When it comes to achieving goals, many people think of striving and driving to accomplish the tasks necessary to succeed. This can trigger feelings of fear of success, and fear of failure, because we believe we must work so hard to succeed. While it is important to eventually be S.M.A.R.T. with your goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-based), it is also important to first be open-minded and curious about your goals so that you are choosing them wisely.
You can choose your goals wisely by first quieting your mind and asking your intuition what goals and what route will give you the 80/20 Rule. The 80/20 Rule identifies what 20% activities will give you 80% impact. It’s important to find a goal that inspires you, and a route that will be enjoyable for you along the way. When you choose a goal and route that fulfills you, you are working from inspired action, not perspired action. I call this methodology to reach our goals, “The Gut Intelligent (GQ) Goal Setting Process.”
The GQ Goal Setting Process first begins with a gut alert that tells you something needs to change. In your personal life, it might be one of these eight areas of your life: relationships, physical, financial, emotional, mental, recreational, vocational or spiritual. At work, it may be in: sales, operations, customer service, profit margins or innovative products or services. You know intuitively if you are at a deficit or desire growth in a particular area if your gut is alerting you that you are out of alignment. You know if you are out of alignment because you don’t feel satisfied; you feel frustrated instead.
Often, people ignore the cues at the tip of the iceberg that tell them to make a change, set a goal, and create a S.M.A.R.T. action plan. Instead of quieting their mind and listening to their intuition to guide them, they will often react to a situation and impulsively create an action plan before they listen more deeply within to their intuition to guide them. When they do this, they are operating out of the amygdala center in their brain, which is the reaction center that causes impulsivity.
We often see leaders react to the PNL, for example, and create a sales initiative of the month to increase revenue without ever getting to the root cause or need for greater sales. This creates an exhausting culture that makes people work harder, not smarter. Or, on a personal level, you might have stepped on the scale, see that you gained seven pounds over the holidays and go on a crash diet, which isn’t sustainable. This kind of goal setting and action plan is at a lower level of GQ, because you are unconscious of your intuition that wants to guide you on the best route possible.
To increase your Gut Intelligence and get into intuitive alignment, meditate 20 minutes a day. Research says that when you do, you can then bypass the amygdala center of the brain and instead reach the executive center and the parietal lobe of the brain. These areas of the brain help you to consider possibilities and get you to get that “aha” knowing, a heightened awareness that sends chills up your spine because you know what path is best for you to take. This best path pinpoints the 80/20 Rule and allows you to work smarter, not harder to reach your goals.
Finally, if you really want to meet your goals with the help of synchronicity, then you will want to learn how to use The Heisenberg Theory. The Heisenberg Theory is a physics theory that helps you tap into the occipital part of your brain so, “That which you observe shifts.” This means you focus on what you want to attract and draw it to you through the power of visualization and intention. Instead of focusing on what you fear might happen, you focus on what you want to create, because that which you focus on expands.
I remember when I was raising my kids and wanted to grow my business, but not travel. I quieted my mind and meditated on my question: “How might I grow my business without traveling?” One day I heard I should contact the radio stations and barter airtime in exchange for coaching and training their leaders. This led to a radio show I did for years on Smooth Jazz and WISN called “Performance Solutions.” This one simple decision, achieved by increased Gut Intelligence, tripled my business.
What is your “How might I…” question?
