Have you ever set goals that you initially thought were impossible to attain?
I bet most of us have! It might have been a challenging exam, a mountain to climb, a first marathon (or a 5k).
At work, at home, at play, we all have this capability to be blown away by how far we can go. Whom we can become and what we can achieve if we push beyond our perceived limits.
To reach such goals, you’ll need to dedicate real time and effort. Realistically, you’ll have to let go of “lower” priorities. In business, you forego adjacent market opportunities or less profitable products. In life, you might sacrifice friendships, lifestyle, or even your family.
That’s OK… up to a certain point.
When that bold goal becomes too central, you become obsessed and structure everything around it. Soon enough, you’ll lose steam on that top endeavor. You’ll realize – too late – you’ve also lost track of many other essential aspects of the business or even your life.
So should you avoid such big goals and embrace Zen Buddhism, living without goals and focusing on the journey, not the destination?
I have struggled to find a better balance between such big goals – especially the structure they require – and the liberating free form of exploration that truly opens my mind.
Here’s what I found works for me:
- I make a point always to have one impossible goal going on. It’s essential to me. Big goals are stimulating my creative and critical thinking. Not only do they get my adrenaline up, but they are extremely rewarding, too, even if I fail. The lessons learned are invaluable.
- I’m liberal with goal planning and continuously consider my options. There is such a thing as a Plan B, and it will likely” lead you to Rome too.” So I make sure I consider different scenarios and regularly assess the state of progress against the goals. Course correction is always acceptable – actually, the earlier, the better.
- I balance my impossible goal with periods of absolute randomness. I can spend hours with no predetermined objective. Letting my mind and body wander and doing just what I love. It’s where I make my best discoveries.
- I keep decluttering my performance indicators to focus just on the essentials. Having too many of these is diluting my focus. That’s true at work and in life. These days, modern technology helps you track almost anything, from business analytics to health vitals. So, I ask myself what is crucial for me to monitor.
Being only bold-goal-driven would make me a terrible person. But I also know that becoming 100% Zen is impractical.
By applying these balancing principles, I’ve started to integrate better two radically complementary approaches to life: goal-driven vs. zen.
I love the excitement of working towards outstanding achievements while enjoying the beauty of this world – yes, there is some! – whatever path I take, wherever I end up.
If like me, you have felt stuck at some point, trying to find such balance, I invite you to play with these principles and adapt them to your own life and business.
And don’t forget to tell me how it goes!