I am a huge fan and believer of setting and striving toward GOALS. Goals set my intention, my focus, my direction, and establish a focal point for my thoughts and actions. Goals are best if they are based on activities and actions that I can take to achieve and accomplish a particular outcome. I can control and influence my thoughts and behaviors to a far greater extent than the actual outcome. My activities thus drive my results. For instance, I can’t control my weight … but I can control my eating and exercise which impact my weight. I can’t control if you will buy my services … but I can control my communications, networking, service, follow-up, and so forth.
Then there are EXPECTATIONS, which are different and more dangerous than goals. Expectations come from a place that assumes I already have the desired outcome. I expect it, it’s mine, I deserve it, its a done deal. Positive expectations boost confidence—such as, I expect to win the prize or make the sale or get the promotion. Negative expectations promote despair—such as, I expect to lose or fail or blow it.
The challenge is when the desired outcome is not met. I believe goals lead to greater responsibility—I am accountable for the effort (or lack of effort) for my actions. I own it. When I work hard, yet fall short of a specific result, I still have the satisfaction of the work. On the other hand, I believe expectations lead to blame and the lack of responsibility. Since the desired outcome was mine and I deserved it, when I fall short I want to blame someone / something else and make excuses.
I was contemplating all this in the days after the loss by the Kansas Jayhawks to the Northern Iowa Panthers in the NCAA tournament. I believe UNI entered the tournament with GOALS and KU entered the tournament with EXPECTATIONS. Win or lose, UNI was going to feel good about themselves. For KU, only a win mattered—that was the “expectation.” A loss was unthinkable, unimaginable.
Which team are do you play on? Do you focus on GOALS or EXPECTATIONS? And how is that impacting your life and work?
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