When we were kids, we thought we could grow up to be anyone we wanted. We were also told we could achieve anything if we put our minds to it. Unfortunately, most of us weren’t given the proper tools to ensure we could attain those goals. Many of us were further encumbered with parental praise that blinded us to our own shortcomings. I am no less guilty.
For the past several months, my children worked diligently, fine-tuning their Christmas wish lists. Even my older ones, who no longer believe in the big man, knew those gifts would magically appear beneath the Christmas tree on time and all wrapped up with a bow on top. Little do any of them understand the difficulties we had and the sacrifices we made to ensure their holiday desires were achieved — product availability, financial sacrifices, assembly and shipping to name a few.
I’m fairly certain many of us still believe in Santa Claus. If we write down our goals and stick the list on the refrigerator, most of us think we can magically attain our ambitions and desires.
Logically, we all realize that is not the case, but how many of us are truly committed to our goals and willing to make the necessary sacrifices?
Furthermore, how many of us realize the primary obstacle to achieving those goals?
Put another way: Why do most of us abandon our New Year’s resolutions so quickly?
Any achievement re-quires a particular level of hard work, discipline and commitment. Heartache, setbacks and failures are seemingly unavoidable and often derail our progress. Affecting change is just not easy. We have all been there. Blame, resentment and lack of accountability follow misaligned performance.
The most important step to achieving a goal is realizing you are the problem! We make resolutions and want change because we are inherently doing something wrong.
I want more money. I need to improve my relationship. I would like to be more successful. Take complete responsibility for your circumstances and get ready to change! Your commitment level and resiliency will determine your success. Once we are willing to accept that any goal or lasting change requires a change in our own habit pattern, routine, work ethic, attitude, view point, etc., we have made the first step in achieving our personal or professional goal.
Congratulations! If you are still reading this you’ve accepted that you must change. Unfortunately, several more pitfalls lie ahead. Primarily, do not get overly ambitious and set too many goals. First, you must determine the highest priority change so you can focus and spend your time wisely. You may gravitate toward the easiest goal to accomplish and/or get distracted if you set too many.
Another danger is setting unrealistic goals. If goals are out of reach they can become demotivating.
Monitor and amend attainable goals to avoid being discouraged by slow progress or setbacks.
Moreover, when you are able to see progress, you will stay motivated and not walk away from it.
A common acronym for goal-setting is SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound). In his recent article from “Ignite!” magazine, performance expert John Hester suggests adding another “M” in the acronym for motivation. The aforementioned pitfalls, setting too many goals and unrealistic expectations, can be demotivating.
Recognizing “what” your goal is, versus “how” you will achieve the goal, is critical. Maintain a close eye on what the goal is and how it will affect the change to sustain motivation.
Before and after photos, metrics and personal rewards for attaining benchmarks are a few ways to stay motivated and focused on the goal.
And guess what? These principals also apply in the office. We should all be sitting down with our supervisor or subordinates at least twice a year for feedback, which includes setting goals.
While it may be easier to acknowledge fault in others and recognize what they need to change, your approach to how the change occurs and goal-setting is critical.
Instead of placing blame and responsibility for achieving the goal on others, approach goal setting as a partnership.
A candid discussion should focus on performance expectations, responsibilities and the planning process. Work to ensure there is widespread buy-in, empower those involved with attaining the goal, and don’t forget to follow up through feedback sessions.
Setting goals as Airmen is foundational and coincides with the core values of our military profession.
A candid assessment of ourselves, recognizing the interests of our organization, and striving for excellence in all we do supports change through goal setting.
Innovation and continuous process improvement are two other exceptional methods to achieving our goals, but first we need to identify what needs to change and make a lasting commitment to improve.
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When we were kids, we thought we could grow up to be anyone we wanted. We were also told we could achieve anything if we put our minds to it. Unfortunately, most of us weren’t given the proper tools to ensure we could attain those goals. Many of us were further encumbered with parental praise that blinded us to our own shortcomings. I am no less guilty.
For the past several months, my children worked diligently, fine-tuning their Christmas wish lists. Even my older ones, who no longer believe in the big man, knew those gifts would magically appear beneath the Christmas tree on time and all wrapped up with a bow on top. Little do any of them understand the difficulties we had and the sacrifices we made to ensure their holiday desires were achieved — product availability, financial sacrifices, assembly and shipping to name a few.
I’m fairly certain many of us still believe in Santa Claus. If we write down our goals and stick the list on the refrigerator, most of us think we can magically attain our ambitions and desires.
Logically, we all realize that is not the case, but how many of us are truly committed to our goals and willing to make the necessary sacrifices?
Furthermore, how many of us realize the primary obstacle to achieving those goals?
Put another way: Why do most of us abandon our New Year’s resolutions so quickly?
Any achievement re-quires a particular level of hard work, discipline and commitment. Heartache, setbacks and failures are seemingly unavoidable and often derail our progress. Affecting change is just not easy. We have all been there. Blame, resentment and lack of accountability follow misaligned performance.
The most important step to achieving a goal is realizing you are the problem! We make resolutions and want change because we are inherently doing something wrong.
I want more money. I need to improve my relationship. I would like to be more successful. Take complete responsibility for your circumstances and get ready to change! Your commitment level and resiliency will determine your success. Once we are willing to accept that any goal or lasting change requires a change in our own habit pattern, routine, work ethic, attitude, view point, etc., we have made the first step in achieving our personal or professional goal.
Congratulations! If you are still reading this you’ve accepted that you must change. Unfortunately, several more pitfalls lie ahead. Primarily, do not get overly ambitious and set too many goals. First, you must determine the highest priority change so you can focus and spend your time wisely. You may gravitate toward the easiest goal to accomplish and/or get distracted if you set too many.
Another danger is setting unrealistic goals. If goals are out of reach they can become demotivating.
Monitor and amend attainable goals to avoid being discouraged by slow progress or setbacks.
Moreover, when you are able to see progress, you will stay motivated and not walk away from it.
A common acronym for goal-setting is SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound). In his recent article from “Ignite!” magazine, performance expert John Hester suggests adding another “M” in the acronym for motivation. The aforementioned pitfalls, setting too many goals and unrealistic expectations, can be demotivating.
Recognizing “what” your goal is, versus “how” you will achieve the goal, is critical. Maintain a close eye on what the goal is and how it will affect the change to sustain motivation.
Before and after photos, metrics and personal rewards for attaining benchmarks are a few ways to stay motivated and focused on the goal.
And guess what? These principals also apply in the office. We should all be sitting down with our supervisor or subordinates at least twice a year for feedback, which includes setting goals.
While it may be easier to acknowledge fault in others and recognize what they need to change, your approach to how the change occurs and goal-setting is critical.
Instead of placing blame and responsibility for achieving the goal on others, approach goal setting as a partnership.
A candid discussion should focus on performance expectations, responsibilities and the planning process. Work to ensure there is widespread buy-in, empower those involved with attaining the goal, and don’t forget to follow up through feedback sessions.
Setting goals as Airmen is foundational and coincides with the core values of our military profession.
A candid assessment of ourselves, recognizing the interests of our organization, and striving for excellence in all we do supports change through goal setting.
Innovation and continuous process improvement are two other exceptional methods to achieving our goals, but first we need to identify what needs to change and make a lasting commitment to improve.