How to Deal with the Unexpected in Goal Attainment

Before you even start to set a goal, the deck is stacked against you. Why? Because the human brain is not designed for goal attainment. Of the 20% of the population that does set goals, roughly 70% fail to achieve the goals they have set for themselves. When you take into consideration the fact that many of these goal-setting people strive for easily attainable, small goals, it’s a wonder that anyone accomplishes anything remarkable at all in business and in life. Don’t get me wrong, the power of your mind is unlimited. Humans have the ability to create things beyond comprehension. The challenge is to learn how to control your base instincts that may be holding you back from successful goal attainment.

The human mind doesn’t give one hoot about what you want to accomplish; getting a set of washboard abs, building a thriving company, competing in a triathlon, giving an inspiring speech, etcetera. The human mind is wired to protect you from things that cause pain or discomfort. Accomplishing small and large goals takes work and in many instances, if it is the first time you have tackled these goals, they will probably take you out of your comfort zone.

Somehow, you manage to set the goal anyway. But, the real problem is not setting the goal. The real problem is what comes after the goal has been set. The mind will resist anything that is perceived as threatening and “change” is threatening to most people. This resistance to change is exactly why we become demotivated the minute we start facing obstacles or setbacks to achieving our goals. The brain is trying to get back to a safe, known status quo.

I recently went through a period where I was pretty frustrated and very overwhelmed by the things that I had set out to accomplish. In fact, I was at a point where I was just spinning my wheels and not going anywhere. I was coming to the end of my 12-week goal cycle and I realized that I was about two weeks behind on one of my bigger goals. I had known that I was off target for at least a couple of weeks but I just kept doing the same things, hoping that I would catch up.

No one is immune from this. Even though I am a performance coach and researcher in the area of human potential I just kept hanging on to the process that I was comfortable with. That was my mind keeping me where I was because the possibility of change of tactics “might” cause stress. Fortunately, even though I was struggling for about two weeks, I finally recognized the cause of my paralysis and took the steps to make the necessary adjustments.

The first thing I did was to take a step back to look at everything from a birds-eye view. Once I did that, I realized that I had accomplished a lot…actually more than any 12-week cycle prior! So what had happened? I simply underestimated the time that it would take to complete everything on my list. I felt really conflicted because I have a great desire to be super productive but I knew that something had to give. It was either going to be one of my goals or my sanity. I wisely chose the former.

How did I do it? I used the simple approach of weighing the importance of each of the goals and looking for the ones that I could move the attainment date on. I chose to retain those goals that were the most important to me; my family, my job, and my athletic endeavors. I was in the final stages of creating content for a new development product that I’m very proud of (more on that later!). But, I decided that it wasn’t realistic that I could do everything in the desired timeframe so I moved the due date of that project by 30 days.

Once I saw that I had a much more manageable schedule, I immediately felt the weight lift from my shoulders. In fact, I felt so relieved that I set to work writing what you are reading now. The most important lesson that I learned from this experience is that sometimes “life just happens”. You may misjudge the task at hand or you may experience an unexpected situation that gets in the way of your plans.

When unexpected challenges occur in the process of goal attainment, you need to step back, reassess the situation, and make changes where necessary. You didn’t fail…you just chose to create a new plan. In my case, my goal did not change; just the planned timeframe for the attainment of that goal. The next time you face an unexpected challenge, step back, reassess, and modify your plan. Don’t change your goal, just change the plan. 

Rich
"Finishers Are Winners!"
Dr. Richard B. Greene, DBA, SSBB, CMPE
Speaker, Author, Peak Performance Business Coach

© Copyright 2020 Rich Greene
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Dr. Richard B. Greene is an International Speaker, Best-Selling Author, and Executive Business Coach who helps business executives get to the next level in business, their careers, and their personal lives. Through his IronCode (www.IronMindSuccess.com) acceleration program, he offers one-on-one coaching, group coaching, live seminars, and do-it-yourself development products to significantly increase levels of personal and business success. He’s been featured on radio shows and various new sites including KVCG Radio, The Miami-Herald, The Denver Post, Wall Street Select, Financial News Today, Fox, and ABC.