Setting Goals

Hello World,

I did it! I set a goal to write a blog post every weekday in June and now at the end of June I can say - I did it!

I am so grateful to have a human brain. Being able to set goals is what I believe is one of the best ways to use it. Achieving the goal in and of itself is amazing for sure, but more than that, realizing you have become the person who meets that goal is the real gift.

At the beginning I told myself:

“I don’t have time.”

“I don’t have anything to say.”

“What if people think I’m weird.” (They would be right! )

“I’m too tired.”

Of course I did. My primitive brain has evolved to keep me safe from what it perceives as danger: danger of rejection (and dying), danger of using too much energy (and dying), danger of going out into the dangerous world and doing something new (and dying)…

But my pre-frontal cortex was also there all along the way, telling me we are not going to die, we are safe and:

“I can make time for the things I want to make time for.”

“I don’t need to write the next great novel, I just need to write a few sentences.”

“People are allowed to think what they want, what do I want to think about me?”

“It’s ok to feel tired, I can still do what I said I would do while feeling tired.”

In honouring my goal, I now know that I can show up for myself, I can make time for important things, and: I WILL feel horrible and uncomfortable in the process. That’s part of the growth process.

It doesn’t matter if your goal is big or small, it doesn’t even matter if you achieve it or not. What matters is who you become along the way: someone who evolves into the person who shows up for themselves.

Think of a goal you have - what if it was normal that you had feelings about not achieving it? What if you did it anyways? Who would you become in the attempting of it?

For a long time I wouldn’t even allow myself to think of goals because my fear and disbelief in myself were so strong. So I never even tried, which guaranteed that I would never be able to achieve them. I let myself fail ahead of time. It felt inevitable, but I want to offer that it’s a choice. It’s a choice because you are choosing to believe the thoughts of your primitive brain rather than those of your pre-frontal cortex. I would love to show you how to develop this skill.