Only 3% Of People Achieve Their Goals

Copyright (c) 2008 Mind Body Spirit Central, LLC

One life strategy that I recommend and reinforce, time and time again with my clients and the readers of my world-wide newsletter, is to have a written list of well-thought-out goals for everything and anything that they want to accomplish in life.

It may be their health goal, such as to lose weight. Or, their goal may be to stop smoking cigarettes to improve the quality of their life and save a ton of money as a result.

It may be a communication / relationship objective, such as better dialogue and increased positive, quality time with their spouse and children. Or for some it may be to mend a broken relationship. Or they might have a desire to undertake a humanitarian purpose such as helping and teaching others. In fact, in How To Get What You Want, When You Want It, I teach and show you this success strategy of how to develop your clearly defined goals, step by step.

There are numerous studies that prove the value of journaling to write down and keep track of your thoughts and goals. A research study sponsored by the Ford Foundation discovered that:

- 23% of the population has no idea what they want from life, and as a result, they do not have much.

- 67% of the population has a general idea of what they want, but they do not have any plans for how to get it.

- Only 10% of the population has specific, well-defined goals, but even then, seven out of the ten of those people reach their goals only half the time.

- The top 3%, however, achieved their goals 89% of the time.

Wow, an astonishing 90% of the population has no ideas or plans for what they want out of life! Without a solid life plan to take a hold of, these "drifters" will not have direction or the peace of mind to maximize their lives.

When you have no central purpose in your life, you fall an easy prey to petty worries, fears, troubles, and self pity. You become just like the proverbial driftwood cast about by the crashing waves on the sea. All of these are indications of a lack of strength in your life, which leads to failure, unhappiness, and loss. Without strength, you can not persevere.

The scientist, Louis Pasteur said, "Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies strictly in my tenacity."

So, how does one develop more tenacity or determination?

One of my strategies is this. Before you start out to work on any of your goals, you must look ahead and know where the finish line is - what you want to accomplish in detail along with the timetable that will lead you there. Of course there are many roads that you can, and at times must, take. You must select a road that will lead to somewhere, rather than nowhere.

Just like the scattered rays of the sun, when focused by a magnifying glass, produce a heat many times greater than the sun's rays alone. This is also true of your ability to focus on positive and productive goals and take action toward them. If your attention is not sharply focused you get mediocre outcomes.

But center and focus it on your goals, instead of wasting it on useless complaining, and your motivation and growth will be strong and limitless.

And, there's more. When your mind can properly concentrate, all the vital energy of every bodily cell is directed into one channel generating a powerful personal influence on yourself and on others who can help you to reach your goals.

Here's a real-world example of what happens when you do not have a finish line. I used to work in an office with a woman who handmade a banner and attached it to the wall of her cubicle. "There is NO finish line!" the sign proclaimed in four-inch-high, block printed letters. As I would pass by her desk, I thought "what a peculiar mantra to live and do business by".

What "There is NO finish line!" meant to me was; "No finish line, means no clearly defined written goal, means the road leads to nowhere, and no way to get to a result...".

Needless to say, the project she worked on failed miserably. She had no focus, no goal and no outcome. And, since no one else could see the finish line, she could not excite and inspire others to get involved and help her.

When you keep your goals clearly defined and SEE them happening you will be more determined and will persevere under any circumstances. Every action you take in life, needs to have a starting line AND a finish line. You will increase your ability to succeed manifold and get what you want, when you want it.