How Goal Setting Can Get In Our Way

In the hit comedy Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Vince Vaughn’s character Peter La Fleur says,

“I found that if you have a goal, that you might not reach it. But if you don't have one, then you are never disappointed. And I gotta tell ya... it feels phenomenal."

It’s a funny couple of lines, but it does tap into a truth we may feel as we establish what we want to accomplish each year as an organization. Setting our annual goals can be exciting and a source of inspiration as we set off into the new year. Yet when we revisit those same goals at year’s end, they can just as easily become a source of frustration or disappointment.

So, am I about to tell you to scrap those New Year’s goals you just proudly posted on your wall? No, but there are some pitfalls to think about when setting your goals. Plus, I would disagree that it feels “phenomenal” when you have reached the end of the year and have accomplished very little. The real value lies not just in the goal itself, but in what we do day after day to reach it.

Before exploring better ways to work toward achieving your goals, it’s worth looking at a few challenges that often arise in the goal setting process. In his best-selling book Atomic Habits, author James Clear outlines four key problems with traditional goal setting:

Problem #1 – Winners and losers have the same goals.

Problem #2 – Achieving a goal is only a momentary change.

Problem #3 – Goals restrict your happiness. It leads to you putting off your happiness until the next milestone.

Problem #4 – Goals are at odds with long term progress.

Clear then summarizes these issues succinctly: “It’s not about any single accomplishment. It’s about the cycle of endless refinement and continuous improvement. Ultimately, it is your commitment to the process that will determine your progress.”

The process. The idea may be most famously championed by Nick Saban, widely regarded as the GOAT of college football coaches. He stresses doing every little and seemingly insignificant thing correctly, not overlooking the details that are building blocks to achieve a stated objective. This also helps you work against Problem #2 and #4. You are establishing a continuous path of achievement for the long term and not being satisfied with one win, or a “momentary change.”

Another benefit of focusing on the process is that it gives you an opportunity to celebrate small successes throughout the year. In Clear’s Problem #3, focusing on only the goal leads to only happiness once you have achieved the goal. Enjoy the smaller wins along the way.

Of course, paying attention to every little detail can become exhaustive or downright boring at times. It’s tempting to cut corners in July when end of year deadlines feel distant. But those shortcuts tend to add up, and the cost often shows itself later. Not everything can be exciting; after all, it is work. Here are a few tips to push through the lulls in the process:

Take a break. Allow yourself some time to rest and refresh. Take a walk for a short-term fix. Ideas often come to us when we get the blood going a little bit. Or work on something unrelated for a while. Mental distance often brings fresh perspective when you return.

Have some fun with it. Turn tasks into a game or create small incentives for completion. This can be especially helpful for the parts of the process you dread, but that are just as critical as the more exciting work. Plus, mixing it up can energize the mind.

Envision the end product. Reconnect with why the work matters. It may not feel like much but as Zeno, the founder of Stoic philosophy said, the small steps are “truly no small thing.”  What you are doing now matters, and it is good to reflect on that fact.

If this doesn’t help, try taking another page from the Saban playbook. He would ask if you would rather live with the pain of discipline or the pain of disappointment. These are not fun options to choose between but no pain, no gain, right? The third option would be the Peter La Fleur route and, if you haven’t seen the movie, this is driving him out of business.

In the end, setting goals is a vital step toward success for any organization. Just be sure you’re also committing to the small, consistent actions that will actually get you there. Here’s to a new year that will end in satisfaction and not disappointment!