I love the beginning of a new year with all the excitement of fresh beginnings and new goals. When we set these goals for ourselves, we set them from the place inside us that KNOWS we can achieve them. But as we go about "real life," that motivation can fade, and doubt can subtly sneak in. Unless we consistently remind ourselves why our goals matter.
Driving with my son last week, I mentioned how excited I am for my upcoming race, the Algonquin 50k. This will be my 4th time running it, and it is my absolute favorite race. I get giddy like a little kid just thinking about it.
My son is 15 (because that matters ;)) and his exact words were, “32 miles in the woods doesn’t sound fun at all.”
I laughed, because his idea of fun is working on a skateboard trick, falling HARD on every conceivable body part over and over (he has the “swellbow” (permanently swollen elbow) to prove it) until he lands it.
But this got me thinking:
What makes one goal so heartfelt for one person, and so absolutely hideous sounding for another?
The truth is, our goals really aren’t all that different. When we break it down, all our goals are ultimately the same goal, just in different forms.
Since he’s MY son, of course his goal involves some sort of physical pain. (Kidding!!! (Kind of))
But honestly, what is a goal but a chance to push ourselves further than our current perceived limits, to ultimately see if we can?
It doesn’t really matter what the goal is. It might be a race, a skateboard trick, a new business, numbers on a scale, breaking an addiction, creating a deeper social circle… whatever it is, our external goal satisfies an internal need to grow… to move beyond what feels comfortable... to see what’s on the other side.
Because deep down, we KNOW we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg of our true potential.
Deep down, beneath the years of externally and internally imposed thoughts of inadequacy or limitation, we KNOW there’s more inside us.
So we set goals as tools for peeking into that limitless part of ourselves. And each time we reach a goal, we get to know a little bit more of our true power.
And when we “fail” to reach a goal?
We get up and try again. Why? Because the knowledge that drove us to pursue that goal hasn’t changed. We still know we’re capable. We still know there’s so much inside us that we haven’t even begun to tap into.
And we know that the most powerful growth often comes after a few falls…
…and that our true strength is revealed when we persevere.
So, as we continue into this fresh new year, we set our eyes on learning more about ourselves through the goals that speak to our hearts. The goals that push us a little (or a LOT!) past our current perceived limitations, knowing full well that we have what it takes to accomplish anything we set our minds to, no matter how many tries it takes.
I can’t wait to see what this year brings for you.
To your goals, my friend,
Xx Jen
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