I do not argue that the timing of talking in March about setting goals is a little off. Anyone that sets annual goals likely did so in December. By now, they have either made great progress toward them or have given up on them altogether. Hopefully you are in the first group. Either way, very few have actually set eternal goals and that is what I want to discuss!
In my last post, I talked about eternal goals and what they are. I also gave you a list of the most likely reasons why most people have never set them. I told you we would try to respond to those reasons, using some examples from my own 2015 goals in the process.
Let’s just take one reason at a time from the list and respond to it:
Reason #1 – I have never thought about it.
Okay, so this is probably the number one reason most people have never set eternal goals. It is a legitimate reason in that I don’t think I have ever heard of a book, webinar, or other learning tool that mentions setting eternal goals.
At the same time, since you have read my post you can no longer use this reason! Therefore, I will not spend a lot of time on this one.
Reason #2 – I don’t know how to set eternal goals.
Even if you have thought about setting eternal goals before, it is likely that your next thought was that you had no idea where to start. The funny thing is that you actually do know how to set them, but you don’t even realize it.
Setting an eternal goal is not really that different from setting a normal (shorter-term) goal. In fact, they often look exactly like normal goals, but there is an underlying eternal purpose to the goal.
For example, one of my 2015 goals is to triple the number of people subscribing to this blog. While this looks like a normal goal, the main point of this goal is not actually increasing subscribers. The point is that the more subscribers there are, the greater the opportunities for impact!
In setting this goal, here are the steps I took:
- I determined my purpose: I want to help Christian business owners leverage their business for eternal return.
- I decided how to achieve that purpose: I want to reach more business owners with continuously improving content.
- I chose the most effective and simplest way to measure my path to that impact: I decided that increasing my subscriber count is the best measurement for my goal of eternal impact.
- I established a stretch goal for this measurement: This part is the same as for a normal goal.
- I put it in writing and enlisted accountability partners: I have shared my goals with my wife and a small group of peers that are pushing me hard!
Reason #3 – Eternal goals are too tough to measure.
As I showed you in my example above, I realize I cannot actually measure the eternal impact I am having with my blog. I can only tell you stories and point to actual events that we would all agree reflect eternal impact. The problem is physically measuring this impact.
If we are going to move past this problem, we must accept that measurement for these goals will not be perfect. Once we are willing to agree to this, the task becomes easier.
The next step is to focus on activities that will LEAD to the impact you desire. For me, increasing my subscriber count is not the perfect measurement. At the same time, the activities that are necessary for me to achieve this increase in subscriber count will certainly lead me to greater impact.
Remaining Reasons Next Time
I have run out of room for this post, but I will pick up where I left off next time. I hope you are seeing that eternal goals are not that difficult. In fact, I really hope you take a look at your current goals and see where you might be able to modify them for your own eternal impact! If you have not set goals for 2015, now is the time to start!
Which of these reasons have caused you not to set eternal goals?
Can you see some ways to modify your current goals for eternal impact?
What needs to be your next action?
