Advance Goal System

There was a time when I attached my self-worth to my bank account. If the numbers were good, I felt worthy. If the numbers were low, I felt unworthy. ​This also meant I had some pretty outrageous goals. I would set an insane income goal. Then, I’d motivate everyone to get behind it. I’d work like there was no tomorrow. Sometimes I would hit the goal. Sometimes, I would miss. I thought that was the only way to do it. Set unbelievable goals and go for it with everything you have. ​Then, I found another way. A better way.

As I learned more and experienced more, I realized that having a goal defined by money gave me short-term gratification but failed to give me long-term fulfillment. It failed to keep me happy and producing great work that I loved. Work that made me proud. ​So, I went back to the beginning and looked at how goals are defined. It turns out, goals are a function of: Our past experiences Our vision of ourselves. Our past experiences frame what is possible and what is not. What we can do, and what we can’t do. Our vision of ourselves is that perfect self that we create in our minds about who we must become and what we must have. 6-pack abs. Millions in the bank. Beach villa. Trips around the world.

You can achieve just about any goal with enough time and effort. But what ends up happening is that we bring these long-term goals into our immediate future. We try to achieve massive goals in just 6 months or even 3 months. ​Let’s launch this product and make a million dollars next week. Let’s get on this diet and lose all the extra weight in 10 days. ​Setting a goal with such a tight timeframe leads to frustration and anxiety. This isn’t going to help you achieve that goal.

So, what’s the trick to effective goal setting? How do you redefine it goals so you can actually achieve them? ​First, never create a short-term goal if you can help it. Short- term goals, lead to short-term outcomes, which lead to in-the-moment gratification that disappears as quickly as it arises.This is not the road to long-term success. Instead, start by creating a vision for your far out future. Something that you can capture and hold in your imagination. Something that feels deeply aligned with your values. I use the 12-Lifebook categories to craft my goals and my vision.

Lifebook is a transformational life development experience founded by Jon and Missy Butcher. They are among the most loving, kind and successful entrepreneurs I’ve ever had the privilege to meet. They first created the Lifebook system because they wanted a powerful way to capture their own life vision. ​

Here are the 12-Lifebook categories Jon and Missy identified:

1. Your Health and Fitness

2. Your Intellectual Life

3. Your Emotional Life

4. Your Character

5. Your Spiritual Life

6. Your Love Relationship

7. Parenting

8. Your Social Life

9. Your Financial Life

10. Your Career

11. Your Quality of Life

12. Your Life Vision

Here’s something fascinating that I observed when I worked on these 12 categories. I looked at my current goals, and most of my goals were in just 4 areas:

Career, Health, Financial and Relationships.

This is true for most people. We focus on just a few areas of our life and neglect all the others. Life is a great adventure, and the world is full of limitless possibilities. There is so much to explore and to know and so many kinds of goals and dreams that will bring you happiness and fulfillment. To confine yourself to just a few categories is to cheat yourself from experiencing joy.

So, here’s what I want you to do right now. Grab a paper journal or digital notebook and list the 12 categories. Then imagine your ideal self and what you would like your life in each of the 12 areas. Write down your thoughts next to each category.

When you’re done, you’re ready to redefine your goals. I’ve found that goals that are set 3-years out are ideal. 5 years is too long and 1 year is too short.