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Do you ever feel like you want to realize your true potential? And become the best version of yourself? But then suddenly begin to feel that meeting your goals might be impossible?
Well, it’s not. Everybody has goals. And everybody faces setbacks. Still, everybody can meet them with a bit of work. All you need to do is map out your future one step at a time.
One part of the process of meeting your goals is the Performance Equation:
Performance = Potential – Interferences
Your Performance is your ‘current capacity’ or ability to complete tasks using your resources—knowledge, skills, and abilities.
But this current performance can be improved and enhanced because you are capable of doing more, but somehow aren’t able to. This is your Potential—the untapped talent and strengths you need to leverage to maximize your performance as you conquer your goals.
Taking Charge
You can take charge of your journey to meet your goals by creating a visual road-map.
This visual representation can not only help you create a clear picture of your goals, keep track of actions you need to take to accomplish them but also help you stay focused and motivated.
Let’s say your goal is to get a job as a digital marketing executive. You start by building a road map to help you meet your goal.
The first step is clearly articulating your vision. Identify the values that are vital to your purpose. When you set goals that are in sync with your purpose, you take steps in the right direction of accomplishing them. The act of writing down your goals gives you a head start.
The coronavirus pandemic has forced many of us to revisit, review, or tweak our goals—or even set new ones. If you set a new goal for yourself, you can take inspiration from Harappa’s Leading Self course that says developing a road map symbolizes taking ownership of one’s actions by recognizing opportunities for development and addressing the barriers to growth.
Once you’ve identified your goals, the next step is to map your milestones. Just like signposts along a road, every life or career plan has milestones. Break down your larger goals into smaller milestones and mark them along your pathway to your goal. It is an effective way of making overwhelming goals look achievable.
For example, to meet your goal of getting a job as a digital marketing executive, you could set up a 16-week road map starting with enhancing your skills for the job. Then, reach out to experts in your field or apply for available positions.
For this step, all you need to do is pick up your colored pens and a blank sheet, and start doodling your journey. Creating these milestones will help you move one step at a time so that you don’t get overwhelmed by the finish line. You can get into details of the actions you need to take and can even add a deadline for each step so you can reach your goal on time.
Then, think of any likely obstacles. Write down as many as you can think of. To become a true leader of oneself, you have to overcome any roadblocks or “interferences” that stop you from improving your performance.
These interferences can be internal mental blocks such as fears, anxieties, self-doubt, or even external such as the lack of resources, personal loss, illness, or unemployment.
When you are applying for a job, it may not be a straight road to success. Being mindful of this can help you develop a plan in advance to tackle these challenges. Even if the first attempt is not successful, don’t give up. Rejections trigger these internal mental blocks of self-doubt but keep your goal in sight and it will help you realize your potential.
Overcoming Interferences
To maintain the momentum of the journey towards your goals, it is important to foresee your own interferences or roadblocks. Setbacks are inevitable; so outline your strategies to manage them.
When the going gets tough, make sure you have a support system in place to keep you on track. We are less likely to make excuses to them than we are to make to ourselves.
So, pick a cheerleader, someone who reminds you of your accomplishments and true potential, a person who becomes your commitment device—someone you feel you are accountable to and who makes sure you don’t give up on achieving your goals.
Also, think about how you will track your actions. Use what works for you. Whether it is a checklist, setting reminders, or putting your road map on your work desk to keep you committed.
And define how often you would like to track your progress. The purpose of this review is to identify what is working, what’s not, and what you need to do better. You may need to restructure or edit your milestones or even learn a new skill to reach the desired outcomes.
Finally, don’t forget to applaud yourself when you reach certain milestones. Celebrating tiny victories by rewarding yourself is an affirmation to yourself that you are making progress and are on the right track. It will help release your brain’s happy chemicals and motivate you to achieve your next milestone.
So, highlight the landmarks in your road map that you will reward yourself for. You can draw mini flags, use emojis, or even stars. When you get there, you can treat yourself to a nice meal, a gift, or even a holiday perhaps.
This process of mapping your journey is one of the best ways of accomplishing your professional goals. It reminds you of your vision and keeps you on the right road.
So go ahead and plan your goals. You can meet then. All you need is a road map for success.
Take charge of your self-growth by overcoming self-limiting beliefs with our leadership course, Leading Self from Harappa Education. Enroll now for our Online Courses and pave your path to personal growth and development.
Nainika Seth is an Associate with the Learning Impact Team at Harappa Education. She is a postgraduate in Sport and Exercise Psychology from Loughborough University, United Kingdom. She enjoys baking and photography.
