The annual clock has turned and maybe you have set some goals for this new year. If you are reading this when it has been posted hopefully you haven’t failed already. Those of you encountering this around mid-January have possibly hit some bumps.
I have a habit of daily going to the gym and those of us that are regulars smile around January. During the first couple of weeks people get inspired to go to the gym and we see them in full force at the beginning of the first week. Then slowly over the next couple weeks they all seem to disappear. What causes this?
Muscle soreness and the difficulty is part of it. Not seeing results quick enough possibly could be a reason. I would suggest a shift in mindset could help. A shift from goals to growth. Here are a few shifts that may help you as you pursue something you are trying to reach.
From Passionate to Persistent
We’ve all set a goal and been passionately determined to accomplish it. I have some goals I’ve established both on a personal and professional level and I’m excited about it. Here is the problem. Passion is like the first two hundred meters in a mile race. We start hard and then run out of energy to finish the race.
Here is the first shift. Have a passion that is like an established fire. The slow strong burn from big logs versus the fast flame from twigs that burn out quickly. How do we build that? Being persistent. James Clear in his book Atomic Habits (a great book on changing habits by the way) captures the role of persistence when he says:
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”1
Systems create a way to be consistent. To be consistent requires persistence. As we maintain that commitment even when we don’t feel the passion, we grow and reach our goals.
From Fast to Far
Leadership expert and author John Maxwell heard when he was younger that if he wanted to become an expert on something he needed to spend one hour a day for five years learning about the topic. He began this journey and wanted to get there fast around year three something shifted. He went from asking “how fast can I get there?” to “how far can I go?”
This is another shift from goals to growth. The problem with fast is we get there and then look for the next goal, but may not have learned anything along the way. Truett Cathy of Chick-Fil-A captures this idea when he responded to people telling him he had to expand the organization. He said:
“If we get better, our customers will demand that we get bigger.”2
Do you have a goal to get big fast? Maybe you need to pause to think how you need to grow so others demand that what you lead gets bigger. Maybe your team needs to be developed to handle growth. Think far not fast and see what happens.
From Do to Become
I like to get things done. When I was in college my thinking shifted. I was concerned with what I could do to feel worthwhile and of value. I had some people speak into my life during that time who reminded me I am not a human “doing”, but a human “being.”
I believe each of us has been designed on purpose for a purpose. Yes, the purpose involves doing something, but our value is not in what we achieve or what we do. Our value is in who and whose we are. This final shift is recognizing we are on a journey to grow to our full potential to accomplish what we were put here to accomplish. That may be building a business, being the best at a specific technical skill, being a great spouse and parent, or many other possib. I think John Maxwell put it best in his book Leadershift when he said:
“When you get better, it makes you bigger. Growth is sustaining. Growth is the only guarantee that tomorrow will be better than today.”
My friend how will you shift from goals to growth? Need help breaking through thinking that is preventing you from growing? Contact me for a no cost to you coaching session. Grow to your full potential and lead well.
© 2021 Wheeler Coaching Systems, All Rights Reserved
- Clear, James. Atomic Habits. New York: Avery, 2018.
- Andy Stanley, “Better Before Bigger,” Andy Stanley Leadership Podcast, May 3, 2013, MP3 audio, https.//store.northpoint.org/better-before-bigger.html.
