Why Goal Setting Is Important? Read Before Too Late

I have never thought that goal setting is important. I thought it is just something to help us stay focused on what we wanted. Until I read a book by Tony Robbins, called Awaken the Giant Within. After that, my view about setting goals and how goals can impact the rest of my life has completely changed.

In the book, Tony shared a very powerful metaphor about why we all need to have goals in life…

Too many of us don’t make the majority of our decisions consciously… in so doing, we pay a major price. In fact, most people live what I call ‘The Niagara Syndrome’. I believe that life is like a river, and that most people jump on the river of life without ever really deciding where they want to end up. So, in a short period of time, they get caught up in the current: current events, current fears, current challenges.

When they come to forks in the river, they don’t consciously decide where they want to go, or which is the right direction for them. They merely ‘go with the flow’. They become a part of the mass of people who are directed by the environment instead of by their own values. As a result, they feel out of control.

They remain in this unconscious state until one day the sound of the raging water awakens them, and they discover that they’re five feet from Niagara Falls in a boat with no oars. At this point, they say, ‘Oh shoot!’. But by then it’s too late. They’re going to take a fall.

Sometimes it’s an emotional fall.
Sometimes it’s a physical fall.
Sometimes it’s a financial fall.

It’s likely that whatever challenges you have in your life currently could have been avoided by making some better decisions upstream.

Tony Robbins, quoted from Awaken the Giant Within book.

The metaphor, life is like going through streams of rivers, is so real.

Imagine what your future is going to be like if you don’t have any goals in life. Just like how Tony Robbins explained in his book, without goals, you’ll go through life without knowing which direction to follow. You’ll be like a lost sheep.

When you come to a fork in the road (making decisions), you don’t know which way to go. And you just go wherever the crowd goes. This is why so many of us are living in mediocrity.

The good news is that you can change this. You can take control of your life, begin to take charge, and become the master of your life again.

And the first step to doing so is to set empowering goals.

Let’s face it, goal setting is important. No matter whether it is in your work, your life, your health, your financial life, etc, goal setting can be the guiding light to living the life you always wanted.

Your goals are like lighthouses, they show you the way. They point you in the right direction when you’re lost.

If you’re still NOT convinced, here are 7 solid reasons why it is important to set goals and how doing so can change your life…

1. Goals Build Your Discipline

Yes, goal setting can make you more disciplined. Think about it, what will you do over the weekend if you have no plan and no goals?

Perhaps, like most people, you’re going to wake up late, spend most of your time checking Facebook and waste your time playing games or binge watch Netflix or YouTube.

But, when you have a goal and a plan, things are going to be totally different.

For instance, say you have a plan to read a book over the weekend. You sow the intention that you want to read the book in your mind. You set an alarm on your phone to wake up early. You got prepared, grab your book, headed to a local cafe, and start reading while enjoying your favorite beverage.

This is because you are conscious of your intention. You know what you want to do. And so it makes you become proactive rather than reactive. Can you see how setting goals can change the way you live and hence, the results you get in life right now?

When you resolve that you are going to do 20 push-ups and you did it, you grew your discipline and you increased your self-confidence as well.

It does not have to be something big like building a million-dollar business. Self-discipline starts small in your everyday life.

When you set your goals to stop watching TV and start reading books for 30 minutes, the moment you turn off the TV and pick up a book to read, you have successfully built the discipline. You strengthen your willpower.

A lot of people thought that goal setting is about achieving the goal, but it is not.

Goal setting is about building you into a better person who is worthy of your goals. When you become the person worthy of success, success will come knocking.

This is why people said that it is the journey that counts, not the destination. You become a better person while on the journey to achieving your goals.

You learn to be more responsible and have better self-discipline when you set goals and go for them.

This is why goal setting is important.

2. Goals Give You Direction

You already knew this. I explained it above when I shared with you the story from Tony Robbins’ book.

When you need to make a decision, your goals can help you decide. For example, if you are on a diet, it is easy to make a decision about what to eat.

If you are given a choice to eat between a bowl of hot chocolate brownies or a bowl of berries and nuts, what will you do?

Well, it depends on your goal. If you don’t have a goal, then most likely you’re going to choose to eat the brownie. But what if you are committed to getting back in shape (your goal)?

The choice becomes obvious. You know what you should choose to eat. You know you should push away the bowl of brownies and choose to eat the berries and nuts.

This is how having goals gives you direction in life.

