If Your Goals Don't Scare You, They Aren't Set High Enough

Goals are your navigation in life. They are the direction you want to go. If your goals are well-defined, then they will steer you in the right direction. But if your goals are not defined, they can leave you spinning your wheels. You’ll waste your time making no progress.

So, it's important to set your goals to help you go where you want to go in life.

Goals should be set high. They should be difficult. And they should scare you a little bit.

Why?

Because your goals are what you want in life. If you set your goals low, then you're limiting yourself.

Difficult goals push you. They make you rise up to the challenge and put in the work.

Easy goals are fine. You’ll get a small reward from them. And they can help guide you in the right direction.

But easy goals aren’t going to push you. Only difficult goals will push you to be better.

Goals are meant to be challenging

Your goals need to stimulate you. If they don't, then you'll get bored of them. You'll be more likely to give up on them and go in a different direction.

Challenging goals provide immense stimulation. Especially if they are goals you really want.

They make you think hard. They make you work hard. And they are highly rewarding when you achieve them.

Isn't it such a good feeling when you reach a goal you didn't think you were able to reach?

Achieving challenging goals is a big confidence booster.

And this confidence boost will inspire you to set your next goal even higher!

You get what you desire

If you set the bar low, then the potential rewards are low.

But if you set the bar high, then the potential rewards are high.

If you want to achieve big things, you need to set difficult goals.

You'll rise to the occasion.

Big goals bring out the best version of you. They show you how much you want what you think you want.

Working towards a big goal can become a reality check if you aren’t putting in the effort.

Your goals are a reflection of what you want.

And your effort is a reflection of how much you want to achieve your goals.

If you want to achieve a big goal, you’ve got to put in the work.

So, set your goals accordingly.

Smaller goals make achieving bigger goals easier

Setting difficult goals increases the potential for high rewards.

This is because you'll need to put more effort and energy into achieving these types of goals.

And as Albert Einstein said, "Energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can only be changed from one form to another." So, the energy you put into your goals will reward you with an appropriate reward for your efforts.

That being said, smaller goals can still be beneficial.

You can use smaller goals to propel you towards your bigger goals.

Think of these smaller goals as stepping stones that guide you toward your destination. They are meant to help make your journey easier.

Small goals are helpful if they lead to a bigger goal that you have. Make sure these smaller goals aren't going to sidetrack you away from the bigger goals.

If your small goals don’t lead to a big goal, then they are dead ends.

Challenging goals are more impactful

Bigger goals lead to bigger potential rewards.

And these bigger rewards tend to be more impactful.

They make greater changes for you.

Here's an example.

Let's say you felt sluggish, out of breath when doing simple daily tasks, and unhappy. You go to your doctor, who tells you that you are obese. So, you decide that you want to lose weight.

You initially decide to lose 20 lbs. After reaching this goal, you still feel sluggish, and out of breath. But you feel a bit happier.

This is progress. You know that you're still not where you want to be. So you decide that you need to set a bigger goal. So, you now aim for 50 lbs.

After reaching this bigger goal, you feel full of energy, fit, confident, and happy. You can now play with your children and walk your dog around the block.

The reward was much bigger and more meaningful. You are now able to make meaningful memories playing with your children!

Final thoughts

Your goals should be difficult to achieve.

They should provide a challenge that makes you think you may not be able to achieve them.

That feeling makes the reward feel so much greater. When all of your hard work finally pays off.

Imagine this feeling each day. Let it motivate you to set higher goals.

These difficult goals push you beyond your current limits.

Your character rises or falls to the level of your goals.

You can use smaller goals as stepping stones to your ultimate goal. But having a big initial goal will give you the direction you need regardless.

Plus, setting big goals is more fun and ambitious than just setting small goals.

Aim big, achieve big.

Go get ‘em!