WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW THE‘WHY’ BEHIND YOUR GOALS
Chances are that your goals have already been well written and that you have enthusiastically began working towards them.
However, have you considered ‘WHY’ you want to achieve those goals?
Your goals must be driven by a strong ‘WHY’.
A goal such as: ‘I want to own a house’is rather dispassionate. You truly must be invested and excited about your goals. Without this, you’re bound to go off track and lose the willpower in achieving them.
If your goals are not based or driven by your own desires (a strong ‘why’), then it will be a tough call to pursue them with all your might. This is also true for goals that might have been imposed on you. Your motivation may diminish and you may find yourself resenting the foreseeable struggles – as well as the person who pushed you into them – when things get tough along the way.
Before you put your goals in stone, ask yourself: ‘Do these goals represent my vision of someone else’s?’ For instance, you may ask yourself: ‘Do I really want to return to school and get that additional degree, or am I appeasing my nagging spouse/ parent/ sibling/ friend/ other’s desire?’
There are endless stories of people who went to college and pursued courses they had little interest in but did so to appease pushy parents. In many cases, they end up trapped in unfulfilling, high paying jobs over their productive life. Their upscale lifestyles and corresponding financial obligations keep them put.
The bottom-line is that you must be personally excited about the benefits of reaching your goals. Do some soul searching.
Here are some tips:
Based on our example, there would be need to ask yourself WHY you feel the need to own a house. Why is this important to you?
Is it because your office provides attractive mortgage facilities for its staff? Or do you simply want to find comfort and security in having a home to retire into?
In this case your goal may now change from ‘I want to own a house’ to ‘I want to own a house because I want to find comfort and security in having a home to retire into’. This now gives your goal an emotional reason attached to it which is very important as it increases your motivation and chances of success.
To further help you arrive at your WHY, you may also ask yourself the following questions:
- How would you feel if you reached that goal?
- Why would you feel that way?
“Knowing the ‘whys’ behind your goals will give you the burning desire and passion that will see you through the tough times to your ultimate victory” – BILLY COX
Once your WHY is clear, you may use that emotional driving power to inspire yourself to achieve the goal(s) you have set. You become emotionally invested in your goals. This will particularly come in handy when challenges/ setbacks come your way.
One last thing, before you etch your goals in stone, don’t forget to commit them to God. Proverbs 16:3 records, ‘Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.’
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