Take your goals from #ohshit to #ohyeah with this mental pivot.
Ah…. Goal-Setting. The holy grail when it comes to personal development.
Except that, in my experience (both with myself and from observing my clients’ journeys), it’s not always all it’s cracked up to be. Does this cycle look familiar to you?
#shityeah!
You’re in the zone; you’re feeling fired up; Change is a-comin’!
#shit-a-doodle!
You’re so inspired! Look at all the ways you can better yourself! So many options and so many examples of people who’ve morphed themselves into this amazing higher vision. If Plain Penny could do this, why not you?!
#hotshit!
There are sacrifices to be made, yes, but you do them with ease. You’re rooted in your ‘why’ and you’ve got your eye on the prize. You’re saying ‘yes’ to the things you need to and ‘see ya!’ to the things that aren’t in full support of this higher version of you.
#ohshit!
Progress is slooooow. Change isn’t happening as fast as you’d like, motivation starts to dwindle and invariably, you slip into some old pattern or behaviour that sabotages some of your progress made. You fall off the wagon. Ouch.
#toughshit!
You pick yourself up. Dust off those shoulders. Who needs a wagon anyway?! You’re ready to rumble (again) but, with a little bit of bruising and a little less brightness than Point no. 1. That said, the goal is getting closer (right?).
#fuckthisshit!
Now you’re just going through the motions. Your ego won’t let you quit, cos you’ll look like a damn fool to all those people you smugly told your Big Hairy Goal to. But your heart’s really not in it anymore and you CAN’T WAIT to just get this “goal date” over and done with.
#anticlimaxisshit
You reach your goal (if you’re lucky). But the satisfaction is short-lived. You lap up the slaps on the back and the congratulatory vibes from those who cheered you on. And you DO feel chuffed that you followed through. But mostly, you feel chuffed that it’s DONE and you can focus on something else for a change.
Hmmmm. Can you relate? And that’s pretty much the best-case scenario of goal-setting. How many of us cycle between Points 1-5, never quite making it to Point no. 7?
This really isn’t a great endorsement for Goal-Setting and the Cycle of Change, now is it?! I mean, when you put this all together, what exactly is smart about a ‘S.M.A.R.T.’ goal?
BLISSIPLINE: where the goal isn't the goal. The real goal is to find bliss in the discipline required to reach the goal.
With BLISSIPLINE, the focus isn’t on some shiny achievement at the end of the rainbow.
No, with BLISSIPLINE, the beginning and the middle are just as important as the end result (if not MORE so).
It’s all about the becoming.
It’s about being GROWTH-FOCUSED, rather than GOAL-FOCUSED.
It’s less about creating a To Do List and more about creating a higher vision of yourself.
It’s about finding ways to stay connected to that higher vision daily, and enjoying how it feels to show up as her.
You see, when we focus on the small, daily actions that are needed, and we find ways to inject some joy in the process of it, we get to pocket these micro-wins on the daily.
THESE COMPOUND.
You start feeling good about yourself and your actions every damn day.
And, most importantly, these little micro-wins build your self-trust. You stop feeling like a repeated loser and, instead, develop faith in your ability to actually see things through.
And when you add that self-trust, that self-belief and some daily ‘feeling good’ vibes? That’s waaaaaaay more powerful for actually implementing any great big shiny things in your life than any ‘SMART’ goal could ever do for you! Smart, eh?!
I hope this post has inspired you to take your goal-setting to a whole new, beautiful, uplifting level.
And if you find yourself continually getting stuck in your own self-sabotaging ways, I’ve got the perfect companion to hold your hand through it all. Check out my Accountability Programme called BEAM – where I work with clients to build their Blissiplines while building their dream lives!
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