The Secret To Sticking To Your Goals No Matter What

Many of us have goals. Big ones, perhaps.

But at the very same time, you may suffer from the very same problem that I had for so long: An inability to stick to your goals. 

You make progress one day. Then another day, you fall off track. You’re ultimately running in a perpetual hamster wheel without ever making any true progress in your life. But from trial and error (and I do mean A LOT of trial and error), I believe I’ve finally uncovered the truth about goals, and most of all, how to finally stick to them.

In a society that preaches “hard work,” “the hustle,” and “paying your dues,” we often lose the joy in working towards our goal. In turn, our goal becomes our entire life. I myself have fallen victim to this mentality far too many times to count, and my goal always became a means to an end. A means to prove other people wrong. A means to get somewhere that I wasn’t already. A means to place my happiness on my status, my accomplishments, and my successes.

Now, if you haven’t caught on already, this is a very dangerous mindset to have. It takes the joy and passion you have in working towards something that should be fun and makes it feel like work. It turns it into a need to get somewhere. It turns it into a need to BE someone.

But if you go about your goals with this mentality, you’ll soon find out that you have a hard time sticking to your goals and staying consistent.

Why? Because it will no longer be worth it to you.

And soon enough, Netflix and other distractions will be calling your name and draining you instead of leaving you feeling eager and inspired to have fun with your talents.

When life becomes all about success and work, I believe this is the point in time where people fall off the wagon and resort to external sources to fill that void that they’re missing in their lives. They binge on movies, food, things to buy, and pretty much anything else that they can get their hands on, all in order to receive the instant gratification that they’re so desperately searching for.

This is when you have to remember why you set that goal in the first place. What was the real reason? Why did you REALLY have a dream for yourself?

If you go back to the very beginning, I believe that you’ll be able to find the true reason that you chose to embark on that endeavor. It wasn’t to become famous or rich—more importantly, it brought you joy! Perhaps you even feel like you’re playing in the world like a kid again, rather than just getting by in it. That’s the true reason that you chose to embark on that journey.

You have to ask yourself if your goal is worth it, and if it truly is something that is from the core of who you are, then no matter what the outcome is, it will always be worth it to you! If it’s not true to who you are and you have to start over, then at least you’re one step closer now to figuring out what that really is!

If your reason isn’t deep enough, I guarantee that you will fall off the wagon. But if you can’t quit no matter what the outcome is because you truly love working towards your goal that much, then you’ve already won before you’ve won.

And well, that’s when life gets really exciting! Because when your goal is no longer a means to an end, but rather a means in and of itself, then that’s when you know it’s real and nothing could ever draw you away from your path. That’s when you know your goal is not just a place to get to, but rather a passion to fully see through.

You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to consistently show up for yourself. So, is it worth it? That’s the most important question you have to ask yourself.

And if it is, then run with it! Time is of the essence.