How crazy is it that we’re already in December and nearing the end of the year?
I’m sure most of us have been in holiday shopping mode since November (or October for those of you who skipped ahead) or you’re already thinking about how you’ll put so many family or friends in your house for Christmas.
And it wouldn’t be the year of the end if we weren’t thinking about our plans and goals for next year.
Looking back at what you did this year and looking forward to next year is normal and something you should do, but the problem that most of us have is we get into this habit of dreaming big, unrealistic dreams.
I’m sure many of you have done the “I’m going to lose weight next year” or “I’m gonna start going to the gym next year” and both of those are great, but in most cases, there’s an unrealistic component to those.
Losing weight next year isn’t unrealistic – it’s losing 150 pounds in 3 months.
Going to the gym is awesome – but doing a week’s worth of exercises in an hour or less is not.
These are examples of big dreams that are just unrealistic and they can limit what you actually want to accomplish.
That was the main topic on my latest coaching calls:
Why Your Dreams Should Be Realistic
First and foremost, I’m not saying you shouldn’t have big dreams because you absolutely should.
What I’m saying is a lot of people miss the steps that can lead to that dream. Let’s take that losing weight example – if your goal is to lose 50 pounds, let’s say, the unrealistic approach is to starve yourself and skip meals, only drink water or eat salads.
Not only is that unrealistic, but it’s also unhealthy and dangerous.
You can still have that big goal, but you need to take into account the steps to do that:
eating better meals
limiting how much you go out
working out once or twice a week
Something like that is a more realistic dream, as is setting a time frame for it.
You could probably lose 50 pounds in a few weeks, but what are the chances that you’d gain it back at some event or when you get stressed?
This is the time of year when we all start making New Year’s Resolutions, but when the new year comes, we either drop them or fail to do them. Why?
Because our goals and dreams are unrealistic!
We don’t want to be in make-believe land, we want to be able to achieve our goals and maybe even exceed them from where they’re set.
Realistic Big Dreams in 3 Steps
First, set a realistic path to that realistic goal. In terms of us as wholesalers, this goal could be contacting 10 agents in one week. Now you might be saying, Jamil, that’s such a low goal!
To you, maybe, but not to the individual who is still at their 9 to 5.
If 10 is not enough for you, then maybe you set the goal to 15 or 20; it all depends on who you are and what your skills and knowledge are.
And that’s the second thing – ensure that you’re setting goals that align with your knowledge and skill set. This is where you need to evaluate yourself – who are you?
What works best for you is not what works for someone else and that’s fine!
Lastly, don’t limit yourself!
Dreaming big means you have lofty goals and it’s easy to see them as too much. In our business, we can make a lot of money, but we’re also trained to believe that we aren’t deserving of so much or that it’s impossible to get to where we want.
So this December, I want you to dream big for the end of this year and for next year, but make those goals realistic so that they’re attainable and lead to more dreams.
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