Somebody lied to me…and probably to you too. Achievement is not the gift and therefore planning to achieve or setting goals should not breed anxiety. The pleasure and reward lie in the plan to achieve or the process of setting and planning the goal. Our brains are hard wired to look for the next thing once the goal is achieved. This simply means the aim is more beneficial than the achievement in our minds. This defense mechanism in our brains makes sure we keep striving for more and never get complacent. This is survival. I can’t be ok with getting my PhD no matter how hard it was or how much preparation went into completing that milestone. I have to figure out what I’m going to do with that degree…right? Maybe I should have made it a point to enjoy my devised game plan more. Quiet as it’s kept, I might have finished my dissertation sooner if I didn’t spend so much time fearing the process. Why not embrace the entire process and exchange the anxiety for pleasure by following these steps.
- Ask yourself what the value in achievement is for you.
- Visualize the achievement as being completed.
- Remove the complexity that requires you to do more than what is absolutely necessary in this given moment to achieve. How do we eat an elephant? We know the answer.
The anxiety that goal setting has been known to breed stems from creating needless complexity. It is needless if it is not Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-based (SMART). Instead of setting New Year’s resolutions practice the above-mentioned steps and use the S. M. A. R. T. technique to set your goals in motion. Allow yourself to experience the pleasure that comes with the process.
