Achieve
The new year has begun, and the wheels are already turning. It’s time to jump in the driver’s seat and take control of where you’re going.
By taking a few moments to sit down and write out your goals for the year, you grab the reins and tell the universe, “THIS is what will happen this year!”
“Achievement? What’s That?” (The 80%)
I find it interesting that 80% of the population never thinks about their goals. They just go about their day, week, year, life doing what they’ve always done. Just putting one foot in front of the other and never looking up to see where they are going. And then they wonder how their life turned out the way it did.
The beginning of my life was like this. I had no control over what happened, who I was with, and what I did. I just kept taking one step in front of the other and ended up in some pretty dark places.
“I Think I Can Achieve Something…” (The 16%)
Then there are others who think about their goals. These people look up occasionally, course correct slightly, then go back to looking at their feet. They make some headway creating a life they enjoy, but are most often thrown off course with just a stiff breeze. They have a hard time maintaining the path they were on. These folks make up 16% of the population.
I have been in this category more than once. I have made decisions to change my life, and at the time it was all I could do to glance up and readjust. I still ended up in some shady areas until I had the confidence to really hold my head up.
“I’m Going to Achieve Something!” (The 3%)
3% of the population actually WRITE their goals down! Just by taking this simple small action, they become part of the group of people who get things done on a consistent basis. They have taken their dreams and goals out of the ether and created them physically in this world. It’s no longer just an idea, it’s ON PAPER. Others can see it and imagine it. Now they might critique it, but they also might help take the idea further.
Once I started writing my thoughts, dreams, and ideas on paper a funny thing happened…I started achieving these dreams. They took a while to happen, but they DID happen! Of course, there were those times when I fell back down into that 16% and sometimes into the pool of the 80%. But I would eventually pull myself back up into that 3% position.
“I AM ACHIEVING!” (The Top 1%)
But what about that Top 1%, the highest achievers? What do they do that is “so different” than the rest of us?
The answer is simple. Not only do they WRITE out their goals, they REVIEW those written goals REGULARLY!
They sit down and look at what they’ve written on a regular basis. This keeps the goal front and center in their vision.
They can make decisions quickly. Is this opportunity in line with my goal? “Yes…ok I’ll do it!” or “No…thank you for the opportunity, but it’s not for me right now.”
This helps to keep the distractions at bay. They are laser focused on what it is they want to achieve and they don’t allow anything to take them off their path.
I have been in this top 1% a few times and it’s exhilarating. The amount of productivity that occurs is magical! I’ve done things I thought were in a rushed timeline, only to have them completed 2 months ahead of schedule…simply because I looked at the goal and planned my days around that goal EVERY DAY.
Achievement Is a Practice
This level of achievement is a PRACTICE. Each time you look at the goals you’ve written you move closer to that 1% of high achievers. There is a mindset that shifts every time you see them. That mindset reminds you that you CAN achieve your dream. Step by step you move forward and make the tiny adjustments that incrementally move you closer to the life YOU want to live.
Now, life may throw a curveball or two, but having a clear, set direction gives you the path forward. And when you come across that unexpected rock slide along the way, you’ll be able to look around you, assess the situation, and find the path around so that you can continue to move forward.
You might even be able to see the rock slide BEFORE it closes the road! This gives you the opportunity to look around you and assess the other avenues you could take so that obstruction doesn’t disrupt your journey.
Start Your Path to Achieving Now
So, if simply writing your dreams and goals down puts you in the top 4% of the highest achievers, why not take some time to think about what you want to accomplish this year.
Write it down, dream/vision board it, pull it out of the ether and design your reality. Put yourself in the top 4% of the highest achievers in the world.
And if you’re up for it, take it one step further and look at your goals, your designed reality, on a regular basis throughout the year. Put yourself in the top 1%! Get started with the Quick Goals Overview!
This is your year, make it the best year yet!