The One Thing Goal Setters Forget

We got the memo. Set goals, right? Even more advanced approaches have encouraged us to set “big hairy audacious goals” (SEE: Built to Last) and to set small actionable goals to focus on (SEE: Make Sh*t Happen). These things are all great, but the one thing I see folks most often miss when trying to accomplish great things is some idea of clarity as to what it means to have those goals.

It’s easy to set lofty goals, mostly because they have a pretty impressive outcome associated with them. Who doesn’t like a nice career, happiness, a comfortable financial situation, or whatever else is associated with your goals?

It’s one thing to say you want to be a Navy SEAL, for example, but it’s another thing to say you want to be a Navy SEAL full well knowing what the enrollment process is like. In the same way, we aren’t set up for success to say we want to add 90lbs to your squat when you’re not clear on getting eight hours of sleep a night and finding a way to get to the gym four days a week. In the same way, deciding you’re going to get down to 10% body fat is fruitless when you don’t consider significant nutritional changes.

Now, don’t get me wrong, sometimes we don’t know what we don’t know. I’ve always said, you goals are valid no matter what they are, but you must know what that means. Cross check the goals you’ve thrown around in your mind. Do you know what responsibility is associated with your goals? You may need to research them more to find out, but step one is knowing what it means to have the goals you have.

Good luck.

 

 

Logan Gelbrich

@functionalcoach