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Clear Goals Sharpen Present-Moment Decisions

Your reality will not match your vision exactly. That’s not the point. The point is for your vision to allow you to make clear daily decisions that keep you moving in the direction of your goals. When a commercial airliner flies from one city to another, it is off course over 90% of the time, but it keeps measuring its progress and adjusting its heading again and again. Goal setting works the same way. Maintain a clear list of goals not because that’s actually where you’ll end up but because it will give you tremendous certainty in deciding what you need to do today. When someone contacts you with an “opportunity” out of the blue, you’ll know whether it’s a real opportunity or a waste of time. The long view sharpens the short view.

As you begin moving towards your goals, you’ll gain new knowledge along the way, and you’ll have to adapt your plans as you go. You may also change your vision if you get partway there and decide it’s not quite what you really want. Ill-formed goals are still far superior to no goals at all.

I was once told by someone that I should end each day by crossing it off my calendar and saying out loud, “There goes another day of my life, never to return again.” Try this for yourself, and notice how much it sharpens your focus. When you end a day with the feeling that you would have lived it the same if you had the chance to repeat it, you gain a sense of gratitude that helps you focus on what’s really important to you. When you end the day with a feeling of regret or loss, you gain the awareness to try a different approach the next day.

You’ll see a measurable difference in your life the very first day you establish clear, committed goals, even if your first few attempts aren’t perfect. You’ll be able to make decisions much more rapidly because you’ll see how they’ll either move you towards or away from your goals. On the eve of his death, Walt Disney had a reporter crawl into bed with him so he could share his vision for Disney World, six years before its completion. When Disney World finally opened, another reporter commented to Walt’s brother, Roy, “It’s too bad Walt did not live to see this.” Roy replied, “Walt saw it first. That’s why we are seeing it now.” Clear goals allow you to achieve the first half. By deciding exactly what you want to accomplish, committing it to writing, and reviewing it on a daily basis, you bring your goals into reality with the power of your focus.

Here are three ways you can maintain your focus:

First, increase your awareness. Just by noticing that your mind is divided or concentrated on something else will make you realize that you are not 100 percent focused on the main goal.

Second, pick goals that interest you deeply and that will keep your attention. When something is very important, you will effortlessly maintain your focus because you really want to achieve this objective or goal. When you make the list of everything running through your mind, it may become clear that your mind is divided because your heart is conflicted – you’re not sure what you want.

Third, take short breaks. It’s important to hit the pause button. When you take a short break, you give your mind an opportunity to relax. It’s ok to be distracted from your core work activities because this is when the mind can explore other ideas and thoughts.