This is because your goal gives you clarity and it gives you the direction where you should go.

Read: Why Clarity of Purpose is Important to Success and How to Get It

In other words, your goals can direct your focus in every area of your life.

People will go through life like lost sheep if they do not have a clear goal. If you don’t have a plan, you will end up in someone else’s plan.

Do you have the experience where you have no idea what to do and out of a sudden your friends give you a call and ask you for a drink or watch a movie?

Your friend has a plan, and you don’t, and you end up following his plan. Always remember this quote from Larry Winget…

“Nobody ever wrote down a plan to be broke, fat, lazy, or stupid. Those things are what happen when you don’t have a plan.”

Larry winget

It is the same in every other area of your life. If you have no plan to build a business, then you will end up working for someone who has the plan to build a business.

Does this sound familiar? Can you see how setting goals can influence your life right now?

When you have a goal, you know where to focus and you will have a clear direction where to go.

So, stop becoming part of people’s goals and plans. Create your own goals and make your own plans today. And learn to set goals.

3. Goals Allow You to Measure Your Results

How can you tell where you are or how far you have come if you do not even know where you want to go in the first place?

If you want to lose weight, the first thing you need to do is to weigh yourself. You want to know where you are right now so that you can track your progress.

You cannot do this if you do not have a goal.

Imagine getting into a taxi and the driver asks you where to go. And you tell the driver that you have no idea where to go, what do you think will happen?

Probably the taxi driver will throw you out. You cannot get to your destination without knowing where it is that you wanted to go in the first place.

You must identify and know what you want to accomplish before you can start your journey. And when you know what you want, you can then measure your progress.

This is one of the most important keys to why goal setting is important and why goal setting works because it allows you to measure your result and track your progress.

When you have a clear goal and are working on the goal each day, you will see yourself moving closer toward it each day.

You can know if you are moving in the right direction or if you should change your strategies because they are not getting you where you want to go.

So create a clear, specific, and measurable goal that allows you to track your progress.

When you know where you are and how far you have come, you can then adjust your plan to reach your goal more effectively.

In other words, this also means that people who don’t have goals can’t really get far in life. They can’t improve because they can’t track and measure their progress.

Unless you have a goal or an intention for something, you will not bother to measure or to do better or to improve yourself to achieve it.

Read: Specific Goal Setting: How to Set Crystal Clear Goals

4. Goals Give You Hope

Imagine a professional athlete who has no goals. Why does he want to train or improve himself?

On the contrary, when the professional athlete has a goal, like winning a gold medal in the Olympics, the goal will inspire and motivate him to train, work hard, and win the competition.

Not only that, but goals can also also become the light that guides you when tough times come.

You will know what you need to do when things are bad and the situation is not helping. Your goals will show you your next step and guide you through the challenges you face.

Walt Disney was fired from an early job at the Kansas City Star Newspaper, but because he had a clear vision and goal, he continued to strive for his dreams. He knew what he wanted to be and what he wanted to build, hence, his goals inspired him to move forward.

Michael Jordan was rejected by his basketball team when he was young because he was not good enough.

However, that never discouraged him. Instead, he went on to practice even harder because he knew what he wanted. He wanted to be the best basketball player of all time. And it was his goal, his vision, and his commitment that drove him to train harder.

Howard Schultz, the person who grew Starbucks and changed the way we drink coffee has been rejected by more than 200 banks during the time he wanted to expand Starbucks.

But he didn’t give up and he didn’t quit. He knew what he wanted and went ahead to achieve it.

Your goals will give you hope. So, think about your goals all the time. Program your goals into your subconscious and make them part of your life.

The more you think about your goals and the more you see yourself living your dreams, the more likely you are going to achieve them.

There’s a saying…

“You will become who you think about most of the time.”

So think about your goals and you will eventually reach there. Let your goals guide you and give you hope every day.

If you want to learn how to program your dreams/goals/visions into your subconscious mind, I suggest you watch this video and do as recommended.

5. Your Goals Inspire and Motivate You

Without a doubt, your goals motivate and inspire you.

If your goals are not giving you any inspiration or motivation when you think about them, most likely you have set the wrong goals.

Whenever this happens, you should really ask yourself if the goals you set are what you truly want.

Read: How to Know If You Have Set the Right Goals?

You can see this situation clearly from those who set goals and get excited about them in the beginning, and after some time, their motivation and excitement decrease, and eventually, they will give up.

