Everyone has a fair amount of dreams and goals to achieve in life. But successful attainment is not automatic. Far too many of us get stuck in the dreaming phase, while others end up with a couple of major unfulfilled goals in life.
Like Tom Hanks in A League of Their Own once said, “Of course it’s hard. It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. Hard is what makes it great,” essentially summing up the journey towards reaching goals and success in life.
It’s hard, but it’s going to be worth it when we accomplish something as great as fulfilling the goals we’ve set for ourselves to achieve. Few things worth having come easy, and if they are, they are often under-appreciated.
Chasing dreams and making goals happen is no easy feat. It’s filled with bumps in the road. That’s why some people give up in the middle, some even when they’re close to victory. Others don’t make a start, or never figure out what they want until it’s too late.
We’ve all got just one life to live it all and a similar number of hours in a day to utilize, in order to achieve our goals. This is what makes victory so sweet. Obstacles are lined up in our path, almost every time we decide to achieve something.
But in the end, it is up to us to forge on and conquer the challenges. Amidst all the work we throw in to attempt to reach our goals, some efforts end up wasted, unfortunately.
Here are some of the reasons why people actually fail to achieve their goals in life:
Failure to Set Clear Goals to Achieve
Clarifying your purpose and setting clear goals to achieve is very important. Without specific and determined goals, our actions won’t always be guided and we risk squandering our most important resources, which could get us closer to making them happen. This is very true for long-term goals which necessitate a clear vision, as this will guide us to stay consistent and motivated while working toward them.
Lack of an Emotional Why
Before you even set clear, specific goals to achieve, they must be aligned with a purpose that you feel strongly about and emotionally connected with. In other words, the intention of making it happen must be very strong, otherwise, nothing else will push you forward when the going gets tough.
Procrastination and natural human delaying tactics can get the best of you if you lack a driving reason to achieve your goals. It sounds dramatic, but big goals need to be driven by a strong purpose to allow you to weather conditions like the passing of time, inevitable setbacks, and the possibility of failure, among others.
But if you personally own your goals and have strong reasons why you are going to make it, you will triumph over these things. A strong, emotional ‘why’ will often drive you to make impossible things happen, so trust in that.
Inability to Stay Single-Minded
Being single-minded about a goal means being intensely focused, determined, persistent, and somewhat a little bit obsessed about a certain idea that drives you to relentlessly work on it day in and day out. Most people have goals to achieve, but fail to translate the idea into a reality because their actions are inconsistent and their thoughts scattered.
Acting on too many things at once will not bring about the channeled energy required to make your goals happen. You have to stay focused and steadfast towards achieving your goal every day until you see them finally becoming real. Put in the commitment and focus to make your goals a reality and don’t quit on it until it’s done.
Lacking Accountability
You may perfectly set clear goals to achieve and know exactly what to do to realize them, but lacking accountability will prove other efforts insufficient. In accountability lies the heavy-lifting work you will need, so your goals will move from point A to point B.
This involves doing all the things you’ve set out to do even during the times you don’t want to. It demands tracking your progress and making sure to correct yourself whenever you fail and having the willingness to change and adapt if necessary.
Accountability means staying committed to making something happen because not accomplishing those goals would be unacceptable to you. It’s choosing your goals over any excuses you may have. Be 100% accountable to yourself in achieving your goals and in due time, you will reap the benefits of success!
