Do You Need to Grow Into Your Goals?

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Do You Need to Grow Into Your Goals?

It’s June already! It’s time for a status check on those 2022 goals you set back in January. How are they coming along? Have you checked a few off the list yet? Which ones are languishing??

There’s still time to get moving on this year’s goals. (It’s only June!) If that initial burst of motivation you felt in January has faded, you may need to take a good, hard look at the goals you set. Sometimes we don’t set the right goals. Sometimes we don’t back up our goals with a plan. Sometimes our goals are really more wishes.?

But often our goals get waylaid by failure or delays or obstacles. When we don’t see the outcomes we want within a certain period of time (for some of us, that’s immediately!), we drop the goal and move on. Not achieving a goal right away is not necessarily a reason to abandon it. Many of us treat goal setting like it’s a daily to-do list. We assume we’re going to achieve the goal and check it off the list, but not all goals can be achieved like a task.?

Some goals you have to grow into.

Let me share a story from my own career. Communicating has always come naturally and easily to me, so early in my career I decided to capitalize on this talent. I pursued an opportunity to give a speech on behalf of my company, NPR. The speech was for a global conference in New York with over a thousand attendees. As you can see, the stakes were pretty high.?

Guess what?

I failed—spectacularly, because I confused having a talent with having a skill. I wasn’t ready to give a speech like that. My goal was to be a hotshot speaker when it should have been to strengthen my skills as a communicator.?

After that embarrassing misstep, I could have dropped my dreams of being a great speaker.? Instead, I hired a coach, studied successful speakers, and practiced speaking closer to home. I gave talks inside of my company and on smaller stages where the stakes were lower. I converted my talent into a strength, the strength into a skill, and that skill into a TED Talk, Grit and Grace. I grew into my goal.

If you’re stalled on a 2022 goal, identify the skills you need to reach that goal. Then work to develop those skills, intentionally and consistently. It may mean breaking down your initial goal into smaller goals that will allow you to practice and hone your skills. Grow your skills and you’ll grow into your goals!

Need a supportive community to help you grow into your goals? Join my live mentorship program below