How BIG is your goal for 2009?

I don’t know about you but I have spent many a New Year setting goals. These days, I have learnt to write my goals down for a better success rate.

At USANA we have Commitment Cards. When you make a commitment or set your goal, you write down a ‘consequence’ or penalty if you don’t achieve that goal. We all need someone to hold us accountable and remind us of why we wanted to achieve the goal in the first place.

Over the years I have set myself some rather big goals, but none as big as this year’s goal – to run a Marathon in Paris! Yes it’s a long way – yes it’s a big time commitment – yes it’s hard – and yes it’s in Paris. What has made this goal so big? The cost of two airline tickets (my husband will coach me from the sidelines), the time and the commitment.

Why is it when you set yourself a goal, hurdles seem to appear from nowhere? Injuries I’ve never heard of began to plague me. My physio therapist suggested I take a few weeks off. Time off is something I can’t afford when I only have three months left to prepare. My GP even recommended I give up running.

How many times have people advised you to stick to your real job? Or told you, you’ll never make a success of this. Or asked, why are you doing network marketing? Yes, I’m sure you’ve heard that once or twice. I even heard it from my Mum, of all people, back in the early nineties when I started my business.

So what keeps us connected to our goal? What keeps me on track for 42.1kms in Paris? Well, I believe it’s the SIZE of the goal and the REAL consequence of giving up.

I’m on track. I jumped the hurdles. I had to take a different approach to training, teaching myself to swim long distance. And now with 60 days to go – I will run a marathon in Paris – I will cross the line in front of the ambulance and before they remove the bollards!

So, how big is your goal for 2009? Is it big enough? Does it have a consequence that you can hold yourself accountable for? Are you prepared to jump the hurdles and ignore “professional” advice?

If it’s not big enough, then make your goal bigger. Attend Celebration 2009 in Sydney and be inspired to commit to bigger goals than you thought possible. Jump bigger hurdles – it will set you free.