Dump your SMART goals achieve success with an obstacle-based action plan
THE STACK #29January is the month of goal-setting and vision board parties.
Setting goals is an exciting process as it offers endless possibilities of what could be achieved. But, many people abandon their goals mid-year because they tend to focus on the ultimate outcome rather than the process of getting there.
We spend a lot of time visualizing the end goal and cutting out dreamy pictures to paste on our vision boards, but we never envision the obstacles that may prevent us from reaching that goal.
We tend to affirm and manifest only positive thoughts and ignore any negative thoughts that could ruin our vibration. Then, we become frustrated when the things we've been trying to manifest all year don't materialize.
The reality is that life is full of twists and turns, and we are bound to face obstacles no matter how much we pray or recite our manifestations three, six, or nine times a day. It's trendy these days to be delusional about the things we desire, but we shouldn’t focus all our energy on the outcome; we should also be prepared to overcome any obstacles we may face along the way. You could be delusional about hitting a six-figure revenue monthly, but are you equally prepared to face the reality of the work it takes to bring in that kind of revenue?
In today's Stack, I'll discuss how you can achieve every goal you desire by creating an obstacle-based action plan.
THE STACK
Start with why
You fail to achieve your goals because you don’t have a deep enough reason WHY you want to achieve them. You often set goals because it’s something that is nice to have or because someone else accomplished it, and it seems impressive.
Do you want to lose weight in 2024? Why do you want to lose weight? If it’s because you want to fit in your jeans, you’ll cancel your gym membership when you find the perfect pair of leggings that just hits all the right curves. Go deeper!
Do you want to start investing in 2024? Why do you want to start investing? Is it because you want to get rich? If that’s the reason, then you’ll give up by next month when you log into your brokerage and see that your investments have only grown by 0.92%. Go deeper!
Do you want to start a business in 2024? Why do you want to start a business? And saying because I want to be my own boss isn’t good enough because you will throw in the towel the moment that nightmare client makes you work for that invoice. Go deeper!
As an engineer, I use a problem-solving tool called "5 Why," where you ask "why" five times until you get to the root of the issue. So, for every goal, you must ask yourself why you want to achieve that goal and then ask why for each response until you get to the deep-seated reason.
Here’s an example:
Goal: To Lose 20 pounds in one year
Why do I want to lose 20 pounds?
Because I’m overweight for my body type and height.
Why does it matter to me that I’m overweight for my body type and height?
Because it could cause significant health problems for me in the future.
Why am I concerned about my possible health problems as I age?
Because my dad is overweight and had major health problems
Why does my dad’s health concerns bother me?
Because he had costly medications which ate into his pension, so he had to rely on his kids to take care of him.
Why does my dad’s bills and reliance on his kids bother me?
I want to live a good quality of life as I get older and not rely on my kids to take care of me. I want to live a fulfilled and independent life!
If your goal is to lose 20 pounds, and your deep-seated reason is that you want to live a fulfilled and independent life, instead of being sick all the time, you'll be motivated to hit the gym every morning!
Create an obstacle-based action plan
Effective goal setting involves being able to envision every possible obstacle that could prevent you from achieving that goal and having an action plan for how you will overcome each obstacle.
For each goal, write a list of possible obstacles that could prevent you from achieving them.
Then, for each obstacle, write down an action plan to overcome them. The action plans become the daily goals you focus on.
Example:
Goal:
Invest $20,000 in 2024
Obstacles:
I don’t earn enough income to invest $20,000 in one year.
If an emergency arises, I might have to withdraw from my investments, which will set me back.
I don’t know how to invest.
Staying consistent.
Action Plan for Obstacle 1: I don’t earn enough income to invest $20,000 in one year
Apply to jobs that pay $110,000 and above to help me invest $20,000
Update my resume
Reach out to a recruiter
Start a side hustle
Action Plan for Obstacle 2: What if I have an emergency?
Open a savings account for an emergency fund
Start saving towards an emergency fund
Action Plan for Obstacle 3: I don’t know how to invest
Watch YouTube videos on how to invest
Use my work tuition benefits to enroll in an investing course
Complete the investing course
Open an investment account
Purchase my first investment
Action Plan for Obstacle 4: Staying consistent.
Set up automatic deposits to go directly into my investment account on payday
Set up reminders to invest every other Thursday
Find an accountability partner
You can also break it down further; under each action plan, you can write down possible obstacles and their action plan. This detailed approach increases your likelihood of success.
Instead of focusing on manifesting $20,000 in your investment accounts, focus on manifesting the right video on YouTube, the perfect side hustle you need, and the discipline to stay consistent.
That’s how you knock your goals out of the park in 2024.
THE TOOL
I am currently reading The 12-week year by Brian Moran and loving it so far.
It teaches you how to set goals based on a 12-week timeline because when we give ourselves 12 months to complete a goal, we often procrastinate until it becomes impossible to achieve that goal. But if you give yourself a 12-week deadline and focus on only a couple of goals at a time, you will be more motivated to complete them.
THE ACCOUNTABILITY
Create a worksheet on Google Docs listing your goals and your 5 whys. Then, create a table listing your goals, the possible obstacles and the action plan.
I created this worksheet that is now part of my daily planner, and I use it to plan out my quarterly, monthly and weekly goals.
THE COURAGE
THE KNOWLEDGE
Obstacle
A thing that blocks one's way or prevents or hinders progress.
Audacity
A willingness to take bold risks.
That's it for this week's STACK! Talk to you next week.
But until then...Keep Stacking!
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