I am a big fan of goal setting and a believer that there is no such thing as being too ambitious. But I know that many of us, myself included, often shy away from what we really want because, well, it seems like an impossible goal. And after all, who am I do that? And then the self-doubt sets in and our mind continues to tell us all the reasons we can’t do it. Our brain talk us out of taking actions that are scary or uncomfortable which results in us fail in achieving our goals because we don’t even try.
But recently I’ve been embracing the idea of having, and actively working towards my impossible goal. And it’s been a complete game-changer for me, and it can be for you too. So here is everything you need to know to stop dreaming and start pursuing your impossible goal.
So what is an impossible goal?
An impossible goal is a big, seemingly unattainable goal that you set for yourself. It is deliberately an overstretch of what you think you can achieve and it should feel very uncomfortable.
When selecting your impossible goal keep in mind that it should be something that has been accomplished by someone, somewhere. So whilst it may seem out of your realm of possibility, it’s been proven that is can happen.
It should also be something that genuinely excites you. Allow your mind to ponder – what if I actually achieved this? Do you get chills of delight? Is it something you truly want?
Why should you pursue it?
By having an impossible goal your conscious brain automatically dismisses it as being unachievable. But our brains love to solve problems and by having this goal, our brain subconsciously sets to work trying to make it happen.
This often results in new ideas popping up and unexpected synergies occurring. Because once your mind is focused on the impossible, it will, by default, start to create ways to make it happen.
Now to be clear, the idea of an impossible goal is less about whether you achieve the outcome or not. Instead it is about training ourselves to take consistent action, embracing failure and keep moving forward. Because these are the skills that will allow us to challenge ourselves, keep growing and to achieve great things in our lives.
A happy by-product of the exercise are the results you get on the way to achieving your impossible goal.
How to pursue your impossible goal
Firstly, you need to commit to your impossible goal.
Now what this is will be different for each of us, based on where we’re at and what we want. For some it could be earning $250K a year or it could be earning $1M. It might be to start a business and generate $100K in revenue. Or it could be running a marathon in sub 3 hours.
Whatever it is that you are drawn to, go with that. Don’t overthink it. And it if you’re tossing up between a few ideas consider what will have the greatest impact to my overall happiness and choose that.
Once you’ve decided write in down somewhere that’s visible to you everyday so it stays front of mind.
Next, brainstorm all the things you could do to achieve your impossible goal. Do not filter yourself or consider the feasibility of these options. Instead, just get it down of paper. Give yourself some quality time to do this exercise and keep adding to the list when new ideas (no matter how crazy!), comes up.
Finally commit to taking consistent action. Review your list and decide on the actions you’ll take to make the impossible happen. In deciding these actions, give yourself a clear framework. It could be 3 actions you’ll do each month or 20 things a quarter, but make the commitment and stick to it.
Do not allow yourself to fail ahead of time by not even showing up and trying. Instead go wholeheartedly into it and give it 100%!
And remember, failing when you’ve given it your all will propel you forward, improve your resilience and keep you growing and achieving results and that is the greatest gift you can give yourself. Where as deciding not to even try because it’s too hard robs you of the opportunity to create the life you truly want.
So get into action today!
What’s your impossible goal? Share in the comments below