Do you have big dreams? Do you know of people who have?
I know people with big dreams. Each and every single one of those dreams involves making a significant change in the way these people are currently living their lives.
Have you ever asked yourself why so many people spend all that time dreaming, but so few actually manage to live the life of their dreams?
The way I see it, the world is split into two camps: the world of people who actually get things done and the world of people with wishful thinking. So, what really makes the difference?
The answer to that question is twofold… It depends on peoples’ level of commitment to their goals and the way they go about achieving them.
Your Level Of Commitment
Big, ambitious goals demand a lot of energy, passion, commitment, determination, and persistence.
Why do you think Michelangelo took four years out of his life to carve the famous statue of David? Why do you think NASA keeps sending astronauts into space? Why is the tallest building in 2020, the planned Al Burj on Dubai’s waterfront, going to be over 1,000 meters high?
All these big projects were and will be achieved because they have one very important thing in common. The people behind them cared enough about them to make them happen. Tackling the question of what the source of true commitment is, then, becomes quite simple.
Commitment always starts with identifying a dream that is truly worth having, one that makes you stay up at night.
What do you really care for?
What is it that you really want, from the bottom of your heart?
How much does your dream mean to you?
Does it mean enough to you to commit yourself to it?
It’s something you need to become clear about before you embark upon achieving your goal. I cannot stress that enough.
How Do You Go About Achieving Your Goals?
Turning to the issue of how to go about achieving ambitious goals…
I often come across extremely driven, determined people who just don’t seem to be making any progress. Most of the time, it’s because they fail to find the correct balance in setting their short and long-term goals.
In other words, they set short-term goals that are too big, and long-term goals that are too small.
Setting big, even huge, long-term goals is nothing to be afraid of. You can make your ultimate goal as big as you like, as long as you stay conscious of the fact that anything worth having does take time, passion and determination.
You cannot earn a degree, master a musical instrument, or have a thriving Internet business in a couple minutes. Just like Rome wasn’t built in a day. Instant Gratification is a virus that needs to be stopped.
On the other hand, setting short-term goals that are too big can be detrimental to the achievement of your final goal. Motivation is vital for getting things done. So, when you fail in one of the shorter term goals, you risk losing your nerve and abandoning your dream completely!
Here’s a wonderful technique to avoid that from happening…
Cut the big picture into small, very small and doable pieces. Transform your journey towards the final goal into a series of tiny, mini-steps. Make sure each of these steps is so small that it makes you think they’re too easy—they might not even look like actual steps!
Write down every single one of them in a list. Tackle each step, one at a time, and check it off on the list once you’re finished with it. Ticking things off is a very powerful technique to motivate yourself. You are giving yourself a personal reward of sorts every time you complete a task. This will keep you going until your dream finally materializes.
Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it?
Well, one could say Simplicity was the father of Archievement. ;-)
Bottom Line
The right strategy is to think big, but execute small. After all, the only way to get from here to where you want to be is by taking all the little steps in between.
Give yourself permission to motivate you.
—Marcus Hochstadt
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