Shrink obstacles

Goal setting would be easy if it weren't for all those obstacles that get in our way. Usually soon after we've made a decision to do something, the universe as if wanting to test our resolve throws a completely unexpected obstacle.

These obstacles can often seem insurmountable and make what you previously thought as an easy task an impossible challenge. Getting sick right after starting a commitment to exercise. Unexpected bills right after you decide to quit your job. Having a computer meltdown right when you need to finish a project.

The deadlines for software are frequently the butt of jokes for being completely unreliable and unrealistic. I once remember hearing a software developer say the general rule of thumb for the actual deadline is to, "Double the time you think you need to finish it, then add six months."

Complex projects often fail to take into account the high likelihood that an unexpected obstacle will crop up in front of the many variables required for a successful execution.

In all this uncertainty, some people hesitate to set deadlines for their goals. If a random act could completely throw off the schedule, many people wonder whether a specific deadline isn't just a recipe for stress and disaster.

Using goals and setting hard deadlines doesn't have to be a game of chance. It is possible to set realistic deadlines in spite of obstacles that come up at inconvenient times.

The solution is to shrink your obstacles down. Rarely are the obstacles to our goal as immense and colossal as they originally seem. By shrinking your obstacles down, routes around them will begin to appear.

Although the quickest path between two points is a straight line, rarely can our goals go along so smoothly. By shrinking your obstacles we can ensure even big challenges are never a dead-end. I'd like to share with you my own method for shrinking down obstacles so that my goals are still reachable.

To successfully bypass your goals you must first build within yourself an unbreakable standard. This unbreakable standard means that you will not give up on your goal.

The power of your goals is directly proportional to the quality of persistence and determination. If you allow for the option of quitting to enter your mind, then you will be powerless to shrink the obstacles that come up.

This means no rationalizations or excuses. Every time you excuse yourself out of a goal you not only sabotage your process for that goal but your level of self-discipline and persistence takes a hit of an incredible magnitude. Some cases may seem logical to quit.

If you are sick and are in the middle of an exercise trial it may make sense to quit and start again when you feel better. Unfortunately this action has an enormous cost in terms of your ability to persist on any goal thereafter. Building an unbreakable standard takes time.

If you have had trouble committing yourself before, then chances are your discipline muscles are a little weak. Start by building this ability through easier challenges. Just as excuses deal an incredible blow to your ability to persist, determination through a difficult challenge creates incredible power.

If you can continue your goal despite massive obstacles you will have courage and discipline to face even bigger ones.

Source: www.scotthyoung.com