Setting goals

By Engr. Carlos V. Cornejo

This was from a talk given by Jim Rohn in one of his seminars entitled “goal setting”.  It’s a fitting article for the New Year, when we are supposed to have a fresh start from the past mistakes, or failed plans, of the previous year and begin again this year, without ever giving up until our goals are attained.  He says, “Many work hard on their job, but don’t work hard for the future.”  He meant that majority of people are working just to pay for the bills, tuition of their children, payment of loans which is not bad in itself but it is not working for promotion, for personal development, and trying to earn more money.  What is clearly lacking for many of us is a plan for the future.

There are two ways to face the future: with apprehension (fear) or with anticipation (excitement).  When we don’t have a plan for the future, we will face it with apprehension or with anxiety.  Fear is precisely defined as being afraid and worried of things we are not certain.  We are always afraid when we are not sure of something, and much so because that something could hurt us.  To get rid of anxiety for the future, a plan to face it is the solution.  You would then gradually move on from having apprehension to facing the future with anticipation.  When we have a plan for tomorrow, we become eager to wake up in the morning to go to work, instead of dragging ourselves every day from bed.  We will have a change of outlook from having future worries to having future eagerness.  A plan for the future makes a world of difference in helping us live with hope and with excitement in life.

Jim says, there are two kinds of plan, a long-term plan and a short-term plan.  Long-term plan would be what you want to accomplish 3 years or 5 years from now.  Short-term plan is to support the long-term plan by breaking it into days, weeks and months to accomplish the long-term plan.  Long-term plan are your dreams in life such as a better home for the family, travelling to some places, acquiring a higher degree, getting a promotion, etc.  There is also an economic plan, a personal plan and relationship plan.  Economic plans are those that involve money such as better income, better savings, etc.  Economic plans can be setting up a business, investing in stocks or looking for a higher paying job.  A personal plan is growth in skills, knowledge and character.  It might be enrolling for a course to acquire a higher degree, attending seminars, reading books, and attending spiritual activities.  And lastly, relationship plans are growth in one’s relationship with spouse, children, friends, relatives, or office mates.  Relationship plans can be achieved by enriching your knowledge on what is good for that relationship by reading books or attending seminars but often times the toughest part is putting it into practice.  Willing (putting things into action) is harder than knowing.  That’s why I often would say that morality or the practice of virtues is not a problem of knowing but of willing.  It’s not hard to know what is the right thing to do, it is in doing it.  But the good news is you always reap what you sow.  Good actions always reap good results.

Remember that everybody hopes that the future is better.  But hope is not a plan.  A plan is a well-laid out guide to achieve something. A hope is a wish without knowing how to achieve that wish.  Of course, a good plan is consulted both from wise people and from God, making sure your plans are good not only for yourself but for others (family, friends, officemates, classmates, etc.)  “In all your ways (plans for the future) acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”  (Proverbs 3:6)