If your goals are something that you truly want to achieve in your life, you will never feel lousy or lack the motivation to achieve them.

Steve Jobs was able to work on what he wanted day and night because it was what he wanted the most in his life.

He loved designs and technology. They are part of his life and he is passionate about his work. He cannot help but think about it every moment.

The same goes for Warren Buffett. Investment is part of his life because he just loves it. Whenever he thinks about investment, he feels excited and this is what leads him to set a goal to make a million dollars from investing even at age 11.

You have to do the same. You have to find out why you set the goals in the first place. Your goals will drive you and motivate you when you have crystal clear reasons to support you.

People give up on their goals or fail to accomplish them because their purposes to achieve the goals are not strong enough.

Thus, find a strong and compelling reason why you want to achieve your goal. Make your goals your motivation whenever you think about them.

Read: Why Clarity of Purpose is Important to Success and How to Get It

6. Goals Increase Your Commitment

When you set a goal, you’re actually making a promise to yourself. When you say you’re going to lose 5kg in 3 months, you’re committing yourself to achieve it.

For example, if you set your goal to earn $10,000 in 2 months, you are committed to producing the result.

You know you are going to take responsibility and you will put yourself accountable for the result.

This is not easy especially if you share your goals publicly.

Do you dare to make a public commitment to the goals that you have set? Do you dare to tell other people what you want to achieve and how are you going to do it?

Whenever you share with other people, you are putting yourself on the line and you will feel the commitment and the pressure.

Of course, you do not have to do this if you can’t take the pressure. What you can do is to either commit to yourself or even better, share your goals with people who will support you, such as your spouse or your partners.

Hence, create a positive commitment that gives you the accountability you need to reach your goals.

And remember, you have to put in 100% commitment to making sure you will achieve your goals.

Successful people are 100% committed to their goals and their dreams. This is why they are successful and are able to produce extraordinary results in life.

If you are not 100% committed, you will find excuses and you will procrastinate. And ended up not achieving what you want.

Never let this happen to you.

Read: 7 Easy Ways How to Increase Your Commitment to Success

7. Your Goals Unleash Your Inner Potential

When you are unsure if your goals are going to work or if they are what you truly desire, you should just go for it, why?

The answer is simple, the goal you set will lead you somewhere and you will discover more there. In short, setting a goal is just the first step.

Some people say that they have no idea what to do with their lives and they have no clear goals to achieve. Well, just start somewhere.

Start with something that you think you want to achieve in life.

You will never know what will happen in the future. Who knows what you will encounter and who knows if you will encounter something even better down the road.

Richard Branson will never start an airline if he never got his flight canceled. Steve Jobs would never bring Apple to where it is today if he never got fired from Apple.

Things happen for a reason and you just cannot connect the dots looking forward. You can only connect the dots looking backward when you have arrived somewhere.

This is how your goals can bring out the best in you. The only way to know how strong you are is to keep testing your limits. Keep challenging yourself. Set empowering goals and do your best to reach them.

But first, you must start with a goal. You need to know what kind of future you want in order to create it. As Tony Robbins says it beautifully:

“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.”

Tony Robbins

What matters most is where you want to go in the future. Start somewhere. Start now.

It is absolutely alright if you set the wrong goal. It will lead you somewhere. By the way, how can you tell if it is a wrong goal if you did not work on it in the first place, right?

So, don’t worry, and just do it. Below are more guides to help you:

• 21 Most Common Reasons Why People Fail To Achieve Their Goals
• 7 Things To Do When You Fail To Achieve Your Goals
• 13-Step Plan How to Achieve Your Goals and Dreams

Set Empowering Goals Today

Now you know why goal setting is important. So, don’t live a directionless life without goals.

Make sure you know what you want to accomplish in your life. Remember, clarity is power. The moment you know exactly what you want and why you want it, you will become unstoppable.

But, where do you start? How do you set goals and achieve them?

I have created a complete masterclass called Goal Setting Formula to help you with this. You know how important it is to have goals in life. And at the same time, you don’t want to follow the wrong method and set the wrong goals. Yes, you can learn from failure, but I can help you shortcut your journey to success.

Hence, stop wasting your time doing the wrong thing. You can’t see the sunrise if you keep running west. No matter how fast you run, you’re going to fail.

This is why Goal Setting Formula is created for you. Follow the proven method and set empowering goals. It is time to create real results.

==> Enrol in Goal Setting Formula masterclass HERE.