What If You Don’t Hit Your Goals?
“Your arrows do not carry,” observed the Master, “because they do not reach far enough spiritually”
Eugene Herrigel – Zen and the Art of Archery
We all get frustrated when we fail to hit our personal targets. As an example, let’s suppose that last January you set a goal of earning $100,000 more this year. And now after spending the last 9 months climbing and striving to reach that goal you find yourself only achieving half that goal. What follows is a loss of momentum. A few self-limiting beliefs got reinforced. The result is a drop in energy and vigor. Thus, when you reinstate the goal for the next year you are already operating at a personal energy deficit.
You can imagine what will happen the next year, and the year after that if you continually fail to hit your targets. Perhaps right here, right now, you are feeling the effects of the frustration of falling short of those goal year after year. As we strive to obtain known personal objectives we get caught up in the ‘target event’ (obtaining) and may miss the ‘attainment process’ altogether.
Two Categories of Goals
Let me explain. There are two categories of goals, the known goals and the unknown goals. Known goals are the ones you have targeted as worth achieving. They are known to you and to people in your life who are committed to helping you achieve them. Unknown goals are deeper qualities and values that surface as a result of your efforts toward your known goals. They are the deeply satisfying needs that you have temporarily forgotten. Once you become aware of them, life has even greater purpose and meaning.
Here’s how it works. As you strive to achieve your known goals your deep down unknown goals get satisfied. If you fail to recognize these and assimilate them into your consciousness two things occur:
- Your wins feel hollow.
- Your failures begin to drain more and more of your energy.
The reality is that some goal is always being achieved in the attainment process. However, it isn’t always the one you had consciously set (Known). As an example, on your quest to earn more this year you might have attained recognition, better health, and parental approval, spousal “buy in”, inner strength, stronger relationships, and more time to enjoy your world. These are all examples of unknown goals.
We are not describing a ‘rationalization event, making excuses or denying failed attempts. We are describing a new way to look at this journey of success. Learning this process will change your perspective and behavior. It will liberate your beliefs and extinguish your self imposed limitations. Acknowledging your unknown wins will give you a self liberating perspective and energize your reinstated goals.
Reach for your star!
Practice Building Tip
“If you knew that one of your coaches or a classmate where coming to visit your office next week what would you do?”
Once you get past the performance anxiety make a list of the items that would need attention. We suggest you look in three categories.
- The physical appearance of your business. Do the carpets need cleaned? Do the walls or ceilings need painted? Do your tables need recovered?
- The practice systems. Are your systems flawlessly executed throughout the day? Does your team reflect the image you want?
- Your attitude. What leadership essentials will you need to master? What behavior and attitudes do you need to highlight and what ones need to be changed?
Your SIDECAR Team
