Goals Are Not Wishful Thinking

There seems to be a lot of confusion when it comes to the difference between goals and just plain wishful thinking.  I often hear people talking about the goals they have set and that’s encouraging.  Everyone should have goals.
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When I asked people about their strategies for reaching those goals, I often hear the phrase I’m going to try.  The simple truth is, trying is not a strategy.  In fact most of the time trying will result in little or no progress.  At best, it will result in very temporary progress.
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People who are successful in reaching their goals understand that there is a process involved.  They recognize that this process is broken down into stages and that success comes by carefully following the process from one stage to the next.
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Wishful thinking on the other hand involves a desired outcome but without a strategy to achieve that outcome.  There is a huge difference between wanting something to happen and taking systematic steps to make it happen.
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The process involved in setting and accomplishing goals is one that anyone can learn.  If your efforts to reach goals in the past did not produce the results you hoped for, then chances are you did not fully understand the process.  The good news is, once you acquire the necessary information and put it to use, you can expect much better results.
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One of the best ways we can learn to be successful is to find people who are already producing good results in the area we’re interested in and then imitate them.  Do you know somebody who is successful at reaching goals?  Why not spend some time with that person?  If you learn to think the way they think and take action in the way they do, you should be able to produce a similar result.

Tagged as: goal setting, Goals, reaching goals