Commitment and courage: The magic force that makes the difference

Commitment is the ultimate decider of your goal setting success. If you’re not committed, you won’t succeed.

So what is commitment? When you are committed, you will do anything to reach your goal, no matter how hard, tedious, boring, scary...you will do whatever it takes to get where you want to go. If you have a lot of questions, doubts or resistances to taking action, start thinking about how much you really want your goal. Stop fooling yourself and pick one you are committed to! Committing to things takes courage.

But there are other reasons you need courage to reach success with your goals. When the going gets tough and you have a difficult period or long plateau, do you have the courage to stick with your goal even though you may not have any idea how you will actually reach it? You may even have an inner nagging voice that says; “you’ll never get what you want”.

Do you have the courage to create an exciting, grand vision for yourself? Tony Robbins says a big reason why people are not excited and motivated is that their vision is too small, it lacks power. Sometimes even exciting passion-filled goals have steps that are tedious, boring, hard...can you keep going when the going gets tough?
If you decide to create powerful, passion filled goals, you will probably need to make changes in yourself in order to achieve them. Do you have the courage to make those changes?

25. Take immediate and consistent action on new goals! Tony Robbins says that whenever he sets a goal he always takes at least one immediate action as quickly as possible (even a small one makes a big difference). Then, take an action toward your goal every day, this will get you motivated to take more. Creating a list of sub-goals and the actions required to achieve them will increase your momentum. Remember to keep changing your approach when what you’re doing doesn’t work.

26. Get out of your comfort zone: Often the comfort zone can work against your desire to reach your goals because it holds you in place instead of urging you forward. Your comfort zone is what makes up most of your life, all the things you already know how to do, all the habits and reliable experiences you’re used to having. In order to change your tendency to stay comfortable you need to be conscious of your actions and thoughts.

Make it a practice to do things on a daily basis that challenge you in various ways. They can be as small as taking different routes to get to familiar places, eating something new, meeting new people, trying a new hobby or just breaking out of routines. Or, they can be as big as asking your boss for a large raise, getting married, getting divorced, buying a house or moving to another part of the country.
They can even be as outrageous as going bungee jumping, fire walking or scuba diving (assuming you’ve never done any of these before). You have to provide your own urging. Stretch yourself!

27.  “Commit to change”: Imagine who you’ll become as you reach your goals and actively decide that you want to be that new and different person. The very act of formulating a goal will inevitably result in changes in you and in your life.

28. Do whatever it takes: If you really want to reach your goals, you have to decide to “pay the price”. Sometimes there are things you must do that are boring, difficult, risky or scary...it doesn’t matter how hard it is; if you want your goal you must still take the action.

29. Don’t give up: When the going gets hard, don’t give up; instead, try to get creative about new ways to get to your goal. Use the creative tools to break yourself out of being stuck and go around that obstacle, over it, under it, or through it. Possibly the most important quality of the successful 3% of the participants in the Yale study was…they never gave up!

30. Get help when you need it: As you’re moving toward your goal, ask for support and help from others. Don’t be too proud to get help. Sometimes another person’s viewpoint can help you think better about what you want and where you want to go.

31. Take appropriate risks: Sometimes reaching your goals will require that you take risks you’re really uncomfortable with. Change is an uncomfortable state; we all want certainty and security in our lives. But if you don’t take the risks, you may not reach your goal. Make a decision to break out of your comfort zone (see #27). Get support when needed.

32. Be honest with yourself: Be honest with yourself about your progress and whether the goal is still appropriate. If it is, does it need any changes? Are you following through and taking consistent action? Have the courage to admit your blind spots and to be humble. Sometimes you may need to change a belief or habit. Are you willing to change to get what you want?

33. Write your commitment: In your Goals Journal, it’s helpful and motivating to write why you are absolutely committed to reaching your goals. This involves stating all the benefits you’ll get when you’ve achieved the goal.

34. Keep your sense of humor: Have the courage to keep your sense of humor while going after your goals. Especially when progress is temporarily slow. Tom Hopkins, the great Sales Trainer would tell sales people who missed a sale: “I never see failure as failure, only as an opportunity to develop my sense of humor”. Play with your goals. This will bring in lots of energy to help move you forward. Make the whole process fun and inviting. Are you having fun yet?

Continue to 77 Goal Setting Tips 35-39 Imagery and Visualization