Goals and other heady places

Day two. The alarm ruptures my sleep. I stumble out of bed.

I've made a commitment. I must keep it.

And I know, after 11 days, this will begin to feel like a habit. Eventually, perhaps it will become like an addiction where I must do it to feel like my day is setting off on the right foot.

This morning I stumble from bed. I try not to think about what I will write. Will I be able to write. Will the words appear.

I fall into faith. Trust. Belief the words will appear.

But the theme? Where is the theme? Where is the import of my words. Perhaps that is the importance of this exercise. Sometimes, I need to let myself write 'bad'. Sometimes, I need to let words appear without forcing poetic constructs. Without looking for deeper meaning.

It isn't the meaning behind the words, it's the act of writing every day that is important. It's the process of keeping my commitment to myself.

Last night I worked with Ram at Project Forward. I'd put together a course outline for my section of the workshop. I was to talk about setting goals and what's important to attain them. One of the exercises I used was from an amazing course at www.simpleology.com. Each participant in the workshop had a glass of water in front of them. The instruction was to take a sip of water using two different methods. Method one was verbal only. Each participant was to talk to the water and ask it to give him a sip. They could yell, plead, pray, cajole, seduce -- whatever they wanted to get that sip, but at no time were they to touch the glass. After 2 minutes we all agreed -- there was no way that sip of water was going to happen. The second method required picking up the glass and taking a sip. It took 2 seconds.

It was a powerful example of INTENT turned into ACTION.

So often I set a goal in my head and then blithely carry on with my day. Like writing here. If I had simply made the commitment and then never gotten out of bed, these words would not have appeared. My goal is different then my intention of writing here every morning. My goal is to write another book. These pages are one tool, one step leading me to the achievement of my goal. Starting every day with this writing puts my mind into my creative space, it moves me from the rote, the mundane into my inspired self.

The point of the water glass experiment was to demonstrate the need for ACTION.

Goals are awesome. Necessary. Imperative. Goals are signposts on the road. Markers keeping me continually moving forward, growing, achieving.

Without ACTION they are simply a smoke screen preventing me from facing my truth, my reality. When I set a goal and do not take ACTION, I am lying to myself.

Last night at the workshop, I walked in with a clearly defined goal that I asked the group to accept on faith. The goal was, "By October 1, 2007 I will be successfully living independently outside the Drop-In."

I asked each person if they could 'see' the goal. Feel it. Smell it. Taste it. "Can you, just for this session, claim it as your own?" I asked.

Yes, they agreed.

At the end of the evening, I gave each member of the group a binder in which they were to write their goals.

Each person, except one, wrote as their first goal. To be out of the Drop-In and living independently by October 1, 2007.

They had claimed the goal as their own. For the man who declined, fear of letting go of the past held him fast. He looked at me and asked, can I come back even if I don't have that goal? Of course I replied. This is about your goals, you define them, you set them, you walk towards them.

Their task this week was to set a weekly goal that moved them closer to achieving their major goal of October 1. And to track their progress on a daily basis.

The energy when they left the room was envigorating.

I came home and thought about my goal for October 1, or April 1 for that matter.

I didn't have one.

Living without a goal is like getting in the car to drive... somewhere. Every time I get in my car I have a destination. I have a route which sometimes I adjust depending upon the weather. Too often, I live my life without a destination, without a goal!

Recently, my friend G was booked into a personal development program called, Super Choices. It was being held in Chase, BC. He got in his car, drove to Lake Louise and discovered that the highway was closed due to an avalanche. G didn't give up. He spent a night in a hotel and in the morning, upon discovering the highway was still closed, called and asked me to book him a flight to Kamloops. All the flights were booked. He waited in Lake Louise, hoping the highway would open but it didn't. He kept exploring ideas and finally, found an alternative route. He called me from the airport in Calgary to let me know he was enroute to Kelowna. Almost 24 hours after being stopped in Lake Louise, G arrived at the conference centre and walked into the training room. He had reached his destination. He was only 2 hours late for the opening session -- some people never made it.

G never gave up. He did not give in. He did not lose sight of his goal.

Setting a goal is the first step to living a life of integrity. Without goals, I float aimlessly doing the things I have to do to get my day done, but never challenging myself to step further, grow bigger, explore my gifts and talents completely.

Once my goals are established, taking ACTION, keeping the goal in sight, never wavering from my commitment to attain it, staying focused on my intent and exploring alternatives when roadblocks appear -- these are the characteristics of a successful person. These are the attributes of a person of integrity.

There have been moments in my life when I have had a clearly defined goal and 'done what it took' to achieve it. There have been times when I've put the Be. Do. Have. principle to work. -- Be committed to do what it takes to have what I want.

It's time to put those principles to work today.

My goal for October 1, 2007 is to have the first draft of my new book, The Dandelion Garden, A non-gardeners guide to creating the life of your dreams. completed.

My goal for April 1, 2007 is to have the outline completed.

What's your goal?

Where does your Be. Do. Have. inspire you to be the most astounding you that you are meant to be?