Imagine this, you’re fresh out of university and find yourself strolling down Yorkville Avenue in Toronto and you pass by one of your favourite designer shops. You’ve gone into the shop to browse the various clothes, shoes or jewelry a million times but have no idea how you can ever afford what you find desirable. Discouraged, you leave the store and continue strolling down the street wondering if you’ll ever get what you ‘want’. Or, as a high school track runner, you stand enviously at the edge of a sidewalk on Queen’ s Quay watching the Harbourfront Marathon as a spectator wishing that could be you running your first marathon. You always wondered if you could go the 26.2 mile distance but are unsure if you’ll succeed in your goal so you continue to sit year after year on the sidelines watching and cheering-on the participants. We all have ‘wants’ and ‘needs’. We need food, shelter, money to survive and friendships. Of course things we ‘need’ take precedence over the things we ‘want’ however, there is nothing wrong with ‘wanting’ something once our basic ‘needs’ are met.
In today’s blog entry, I’d like to explore getting what you want. For some people it’s money, a vacation destination, real estate, boats and for a select few their health. In the end, we all ‘want’ something more, bigger, better. If you are part of the very small percentage of people that are content with what you have and don’t wish to achieve, or accumulate anything more, kudos to you. I understand the concept of wanting what you have and not wanting for anything else… intellectually, I understand it but emotionally I find it extremely challenging to not ‘want’ more.
Set small, specific goals…
Whether it’s your health, a new car, house, vacation, university degree; it’s all within reach. In my opinion it’s good to have a desire to achieve, aspire, dream. The goals you set will be impacted by the time frame you’ve set for yourself in achieving them and how big the goal actually is but the basic principle is the same. When you dream big and have huge goals for yourself, you need to break them down into smaller palatable goals. The only difference between someone who goes on vacations, completes a marathon, or climbs Mount Everest is that they have set clear, concise goals that have allowed them to attain their big dream.
Always dream BIG…
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve heard parents and skeptics discount the power of dreaming. So many people these days want you to be logical, rational and monotone; normal. Thinking outside of the box, dreaming and wanting to aspire to be more, to have more and to give more has become unorthodox in today’s society. Where have all the dreamers gone? I remember dreaming as a teenager and in my early 20’s about becoming my best; achieving greatness, happiness and living a life of abundance. Somehow as I have aged my own dreaming has come to a grinding halt and I find myself falling victim to using logic and rational instead of being creative and thinking BIG.
At the end of the day if goals are set, you’ll achieve greatness. Not a lot happens by accident and as a result, there is usually a plan behind every great accomplishment. Sometimes it takes giving up what you love temporarily and sacrificing something you hold close to you but it’ll be worth it in the end. Biggest piece of coaching I can give to anyone is to never stop dreaming…dream huge. Once you have a few dreams, start exploring a path to get you to your dreams: set goals. Ensure those goals are small, clear, and concise and have time lines. As you start knocking off the smaller goals, you’ll find yourself closer to your BIG goal or your dream. Daunting as it may seem, you can achieve greatness but if you become so overwhelmed at where to start and end up doing nothing, you’ll be no further ahead. Start small and keep moving forward by setting small tangible goals that will lead you down the path to successfully achieving. Once you’re there, don’t stop achieving or dreaming. When you have a plan in place, you’ll find that even you can get what you want regardless of how big or out of reach it may seem.
Dream, Plan, Achieve…repeat.