9 Reasons You May Not Be Achieving Your Goals

Written by: Elita Torres | Lead Grow Develop

How successful are you at goal setting? Do you find yourself reluctant to believe in its effectiveness? Do you see goal setting as a time waster?

It took me a while to get a real handle on goal setting and went through several phases. During phase one, I didn’t even bother setting goals outside of work. In my career, setting goals was part of the culture of several of my employers, but it became more of a work thing. Then, because I have always been an avid reader, I was educated into believing in the effectiveness of goal setting. I read several books from several different authors all promoting how important it was to define what you want in life and then set it to paper. I figured if all these successful people swear by it, I should attempt to do it myself.

During Phase Two, I became great at writing down several of my goals. The problem was that once I wrote them down, I would tuck the paper away and refer to it only when I would come across the paper. It was never an intentional follow-up on what was written. I eventually came to realize that this wasn’t getting me the results that I was looking for.

Then came Phase Three. I began not only to write down my goals, but read and re-read them on a consistent basis. I found myself determining action steps based on what I deemed was a priority. I noticed that the clearer I was on what I wanted, the better my results. I happily starting checking off my goals one by one and created more. I was achieving what I had first set out to accomplish in the beginning.

What changed?

When I spoke to other people, I found we all faced similar roadblocks. What were some of these common denominators?

Here Are 9 Reasons You May Not Be Achieving Your Goals:

Lack of belief that it will make a difference

You are unclear of where you should start

You are in your comfort zone and don’t see the benefit of stepping out of your comfort zone

You are happy already, “why would you work hard for more and risk failure.”

You feel that you don’t have the time required to put in the effort

You secretly don’t believe you deserve it (more common than you might think)

You feel you don’t have the required skills necessary to achieve your goals

You tried goal setting in the past, only to get discouraged for lack of immediate results

You don’t have a great support system to motivate you during those tough moments

I think the biggest and most important change was not in the processes but my mindset. I decided that I would commit myself to setting goals despite the obstacles I was facing. I realized that most, if not all the obstacles were self-inflicted.

“Change your thinking and you’ll change your world.” –Norman Peale

Your state of mind determines a lot of your successes even before you start. It works with or against everything you do. Your motivation behind your goals will also go a long way in determining its effectiveness. If you set a goal that you are not passionate about, that doesn’t drive you, then you risk not following through with the actions necessary to achieve it.

Taking accountability for every result you achieve will gain you power. Forget about the mistakes from the past. Look ahead of you and plan forward. Surround yourself with mentors that will support you and guide you through the frustrations. Share your goals only with people who will help give you a push up when you face a steep wall. Don’t get discouraged with those people who try to knock you down. You are in control of your own life and emotions.