Goad Your Goals to Completion - The Single Best Way to Finish What You Start
Confession time.
I have a nasty addiction.
Since the age of eight I've chewed my fingernails.
And cuticles.
Often the surrounding flesh as well.
An ugly mess.
I've tried to quit a number of times over the last thirty-years, each attempt ending in failure.
Until now.
I've kicked the nasty habit.
And here's the best part--the technique I employed is revolutionizing my approach to achieving other goals I'd like to accomplish as well.
The key, I discovered, is to goad my goals.
What do I mean? Briefly, the single biggest reason I failed to keep my resolutions and/or achieve my desired outcomes is that the cost of not fulfilling my goals wasn't high enough.
It's the simple pain vs.
pleasure programming we're all hard-wired with.
I'll explain more in a moment, but first a story to illustrate the point.
Many years ago, General Tarek, an experienced warrior renowned for his courage and bravery, led his men to overtake an island held by the enemy.
As soon as Tarek's troops landed on shore they were ready for battle, but to ensure victory, the wise general issued an order to burn the boats they had just used.
The troops were perplexed and asked why he had torched their only means of escape.
To which General Tarek responded, "We cannot return to our homes because we have burnt our boats.
We shall now either defeat the enemy and win or die a coward's death by drowning in the sea.
" With victory as their only option, the troops defeated their enemy.
It is possible to instill a similar burning desire for victory in our own lives.
Here's how--up the stakes on your goals.
Provide both positive and negative reinforcement.
In Tarek's case, the positive was victory, the negative--death.
In my case, there was no death pact but I did up the stakes.
I took an old mason jar and put twenty bucks in it.
Over dinner I explained to my family that if I didn't bite my nails for the whole month, the twenty dollars was mine to do with it what I wanted (positive reinforcement) but if at any time, one of them caught me biting my nails, the twenty bucks was theirs at month's end.
Each subsequent transgression of my goal would add an additional twenty.
To up the stakes even more, I suggested that they didn't even need to catch me in the act.
At the end of the day, they could merely ask me if I bit my nails that day.
If I did, it was cha-ching for them.
I'm not sure what a shrink would say about someone who needs a threat of punishment in order to be successful.
Nevertheless, it works for me because it hits me where it hurts ($) and ultimately I derive more pleasure from the accomplishment of what I really want, then from the pain of shelling out money.
Since the first experiment was such a success, I decided to apply this to other goals.
Each month I fill the jar with my personal goals for the month.
At the end of the month, each unfulfilled goal represents twenty dollars that I have to pay my family to do with as they please.
A couple of notes and a tip--for this system of goal achievement to be truly successful it is imperative that you are honest with yourself and those you employ to check on your progress.
Integrity is crucial.
If you cheat or lie, the whole system collapses along with what you really want--the achievement of your goals.
So the first vow you need to make is to yourself.
No matter how painful it might be to pay out if you fail, you must make that commitment to yourself.
Secondly, choose your goals carefully.
Start small and build yourself up.
Success breeds more success.
Be sure to select goals that are within your reach.
Finally, here's a tip for those of you who do not have someone to keep you accountable at the end of the month or for those who wish to up the stakes even further.
Choose an organization with values/ideals/mission diametrically opposed to your own.
For example if you're a Democratic, think Republican.
As painful as it is (it needs to be), write a check to that organization for twenty bucks (or a sufficiently painful amount) and place it in an addressed envelope.
Put the envelope in the mason jar.
At the end of the month if you have not achieved your goal--seal, stamp and mail the envelope with your donation.
Ouch! How's that for burning the boats? Suddenly the pain of achieving your goal sounds a lot more pleasurable then sending the enemy lunch money, doesn't it? Here's to you never having to shell out a single cent!
I have a nasty addiction.
Since the age of eight I've chewed my fingernails.
And cuticles.
Often the surrounding flesh as well.
An ugly mess.
I've tried to quit a number of times over the last thirty-years, each attempt ending in failure.
Until now.
I've kicked the nasty habit.
And here's the best part--the technique I employed is revolutionizing my approach to achieving other goals I'd like to accomplish as well.
The key, I discovered, is to goad my goals.
What do I mean? Briefly, the single biggest reason I failed to keep my resolutions and/or achieve my desired outcomes is that the cost of not fulfilling my goals wasn't high enough.
It's the simple pain vs.
pleasure programming we're all hard-wired with.
I'll explain more in a moment, but first a story to illustrate the point.
Many years ago, General Tarek, an experienced warrior renowned for his courage and bravery, led his men to overtake an island held by the enemy.
As soon as Tarek's troops landed on shore they were ready for battle, but to ensure victory, the wise general issued an order to burn the boats they had just used.
The troops were perplexed and asked why he had torched their only means of escape.
To which General Tarek responded, "We cannot return to our homes because we have burnt our boats.
We shall now either defeat the enemy and win or die a coward's death by drowning in the sea.
" With victory as their only option, the troops defeated their enemy.
It is possible to instill a similar burning desire for victory in our own lives.
Here's how--up the stakes on your goals.
Provide both positive and negative reinforcement.
In Tarek's case, the positive was victory, the negative--death.
In my case, there was no death pact but I did up the stakes.
I took an old mason jar and put twenty bucks in it.
Over dinner I explained to my family that if I didn't bite my nails for the whole month, the twenty dollars was mine to do with it what I wanted (positive reinforcement) but if at any time, one of them caught me biting my nails, the twenty bucks was theirs at month's end.
Each subsequent transgression of my goal would add an additional twenty.
To up the stakes even more, I suggested that they didn't even need to catch me in the act.
At the end of the day, they could merely ask me if I bit my nails that day.
If I did, it was cha-ching for them.
I'm not sure what a shrink would say about someone who needs a threat of punishment in order to be successful.
Nevertheless, it works for me because it hits me where it hurts ($) and ultimately I derive more pleasure from the accomplishment of what I really want, then from the pain of shelling out money.
Since the first experiment was such a success, I decided to apply this to other goals.
Each month I fill the jar with my personal goals for the month.
At the end of the month, each unfulfilled goal represents twenty dollars that I have to pay my family to do with as they please.
A couple of notes and a tip--for this system of goal achievement to be truly successful it is imperative that you are honest with yourself and those you employ to check on your progress.
Integrity is crucial.
If you cheat or lie, the whole system collapses along with what you really want--the achievement of your goals.
So the first vow you need to make is to yourself.
No matter how painful it might be to pay out if you fail, you must make that commitment to yourself.
Secondly, choose your goals carefully.
Start small and build yourself up.
Success breeds more success.
Be sure to select goals that are within your reach.
Finally, here's a tip for those of you who do not have someone to keep you accountable at the end of the month or for those who wish to up the stakes even further.
Choose an organization with values/ideals/mission diametrically opposed to your own.
For example if you're a Democratic, think Republican.
As painful as it is (it needs to be), write a check to that organization for twenty bucks (or a sufficiently painful amount) and place it in an addressed envelope.
Put the envelope in the mason jar.
At the end of the month if you have not achieved your goal--seal, stamp and mail the envelope with your donation.
Ouch! How's that for burning the boats? Suddenly the pain of achieving your goal sounds a lot more pleasurable then sending the enemy lunch money, doesn't it? Here's to you never having to shell out a single cent!