This question was asked by one of my fellow associates during a recent personal development seminar.
I listened with interest as I sat back and watched almost every hand in the room go up. This is not the first time I have heard this type of question asked to many different groups and the response seems to be very common... the millionaire title seems to appeal to virtually all of us. What is more interesting is the response from the follow up question...
"For those of you who raised your hand about wanting to become a Millionaire, how many of you had this same goal last year? How many of you had this same goal 2 years ago? 5 years ago? More than 5 years ago?"
It’s amazing how many people have had the goal of becoming a millionaire for 1, 2, 5 or 5+ years!
The true question next is "What happened? Why is this common goal unfulfilled for so many?"
Of course there are many different and sorry reasons offered up, or should I just tell it like it is and simply call them the... usual excuses!
My colleague noticed the audience discomfort to the next question...
"Please answer honestly, how many of you that raised your hand about wanting to become a millionaire, feel that you have the habits of a millionaire?"
Silence. Not one single hand in the entire room went up. Not one!
How in the world can we expect to reach any of our goals if we do not have the habits required to produce the “action” that will lead to the achievement of a goal?
Well... today is December 31st... Day 365 and many folks will once again turn to the ‘old’ I want to be a Millionaire goal in addition to their other personal goals. What will make this year different from past years?
If you sincerely desire to make 2008 YOUR best year ever and achieve all of your goals, we CAN make this year different!
Writing down a goal and just wishing it would happen or focusing on it for a few weeks week will lead you to disappointment and disillusion! Developing and maintaining habits congruent with your goals is THE ONLY path to successful goal achievement.
Let me say that again...
Developing and maintaining habits congruent with your goals is THE ONLY path to successful goal achievement!!!
Your daily habits form your future!
Just in case some of you are wondering what your habits have to do with goal achievement and success, I would like to address this with the example of learning to swim. Do you remember learning to swim? Your GOAL was to learn how to swim. The HABITS needed are: stop telling yourself you can’t swim, focus, knowledge, confident attitude, take action, control you’re breathing, and act like your swimming.
Learning to swim takes a huge effort and lots of energy when you first learn. However, once you form the habits above, swimming becomes very natural… you don’t have to think much about swimming; you just get in the pool and swim! Today, you put virtually NO thought and NO energy in to “how” to swim… you just do it! It’s a HABIT that will stick with you for the rest of your life. My point here is… once you develop good HABITS that are congruent with your goals, success will take MUCH LESS time, and energy and effort than it once did.
I hope that has got you thinking, I know people reading this already realize there true potential, that’s not enough, you have to know how to release your true potential.
To many people spend to much time planning the perfect Christmas day and forget the other 364 days, to many people plan for a two week vacation and then slog through the other 50 weeks just to get a holiday, to many people focus on planning the wedding and forget to focus on the marriage.
Do you know what today is?
Today is your date with destiny;
"Happy New Year"
