activities, sports etc. there is a saying 'no pain, no gain'. It is similar when you are trying to reach any goal, the pain may not be physical but it is often there in the form of stress and worry. To win at anything takes effort and is seldom comfortable at first.
One of the things I had the two people do was to write down what their lives were currently about and what they did not like about it. Things like working 40 or more hours a week to make someone else rich, worrying about bills, not sure of retirement and so on came up. Then they wrote down what the outcome of their goal should be like. Whenever they started to slack off they would have to look at the two sides again.
Now I became their 'pain'. For the next month I phoned them every evening and ask what they had done towards reaching their goals. I was being a real pain in the ****. Just knowing that I would be calling them gave them some incentive to do things. Once in a while there would be a weak excuse, 'Ray I am tired tonight'. I can be mean task master, 'be tired on your own time, this is goal time'. They both told me that when I pushed them to complete something they actually felt more awake and ready to go when they finished the task. I have found this is usually true.
After a few weeks they both got into the routine and habit of working on their goals and it became easier. Apparently it takes about three weeks to form a habit. One of the things that people really need to learn when going into business for themselves is that they have to become their own boss.
The world now has another chiropractor and an arts and craft store. It was not always easy, plans had to be reviewed and changed, some upsets occurred. It was worth it.
About the Author
My website, What is Success, is built around what I have learned from people. I do not have any university degrees or letters after my name, the information comes from the university of life and it does not give out diplomas. I have tried to include practical information and advice to help people succeed.
I have had coffee with millionaires and shared a bottle of wine with street people. All of them were fascinating, each had their own stories to tell. I really love people they are so interesting.