How Committed Are You?
When someone says they are interested or hoping to achieve something, it is a wish, and there has not been a clearly defined commitment. Whereas when you set intentions purposefully, there is a lot of thought, a plan, and a process of how to attain that specific intention. The reality is the extension of our thoughts, planning, and actions.
It is vital to understand, choosing an intention (goal) or writing it down is not the entire process. They are only small pieces of a giant puzzle. The process of achieving the intention (goal) is the hardest part and is the major part of that puzzle.
Most importantly are you willing to accept the investment or sacrifices, you have to make in order to achieve these intentions (goals). Having this insight will help you stick with your process better and understand how to get there.
As Denis Waitley states, the secret to productive intention (goal) setting is establishing clearly defined goals, writing them down, and then focusing on them several times a day with words, pictures and emotions as if we have already achieved them.
How to master the skills of setting goals which materialise consistently?
We need to be clear of what why we want to achieve an intention and how it will feel like for you to achieving this intention (goal). When you have clarity of the reason for your intention and how it will make you feel, this will become your catalyst and motivation.
Have you taken the time to look inwards and ask yourself these questions?
The answers to these questions will aid you to strive towards your intentions and propel you forward and stay focused when you are face challenges and hit roadblocks:
- Do you want to better yourself personally or professionally?
- Why do you want to develop yourself?
- How can you better yourself personally and professionally?
- What or where are you striving towards- Where is your dream destination? What is your dream?
- How are you planning to achieve them?
- By when do you want to reach there or achieve them?
There will be setbacks, and your determination will be tested. Some wander off, others tried but couldn’t make headway, so they stop trying and would instead leave everything to chance or set another intention. The same thing that presents itself as the obstacle every time you try, can be utilised to set and achieve an intention.
My analogy is if you are set out to go to work one morning, and there is a road closure you don’t abandon your journey, instead, you take a different route to work. At times you need to be creative, be inventive and find another way to attain your intention.
Lastly, be practical and positive and pay attention to the progress you are making. I have created roadblocks in the past by either aiming for perfection or lacking clarity and a strategy.
My three takeaways to be consistent and committed to your intention:
Clear the clutter and create CLARITY:
Clarity helps you focus and plan a pathway to reach your destination or achieve your intention.
Reflect, Rethink and Reroute:
When faced with a roadblock or challenge you have a setback think of ways to overcome them and how you can progress in different ways, methodologies, or using different strategies.
Aim for PROGRESS and not Perfection:
on whether you have achieved your milestone for that stage and have made progress aligned with your more significant intention. Try to do things to your best ability and remember that the journey is what brings you closer to your intention.
Originally published in LinkedIn on January 29, 2020
