Cut your goals according to your willingness to pay the price

Goals are easier set than achieved. When it comes to setting goals, most people think it is about making wishing, hoping it will come true. So we make a wish list, label it goals and go after it halfheartedly notwithstanding our lack of commitment to pay the full price. When push comes to shove, we fizzle out and return to the status quo, backed by excuses why the goal is not realistic.

There is nothing like an unrealistic goal unless you are truly attempting the impossible like violating a law of nature. If someone has achieved it before, then it is doable. There are millions of goals no one has ever achieved before which is waiting for someone to pay the full price to obtain it. There are new frontiers yet to be conquered in every field of human endeavor. What is unrealistic is attempting to obtain the prize by paying half the price.

As humans, we love taking the easy way out. We naturally follow the path of least resistance, trying to get something for nothing if possible. We love freebies and discounts. Unfortunately in real life, there are no freebies, discounts, or payment plans. You have to pay the full price upfront before we can obtain the prize. We have to follow due process. There are no shortcuts. Your ability to achieve is governed by your ability to pay the price. The bigger the price you are willing to pay, the bigger the goal or price you can attain.

Before setting a goal, determine the price you have to pay to achieve it. Ask yourself the hard questions.

Are you willing to pay the price?

Are you willing to give all it takes to achieve that goal?

Are you willing to give what it takes?

More often than not, any project we embark on or goals we set for ourselves will demand more than what we originally anticipated or bargained for. We tend to underestimate what it will take to achieve our goals, hence when more is expected than what we initially anticipated, we tend to give up. It will take longer and cost more. It will demand more from us. If we are not willing to do whatever it takes to achieve our goals, we tend to give up time and again. If we do not cut our goals according to our willingness to pay the price, we set ourselves up for failure.

The limiting factor becomes our willingness to pay the price required to achieve our goals. At the end of the day, what determines whether our goal is achievable is how realistic is our assessment of our willingness to pay the price to achieve that goal. If we are long on promises and short on fulfillment, we will keep setting goals beyond our reach and fall into the trap of thinking that our dreams are not attainable. When you cut your goals according to your willingness to pay the price, you set yourself up for success.