When Goals Can Be Harmful

Setting goals if very good for you, for the most part. There are times when goals can be harmful. I’m talking about goals that are not achievable. For a goal to be good, it has to be realistic. If you set a goal to become a millionaire by Tuesday even if you play the lottery, your goal is likely doomed to fail. That can make you feel like crap. Goals have to be achievable. They have to be realistic. “I want to weigh a hundred and three pounds by the end of the year.” That’s achievable, depending on your starting weight, but is it healthy? It is possible to be too thin.

Goals depend on several things to make them good for you. They have to be achievable. If they aren’t, you are doomed to failure and that is no good for your self-esteem. Consider what you want. If you are fifty-seven and want the body of a twenty-year-old, you have to understand that isn’t likely to happen. If you are fifty-seven and want a healthy body, that’s doable. That’s a goal you can achieve. If you want it by Tuesday — forget it.

Goals need a reasonable amount of time to come to fruition. Let’s face it, things take time. Some things take more time than others. If you want a gorgeous garden, you are dependent on how long it takes the plants to grow. Americans have come to expect instant gratification and we often set ourselves up for failure by expecting things to happen when we want them to. We are not the center of the universe. Things will take the time that they need to take regardless of our wishes.

Goals should be the things we want, but we have to smart about setting them. We have to first define what it is that we truly want. Then we have to figure out how to get what we want. Then we need to determine a time frame. How long will it take to get what we want. Very often when we achieve something that we want, we find that it isn’t as wonderful as we thought it would be. Choose your goals wisely. Consider how to achieve them. Consider how long it will take to get to that goal. Above all, think of the effects of reaching that goal. Decide if that goal is worth the time and effort before you begin to strive for it. That can save you a lot of heartache and stress. Go ahead and set some goal. Good luck with them.

About pebblepup

I am not one who is comfortable talking about myself but here goes. I enjoy writing, family history, and reading. I decided to do this blog because I wanted to try something new. I decided to make it a weekly blog because I wasn't sure that I could keep up with a daily one, and monthly seemed like I was writing a magazine. I think I did ok with my choices. You'll notice that there are not a lot of graphics on my site. That's because there are graphics plastered everywhere on the Internet and those sites sometimes take forever to load. This blog is a place where you can kick back, relax and be ready to be amused. At least I hope I willbamuse you. This blog is on a variety of subjects from my ficitional cat agency, the FFL, which is monthly, to instructional blogs to editorials, which are my opinions only. I admit that I don't know everything and could be wrong -- I frequently am. Now, stop reading about me and read what I have to say!