Maryam Rezaei is a Co-Founder of Crikos.com, and this is her take on achieving goals. Why we fall, both in business and in life, and how we can pick ourselves up again.
Achieving goals is tough. It’s a bit like going uphill on a bike, you need a lot of stamina to reach the top. Putting your achievements on hold – or cruising down the hill – is much easier. You don’t even need to peddle, you can just freewheel your way down. It’s a metaphor which is painfully true in our everyday lives.
We set a goal. Then we work hard – or sometimes not so hard – to try and achieve it. When we start out we know that it’s going to take hard work, persistence, and patience to achieve our aim.
However, just like riding a bike uphill or hiking on a mountain, there are ups and downs. The trail you are following takes you through high and low points on the way to your final destination.
Questioning the path
Let’s say you want to climb a mountain. Climbing is not always about going uphill, as the path often takes you down so you can go up again, right? And if you look at it from a distance you can see an ascending path, irrespective of the parts which clearly go downhill. The thing is, we never question the path, nor do we get disappointed when we see a downhill part. As long as we can see the way to the top, we know that we ‘ll have to go down in order to go up again to achieve our goal.
The key to achieving goals
So why do we question ourselves each time we have a bad day or a bad outcome while chasing our goals or dreams? Why don’t we simply trust in nature and how things work? Why, when we have heard of hundreds of success stories and their disappointments along the way, don’t we just trust our guts? Laugh it off, and trust in the fact that all the “bad” things along the way on our path is actually “necessary” in achieving our goals?
Focus on the big picture
Besides the obvious reasons, such as not having clear goals or perhaps having an unrealistic goal, I believe that we lose focus and put too much on our plate. Or, we want to climb faster than we feel safe, and most of all, we forget to breathe and trust the cycle of life! Hold on, stay with me. What I mean is that we get too worked up about the goal itself and the result is that we forget to live, or breathe, or connect, or listen, or to even enjoy the ride. In doing this, we’re not actually being our authentic selves at all.
Imagine while you are on the mountain and the only thing you keep looking at is the top. If you do this then you will definitely miss out on all the beautiful scenery along the way. Worse still, you’ll miss out on the chance to meet a fellow like-minded climber or break your leg – and there goes achieving goals if you do that!
Gratitude helps in achieving goals
We get far too preoccupied and believe that the world is spinning around on its axis around us, rather than the opposite. We focus only on our goals as an end result. We often fail to realize that life goes on with or without us and our goal. If we simply take our heads out of the sand (our business or work project for example) then we can meet people and make interesting connections. We can truly notice the everyday beauty in our of our world. And we will most definitely realize that we are not alone and we are connected in every way. In short, have gratitude!
And that’s the secret. Gratitude is the key to picking yourself up from setbacks, giving you the power to go on in achieving goals. As cliche as it may sound, it’s those tiny realizations of the positive things which surround you that enable you to be grateful. Sitting in the park noticing birds, taking in trees and how important they are. Noticing and connecting with people. Noticing life itself; that you are alive and have the power to shape your life, your surroundings, and those ever-elusive goals.
So, make the best of it, always. Set yourself goals that really matter and make a positive impact in your world. Then you will be well on the way to becoming a positive chain reaction.
About the author: Maryam Rezaei is the Co-Founder of Crikos.com and Femally.com. She says:
“I love to connect with people, love all animals, love ice cream, hiking, travelling, in love with music, love dancing. I love everything about life!
Feel free to connect with me at LinkedIn or/and Facebook or email me at m.rezaei@crikos.com