Realigning Goals

I have been a victim of the lofty goal many times, that goal we set for ourselves that seems reasonable, but upon setting out to complete that goal, it suddenly appears daunting and unattainable. How many of us can honestly say that it has happened to us? I would say the majority of people would have to agree if they are being honest with themselves. It can get discouraging if we persist in trying to attain these lofty goals, we can get in our own heads, become our own worst enemy, and come up with excuse after excuse as to why we can’t or don’t want to pursue that goal anymore. There are times when abandoning a goal is warranted, but if it is something that we are truly passionate about, then there is always a way of reworking the goal, re-tooling it where it either becomes small and more reasonable, or gets broken down into smaller SMART goals that will ultimately lead us to completing the larger goal. To be honest, I only learned within the past five years about SMART goals. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. If we take all these into account, the goals we set for ourselves suddenly appear within reach, we can track them and measure our progress and see when the end will come. It is an incredibly useful tool when working towards larger goals.

However, there is another way of breaking down larger goals that doesn’t have to be as specific. I have utilized this second method more recently when I decided I needed to get back to writing a book that I started years ago. I grew overwhelmed when I left off writing because I had specific targets I wanted to hit, I would get writer’s block and sit staring at the screen wondering what to write. Well, this past summer, I read somewhere that it doesn’t have to be as specific as hitting a certain target every day, but more that something gets done towards that goal every day. For me, I have dedicated at least an hour every morning towards working on the book, whatever shape that may take. Most days I sit and I just write. Sometimes I’ll eek out close to 3 pages, sometimes its a few paragraphs, other times its just editing a section. Whatever shape that hour takes, I give it my best and work towards the goal of writing the book, my daily goal being just do something constructive that will lead to the larger goal. If I keep my focus on the daily task, whatever it might be, I don’t get as frustrated or have the desire to stop. Since I began writing again, I’ve added almost 40 pages to the 90 I had going in. Its been good progress, and often times, just 1-2 pages a day, sometimes less. The key thing here is making progress and achieving the small daily goal.

Much of what we do in life, the goals we set, can be broken down into small chunks or SMART goals. The simple act of doing this brings almost everything within reach. It staves off frustration if we can narrow our focus sometimes and before we know it, our goal is suddenly just around the corner. I could wish I had the wherewithal to have come to these realizations years ago, but that wouldn’t do me any good. Lamenting the past or wishing things were different won’t help anyone in the present, including myself. The fact of the matter is, I came those realizations recently, and am glad that I have because the goals I once set for myself have been broken down and now are being worked towards again. It is a satisfying feeling to know that progress is being made, however slow it is. It has taken me many years, and much introspection to get to this point, but at least I got here and at least I am still growing and learning. That is the key, to never stop learning and growing. The moment we do, we start dying, and I’m sure as hell not ready to do that yet. So if you have that goal that seems unattainable or out of reach, try breaking it down into smaller chunks, running it through the SMART criteria, and getting yourself back on track to completing it.