March/April 2007

Conquer and Achieve!

Dennis Watley, vice president of the Kansas City Chiefs, once said, “The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them.”

With those words in mind, we thought it was high time to take a look at setting goals—whether at work, at home, or elsewhere. Goals help you separate what’s important in your life from what’s irrelevant. They help you organize your time and resources to make the most of your life. Goals give you focus. And as the late author Maxwell Maltz said, “We find no real satisfaction or happiness in life without obstacles to conquer and goals to achieve.” We hope this issue of Duck Tales™ inspires
you to conquer obstacles and achieve your goals!


Your Personal Mission Statement
In his book First Things First, Stephen R. Covey urges readers to write their own personal mission statements. Mission statements help people focus on their goals and guide them when they are unsure. “An empowering mission statement,” writes Covey, “is not a ‘to do’ to be checked off. To be empowering, it has to become a living document, part of our very nature so that the criteria we’ve put into it are also into us, into the way we live our lives day by day.”

Covey tells the story of a young woman who wrote a mission statement she felt good about, and then filed it in her organizer as “done.” For months, the woman wrote down her goals and checked them off: save this amount of money, get a new car, build a new house. One night, sitting in her beautiful new home, the woman felt lonely and unhappy, despite having accomplished many of her goals. As she sat there, she saw her organizer, opened it up, and read her mission statement. “As I read,” she said, “I realized that there was nothing materialistic in it. Everything was ‘be’—I want to be a good person…I want to be a good example…eventually, I want to be a good mother.” The mission statement reminded the woman what was important to her and was able to get her back on track.

Covey urges people to take a personal retreat to write their mission statement. Then commit it to memory and review it at the start of each week. Mission statements will grow as the person grows. Therefore, he says, evaluate it and revise it as necessary. Keeping a daily journal is a good way to record your experiences and choices and helps you focus on things that are meaningful to you.


What’s Holding You Back?
Some people have been kicking around the same dream for years, thinking that some day they’ll pay more attention to it, some day they’ll take it seriously, some day they’ll find the time for it…. These people are not lazy. They accomplish plenty in their lives. But when it comes to their cherished dreams, they simply don’t turn them into realizable goals. Why not? One word: fear.

Fear can be a great motivator (just ask the duck being pursued by a hunter!). But it can also hold people back. Fear of failure, fear of being judged, fear of change, fear of the unknown, and even fear of success can hold a tight grip and prevent successful people from taking their goals seriously and reaching for them.

If you are serious about achieving your goals, you must address the fears behind them. Look at each goal you have and envision yourself working toward it. Does the goal cause you any doubts, anxieties, or fears? Write these worries down, examine them honestly, and consider what you can do to overcome them. Identifying and facing these fears will allow you to grow and move toward your goals. If you don’t acknowledge them, their presence will continue to stunt your efforts.


Tips for Setting Goals
The best way to set goals is to sit alone in a quiet room with a paper and pencil. Write everything down. Be messy, daydream, and consider all possibilities, however “silly” they may appear to others. You have plenty of time to revise and clarify your goals as you go along. These tips will help:

1. Make it personal. Base your goals on personal performance or on specific skills or knowledge that you want to acquire. If your goal is to finish a 5K race in one of the top three spots, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Instead, set a performance goal—aim for finishing the race in a certain amount of time.
   
2. Do it for yourself. Set goals that you are personally passionate about, not goals that your spouse, boss, or friends think you should achieve.
   
3. Be realistic. If your goals are too lofty or challenging, you will give up before you even start. Make them doable and realistic.
   
4. Mix it up. Include easy goals and more challenging goals on your list, and short-term and long-term goals. Achieving the easy and short-term goals will build good habits and reward you with quick gratification.
   
5. Be specific. Which goal packs more punch? “To improve my computer skills” or “to take a class on QuarkXPress by May 31, 2007.”
   
6. Reward your successes.Usually, reaching the goal is reward enough, but for those goals that require extra motivation and determination, attach a reward to its completion. The thought of that reward can motivate you and put some waddle in your step.
   
   
   A Happy Balance
   When setting goals, where do you begin? One way is to simply start writing things down that you want to accomplish. If this is too vague, however, and you need more guidance, consider coming up with goals based on the following categories:
   
   
   • Artistic. Do you have artistic aspirations? Maybe you want to take a painting class, write a short story, or redecorate your office.
     
   • Behavior. Is there a behavior that is holding you back? Maybe it’s time to quit smoking or develop a more positive attitude.
     
   • Career. What do you want to do with your career? Are you growing at work? If not, what can you do about it?
     
   • Education. Is there specific knowledge or skills that you want to acquire?
     
   • Family. Would you like to spend more time with your children or visit your parents more often?
     
   • Financial. Do you want to save up for a big vacation, new car, or just a night out?
     
   • Physical. Do you feel healthy? What steps can you take to improve your health?
     
   • Pleasure. What activities do you do for sheer pleasure? Having fun is an important component of a balanced life.
     
   • Public service. Do you want to improve your neighborhood, your community, the world? What steps can you take toward that goal?
   
   
   
   When the Going Gets Tough
   All of us have days when things just don’t seem to go our way, when we face more challenges than usual. So how exactly do we get going when the going gets tough? Consider these tips:
   
   Think of problems as possibilities for improvement. Since problems are inevitable, you might as well make the most of them. Think of them as opportunities to learn and improve. It’s often by working through difficult situations that people discover strengths they didn’t know they had.
   
   Remind yourself of recent successes. There is nothing wrong with giving yourself a pat on the back now and then. Don’t underestimate the power of what seems like small accomplishments—they are part of your success. Remembering how you solved a problem in the past can help you feel confident and motivated.
   
   Remember you’re not alone. Talk to friends or colleagues—you know, those trusty ducks in your life. Chances are, they have experienced similar problems and can offer a new perspective, useful advice, or even a helping hand.
   
   
   The Rewards of Perseverance
   The power of perseverance cannot be overestimated. People armed with stick-to-itiveness are the ones more likely to reach their goals and aspirations. Sure, there are setbacks and disappointments along the way, but people who continue to strive and work for their goals despite the obstacles are the ones who eventually succeed.
   
   The power of perseverance rarely has been demonstrated more impressively than in the life story of Abraham Lincoln. By the time he was 50 years old, Mr. Lincoln had failed in business twice, had been defeated for public office eight times, endured the death of his fiancée, and suffered a nervous breakdown. At 51, Lincoln was elected president of the United States.
   
   It is indeed a rare person who can continue to persevere after being knocked down so many times. Surely, President Lincoln must have felt like giving up his political aspirations after so many defeats. Yet he didn’t. He persevered despite the many disappointments in his career and personal life. And thank goodness for that. Had Lincoln called it quits, our country never would have known one of its greatest leaders, who, through his courage and persistence, is a role model for us all.