What is your most exciting goal right now?
Like many, you may be feeling some ongoing effects – monotony, low motivation, or a low-level hum of concern, for example – from all that we’re experiencing these days.
Add to that a lack of sunshine or an ever-present chill of winter and it’s no wonder our mojo may have taken a dip.
So the last thing you might be thinking about right now is adding to – or diving into – your goals. Wouldn’t that just increase the stress?
Not necessarily.
Science has repeatedly shown us the importance of moving toward meaningful goals for our overall well-being. Look to the work of Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Sonya Lyubomirsky for starters; their research shows we are more likely to flourish when taking action toward goals and projects that feel purposeful, energizing, and challenging in a helpful way.
So if you find yourself in a hum-drum state, ask yourself:
What is my most exciting goal right now? What feels most meaningful? What sounds fun, engaging, delightfully challenging, or purposeful?
If something comes to mind immediately, excellent! You can begin creating a plan and taking actions – even teeny, tiny ones – to advance it.
If nothing rises to the surface right away, don’t worry. Play with the question for a while. Jot down any and all ideas that come to mind, without committing to any at the moment. Imagine what you’d love to say about yourself in three months or a year and see what appears.
Whether your goal involves learning or deepening a skill, completing a business project, enhancing your parenting, or something else entirely, select something that feels meaningful, purposeful, energizing, and perhaps even a bit scary. And if the word ‘should’ shows up with your goal at all, I recommend heading back to the drawing board.
Decades ago, Earl Nightingale defined success as “the progressive realization of a worthy ideal or goal.” Notice he doesn’t focus on the achievement of the goal, but rather the ongoing movement towards said achievement. As the saying goes, the joy is in the journey.
So I’ll ask it once again, and would love to hear your response below or on LinkedIn: What’s your most exciting goal right now?
If you need help setting and/or achieving an exciting, meaningful, ridiculously awesome goal, I’d love to help! Click here to contact me today.