Goal Setting Redefined For Business Owners

I’m not a big fan of traditional goal settingbecause it’s kinda screwed up.

Yes, you SHOULD be setting goals for your business but not the same way we’ve been taught at school.

Whether it’s your life goals or career goals concerned, the process of setting goals can be a powerful process in turning your dreams into reality.

It’s like a checklist that carves out a vision in your mind of the future you desire.

So it’s no surprise that goal setting re-emerges every year in the form of “New Year resolutions”.

Yup, after a night of booze and getting wasted from New Years Eve celebrations…

You wake up hung over the next morning, grab a greasy breakfast and start reflecting on what a year you’ve had.

And as you browse through your Facebook’s timeline – every man and his dog is posting questions like…

“What’s your new year’s resolutions” or “What goals do you want to achieve this year”

What’s not so surprising is that 88% people who set new year resolutions will fail at achieving it.

This post is inspired by a video created by Vishan Lakhani, the creator of Awesomenessfest.

In that video, he redefines and hacks goal setting by asking 3 important questions.

But first, let’s start with why traditional goal setting is flawed.

Most people CONFUSE a means goal with end goal

Goal Setting Redefined For Business Owners

To illustrate the concept, let’s talk about old school education. It’s one of the ‘means goals’ that just doesn’t make sense.

We train our kids from a young age to study not for the love of learning but to pass standardized tests.

That becomes their goal – to pass a standardized test at school.

Then you have to get a good GPA score in college…

Then you have to apply to go to grad school..

Then if you do well in your LSAT…

You can become a lawyer.

But why do people want to have these careers in the first place?

Because that’s what taught in school and by society.

Often we have young people choosing means goals rather than end goals.

The sad part is that 80% of female lawyers become clinical depressed.

It’s time to ditch the means goals and pursue the end goals. 

End goals can be translated to things like “happiness” but that’s too general right?

The are 3 questions to setting end goals.

“The 3 questions that will set you on your path to end goals”

1. Experiences

Goal Setting Redefined For Business Owners

The first question to ask is “What experiences do I want to create in my life?”.

In the grand scheme of things, we are essentially souls having a physical experience on earth.

If you believe in that model of the world then as human beings we want beautiful experiences.

Experiences like:

  • falling in love
  • travelling the world
  • having and raising children
  • living in a luxurious home
  • driving a nice car
  • dining in a five star restaurant

It’s the human experience we want and that is…a beautiful thing.

2. Growth

Goal Setting Redefined For Business Owners

The second question is “How do I want to grow (both personally and spiritually)?”

Tony Robbins gave a TED talk saying there are 2 spiritual needs that humans desire.

If you do not fulfil these two needs – you’re soul feels deprived.

You may be happy with your material assets but you will not be fulfilled.

Those two were “growth” and “contribution”.

Growth meaning the desire to grow.

While we are here on earth to have experiences, we are here to grow, to learn and to be reminded of our own greatness.

3. Contribution

Goal Setting Redefined For Business Owners

The third question is “How do I want to contribute or give back?”

Have you ever heard of the theory called the “Gaia Hypothesis” by James Lovelock?

It’s the notion of the entire earth as one giant organism and that we are all connected.

Not just you, us, we but nature, the animals, the ocean and the atmosphere, every living thing is all connected.

While no one can prove that this is true, it’s a beautiful model of living.

When you think of that model as part of your reality, the petty dumb things like wars and religion just don’t make sense anymore…. and you’re able to build a better earth.

If we are all connected then contribution becomes paramount. 

One  way to have happiness and meaning is to contribute back to our fellow human beings.

goal setting

Imagine if you lived in flow…

Money was not an option and you had all the right contacts at your fingertips…

You took care of your mental and physical well being.

You are connected with the universe and have a clear vision of what you wanted in life.

What goal would you set if there was no limitation to money or time?

“Realism is nothing more than a socially acceptable form of pessimism.

The people with the most consistent track records of success don’t think in terms of what is.  They think in terms of what could be.”

~ Tim Johnson

Beautiful quote by Tim Johnson isn’t it?

Now, get your left side “logical brain” to SHUT THE HELL UP.

Why? because we have been trained to set goals to be very practical.

What I want you to do is pretend that… magic can happen, that you can speed up time…

That money will flow freely, that you are more intelligent, better looking, have more ambition, stamina, energy and power than what you have right now.

Step out of the realm of being realistic.

“A good goal should scare you a little, and excite you a lot”

~ Joe Vitale

If your goal isn’t scaring you, you aren’t dreaming BIG enough.
If your goal doesn’t excite you, then you have picked a “mean goal” instead of an “end goal”.

Let’s Get Started

Grab a piece of paper and draw three column or simply open the notes section on your iPhone/Android.

In the first column, you’re going to write down “Experiences“.

In the second column, you’re going to write down “Growth“.

In the third column, you’re going to write down “Contribution“.

What experiences/objects do you want to have in this lifetime?

  • what kind of love experiences do you want to have?
  • who do you want to wake up to every morning?
  • what type of friends do you want to have?
  • what will your social circles look like?
  • what type of money experiences do you want to have (fine dining, business class travel)?
  • where do you want to work from?
  • do you want to be a father or mother?
  • Where do you live? Are you surrounded by ocean or mountains?

Keep adding to this list as you think of the new experiences you want in your life.

How do you want to grow? 

  • Do you want to grow spiritually?
  • Do you want to grow intellectually?
  • Do you want to read 2 books per month or more?
  • Do you want to work out every single day?
  • Do you want to meditate every day?
  • Do you want to have daily creative visualisation?

Keep adding all the ways you want to grow in your life.

What do you want to contribute to the world?

  • Do you want to donate money to your favorite charity? How much?
  • Do you want to start a charity organisation?
  • Do you want to setup a crowd funding project to support a cause?
  • Do you want to develop a cure or vaccine for a dis-ease?
  • Do you want to improve the minds of people all over the world?

Keep adding all the ways you want to contribute and help other fellow human beings.

Remember you can ask for EVERYTHING, there are no limitations of the things you want so keep adding to these 3 lists.

Once you’ve finished this exercise, print it out and stick it somewhere you can see it on a daily basis (mine is the bathroom).

This exercise may seem corny at first however when you look at these words…

ATTACH emotion and visual imagery to it – it will be etched into your subconscious mind and redirect your thought patterns.. .

Remember ‘thoughts create reality’. Hack your goals today.

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Aimee Vo

Aimee Vo is a digital marketing expert with over 12 years hands-on experience in SEO and paid traffic. She publishes content on sales funnels, lead generation, and content marketing with insights from personal experience.