The New Year period can be a potential flash point for difficulties and obstacles that can make your goals seem unattainable. However, while you can’t always control when and where your resilience might be tested; you can have your mindset and skills ready to assist you in overcoming the resistance you may face on the way towards your objective.
Here are a few techniques to employ next time you feel mission success is compromised:
- Manageable, realistic goals. Breaking the end state down into manageable, realistic tasks is the way to go. You may not be able to see your finish point from where you stand but you do need to be able to see your next checkpoint. So, break down your final goal into smaller, achievable measures.
- Reconnect with why. Why is your goal important to you? There is nothing harder than negotiating an obstacle when you don’t really care for the destination. Your goals need to resonate with you. Focus on where you are going and why it is you want to be there. This is the driving force behind every step you take towards your goals and what will sustain you when the going gets tough.
- Don’t sweat the small stuff. In a world that loves complexity, always be moving towards simplicity. As the book by Richard Carlson suggests, don’t sweat the small stuff. Slow down and consider what is important. If you face an issue today you will not remember next week, t’s not an issue.
- Face time with good people. When things get hard, sometimes all you might need is a small amount of assistance or positive encouragement to keep you on the right axis. Building good networks and encouraging relationships is imperative. Know and get comfortable in asking for assistance in the face of adversity. Lastly, think of your network as your team. You can over throw governments with a high-level team.
- Concentrate on you and don’t compare yourself to others. Like you, your goals are unique. They are a complex outcome of experiences and influences. In a world where most people have an online profile portraying a life they want you to believe, it’s easy to feel like you don’t fit in or you are lacking. Everyone has challenges & setbacks. Stop comparing yourself to online profiles, celebrity personalities and photo shopped pictures. Focus on you, your unique strengths, talents, abilities and how you can utilise these to achieve your mission. Don’t let self-doubt deviate you from your path.
- Not everything has to be perfect all the time. If my operational experience in high threat environments has taught me anything, it is this. It is simply not realistic to wait for everything to be 100% perfect every time. The pursuit of constant perfection often leads to procrastination, doubt and failure to execute. When you are trying to set the conditions in a situation for success, you need to remain flexible. As they say, “roll with the punches” and remain comfortable in chaos. Break tasks down into manageable pieces, test & adjust as you go. Don’t let fear of failure or your need to be perfect all the time stop you from achieving the end state.