Photo credit: Google Images
We all are here to do our own set of goals. These could be in the short or the long term but they give us a purpose in life. There are certain projects that we are passionate about and want to fulfill. But many distractions take our mind off these goals. Also, there is a pang of constant guilt about the goals we should have chased. The assumption is that our goals will help us with better results and a better life. This is true about completion of goal but once we are done, we look for the next goal. So this becomes never-ending.
Sometimes it becomes impossible to concentrate on the current issue as the mind is boggling with random thoughts. The times that we are living in make it furthermore difficult to concentrate. I, for instance, have recently struggled a lot with achieving my goals. So I started paying attention to what the problem could be and learnt from what I could be doing wrong.
Here are some of the observations that have helped me deal manage my plans while staying sane:
1) I decided to stop multitasking, to stop doing a million things at a time and take on one task at a point. I now start my day with one challenging task and then move to more creative tasks followed by the less challenging ones. This helps me give 100% to each task in a day.
2) I started to block my day. I allot time to tasks and decide how much time to keep for a project. It is a wise plan to ensure our goals are accomplished.
3) For me, physical workout worked better than sitting inside all day. After every hour of work, I go for a short walk. The movement and the fresh air clean my head. I also keep drinking warm water and get some rest between.
4) I started meditating and subscribed to audible (audio-books app by Amazon) so that I get some time to quiet my mind. This small monetary investment helped me a lot in de-stressing.
5) I started listening to soothing music that is not a distraction. It would not just block out noise but help me. My familiar playlist just soothes me in the background and does not take my mind off my work.
6) I understood not all professional communications are meant for mails or WhatsApp messages and some need to be done face to face or on call. So I started understanding which conversations need to be done immediately to resolve my problem quickly.
7) I found my best spot at home that helped me concentrate well and it helped to strike a balance between noise and silence.
Stay Away From Keeping A Score Of Goals
Although I like to keep track of my goals, still the price I pay is worry and doubt. While organizing my thoughts and goal, I learnt to live with worrying. But initially was difficult for me to strike a balance between big and small goals. If I concentrated on one, the other would be compromised. But I understood that my peace of mind was important and so it was vital for me to focus on the short-term needs. This helped me stay sane at the moment. I usually create stress by doubting my own decisions. This causes regret or discomfort but this helps in creating a fulfilling life in the long term.
I have always been a procrastinator but this made me realize that I did not have control over things. So I made a call and decide to start taking things in my hand. I did not want my mind to be carved by doubts about myself. Although I would look at one thing at a time at least this taught me to be in control. This has also helped me understand at what point I should stop planning and start enjoying the present moment. So in a way, this small tricked helped me.
Our immediate goals help us focus on the present and give a sense of control. They keep us alert to present opportunities and keep us safe too. Each of these immediate goals gives deep values and hopes which lead to long term goals. The short term goals are the window to the long term goals and help us shape our future.
I realized that I should not always stick to what is planned and keep an element of surprise once in a while. The path to course correction has never been the easy one and we must expect some problems in advance. This will increase our control over situations. There is no single answer or a perfect solution to this. I am just stating here my experience in dealing with problems.
Creating A Priority List Of Goals
A study done by a team of psychologists in India on prioritizing of goals showed that all of us create mental buckets by ranking goals. While looking at the top 25 goals, we split into top 5 and remaining 20. This is how we divide time to each goal and then discard whichever goals look less important or less likely to be successful.
Although this set of goals is for a longer duration, yet we can prioritize our general life goals. But in this race, some important goals go down our priority list.
Here are 5 goals that I put down in my priority list but shouldn't have:
a) Usual Needs - I wanted to buy a good headphone but since I did not have any urgent need, so I procrastinated it for many years. Now I realize, it would have made me happier to chase this.
b) Books – Although reading is a great passion of mine stills I never get a lot of time to do it. I have created a lot of books to be read lists but I am still on it. Every time I can finish a book, it is an enormous calm for me.
c) Movies – My goal was to watch a movie every week but then I don't have that kind of time. I have now reset this to once a month.
d) Ideas – Every time I sit ideal, I think of how to do everything better, start a business or a side hobby. Music and writing could be on the list too but again I need planning for that.
e) Call Friends – l like to stay in touch with my friends, family and close cousins. But it's days before I can do that. We also need to be available at the same time for that which is not so easy anymore.
Being aware of our goals and having clarity about them is a gift. It helps us to dream for bigger things in life. My life struggles became more than the mundane once I started realizing the objectives to be chased. None of these goals looked modest to me anymore and I started enjoying it. This was very comforting for me.
Realizing goals is an effort worth making, but we need to cancel doubts on every step of the way. It is important to acknowledge our many dreams and desire. But it is also important to understand not all of them can come true. After the many lists of goal, an important goal in the larger run should be to stay calm and happy amidst it all!
Comments