When it comes to improving performance and productivity, one of the “secrets” on everyone’s performance improvement list is goal setting. The question isn’t “does goal setting work?” The real question is whether or not goal setting is even necessary. The short (and only) answer is yes. As Brian Tracy says, “Goal setting is the fuel for the furnace of accomplishment.”
Last week, I finished reading a terrific little book by Mac Anderson titled “Charging the Human Battery – 50 Ways to Motivate Yourself.” In one of Mac’s 50 essays, he quotes the founder of LifeTime Fitness, Burham Akradi, who shares one of his techniques for goal setting. His method? Think big, start small and move fast. I love the concept!
Think Big – and I’d add the bigger the better!
I just finished touring the new billion-dollar Dallas Cowboys Stadium. Yes, I did say a billion! What an impressive facility – inside and out. As my family and I walked through the giant structure, I kept reminding myself that at one time this magnificent stadium was nothing more than an idea in someone’s mind. Needless to say, I was pretty impressed with the scope of this particular idea.
Then I thought: Hey, we’re going to dream anyway, so why not make our dreams something really huge? Small ambitions lead to small accomplishments. Think big! The bigger the dream, the greater the emotion. Remember, it’s your vision of what could be that will ignite your passion for accomplishment.
Start Small
Just because the dream is huge doesn’t mean you’ll have to take giant steps to bring it to reality. Once your vision is clear of what you want to accomplish, start taking small, incremental steps toward accomplishment. The key is consistency. Do something every day that will move you toward accomplishment. One more phone call, one more page in your book, one less fat-filled snack. You get the idea.
Move Fast
Don’t wait for the perfect time to start making your dream a reality. Newsflash! There will never be a perfect time. All the time you have is now. Today is the day for taking one more step toward success and achievement. Huge accomplishments are made by taking one small step, one after the other, every single day. Build momentum and don’t stop. Being consistent is the key. One small step at a time – every day.
During our tour of Cowboy Stadium, I watched the building going up in time-release photography. Every step in the building process played in fast forward. Years of construction condensed into just a few minutes. I couldn’t help but draw the analogy between building a beautiful stadium and building a successful life. Regardless of how big your dream may be, or how enormous the project, it all comes down to taking small but steady action steps, doing them quickly, and doing them every day until the dream becomes reality.
Thank you, this helped.