Bigger is better, right? Maybe when it comes to our paychecks, our homes, or a Las Vegas jackpot, but what about when it comes to our goals? Many of today’s well-known motivational speakers will exuberantly challenge us to “Dream BIGGER”…“Risk MORE”…“Visualize GREATNESS,” but once the stage goes dark and we all go home, why is it that the majority of us reach the end of the year not having achieved the BIG one? The reason, as concisely put by Robert K. Cooper, PH.D., and author of “Get Out Of Your Own Way,” is this:

“One of the key reasons that people fail to come anywhere near
achieving big goals is that they start off with good intentions but
fail to execute daily actions that create forward momentum.”

To further illustrate Mr. Cooper’s point, let’s examine the following anonymous goal list:

1. Call 100 past customers.
2. Create marketing plan for remainder of 2007.
3. Attend networking function every Wednesday.
4. Get 10 new leads by the end of the week.

Look familiar? We can all agree that the above goals are all well-intentioned, high pay-off and important goals, ones that many of us have jotted down into our own journals. So, why is it that even when we dedicate ourselves to writing down our goals, we still aren’t able to JUST DO IT ?

It is my belief and experience after coaching entrepreneurs for the past year, and managing and training a variety of sales and customer support teams for 8 years previous to that, that the key to achieving big goals is to start from the inside-out. Here’s an example of what an “Inside-Out” goals list might look like:

1. Write down 3 things that I am grateful for every day.
2. Watch 2 hours of TV instead of 5.
3. Listen to motivational CD on the way to work every day.
4. Get to bed one hour earlier.

Most of the time, we aren’t achieving BIG goals because we haven’t taken care of our core needs first. Think about it…if you’re not getting to bed at a decent hour every night, then you’re surely not getting into work at a time that is devoid of ringing phones, employee questions and mail delivery and, therefore, you are not likely to plan out your activities, nor possess a positive mind-set in order to win the day. And if you are constantly bombarding yourself with negative self-talk and hours of violent, mind-numbing TV shows, how are you ever going to possess a mentally peaceful and confident demeanor in which to actually attend a weekly networking function, let alone call 100 customers and gain their referrals?

Doing those things that have an immediate and positive impact on our insides holds the key to how many of those BIG goals we’re going to achieve in our external lives. The BIG mistake that most of us make, especially when we’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed, is that we give up on our own healthy and spiritually uplifting habits, those that foster a positive mindset. We give up on good eating habits…we give up on our exercise routines, our positive affirmations, our daily planning, adhering to a strict work schedule, our motivational and inspirational reading, journaling, meditation time, dates with our significant other, outings with our children, etc., etc., etc.

Shad Helmstetter, author of “What To Say When You Talk To Your Self,” addresses the idea of working from the inside-out when he speaks to “attitude” in the following excerpt:

“The better the attitude, the better the results, in almost anything we do. Because attitude affects our feelings and feelings affect what we do and how well we do it, having a good attitude can be the deciding factor in our successes or failures. Without the right attitudes we will never have the key that unlocks the treasure chest of happiness and success we so badly want and richly deserve.”

Convincing someone that BIGGER isn’t better can be as challenging as getting someone to JUST DO IT. So let’s start small. Pick just one inside-out goal that you can engage in for 21-straight days. At the end of the 21st day, write down all that you have accomplished in this time period. My prediction is that you will accomplish more towards your BIG goals by simply dedicating yourself to creating a habit out of an inside-out goal first. Start this exercise off by deciding what reward you will give yourself when you have successfully completed this exercise. Find a picture or some other visual representation of your reward and put it someplace that you can see it every day. Create that “forward momentum” starting today, starting from the inside-out.