Transcription
Well, it's that time of year again, where we all look to make positive changes in our lives. And that's a great thing. The question is, how do we make these changes effectively? What tools do we use to get from where we are to where we want to be? We have resolutions, intentions, goals, plans. But what exactly are they, and what is the difference between them? It's not as obvious as it may appear.
In this video, I'm going to unpack the differences between resolutions, plans, goals, and why understanding those differences is fundamental for our success in using them. Let's dive in. Okay. So we have resolutions, we have intentions, we have plans, and goals. What are the differences between them? People agree that they're important, but disagree on what these terms actually mean. Definitions often overlap and even contradict each other. I believe that this confusion is one of the reasons why our efforts often fail to yield the desired results.
As we start this new year, I thought it would be helpful to share the results of my own attempt to make sense of these concepts. In short, these concepts are tools for change. As with any tool, each has its strength and its weakness. Most importantly, you want to make sure that you're using the right tool for the job. So let's take a look at each of these tools, starting with resolutions.
To me, a resolution is this Frankenstein term composed of all the worst parts of goals, plans, and intentions. These concepts serve distinctly different purposes, and lumping them together this way is probably why only 8% of resolutions stick. So what is a resolution? Well, let's think of a couple: lose weight, win an award, fall in love, get more followers, and so on. You're resolving to experience something. So the way I define a resolution is: a resolution is the commitment to an outcome.
There are many reasons why resolutions fail, like lack of purpose or strategy. But for me, the main reason is because you can't control the future. The Stoics of ancient Greece and Rome knew that the reason for a lot of our suffering comes from focusing on things that we can't control. Though we can influence an outcome, we can't control it. We can't control getting an award, making a certain amount of money, or followers. We can't control the way other people feel about us. We can't even control the way that we feel most of the time. So even if we do succeed at producing the desired outcome, the reality of that experience is unlikely to feel the way that we expected. These are a few reasons why I think resolutions are poor tools for getting what we want. They force us to make promises to ourselves that are often reactionary and nearly impossible to keep. Instead, we want to use tools that can help us focus on what we can control.
Okay. So how are goals different from resolutions? For me, they serve very different functions. A goal is the definition of an outcome. For me, a goal is a navigational tool. They serve to transform vague ideas into very specific targets that we can aim for. They require us to both think about what we want and articulate it. The more specific the definition, the more focused we can be. It's the difference between "lose weight" and "lose 10 pounds of body fat." I talk more about how we can use goals as lighthouses in this video. But the short version is that goals can provide us with the direction that we need to get from where we are to where we want to be. The question is, how do we get there?
Benjamin Franklin once wrote, "By failing to plan, you're preparing to fail." And I think there's a lot of truth in that. There is a distance between your reality and the reality represented by your goal. Transitioning between those two realities is a process. A plan is a definition of a process. A well-crafted plan is about taking intentional action. It will focus on what we can control that will have the largest likelihood of moving us toward our goal. That is why we have to have a goal before we make plans. As John Lennon once said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." We can plan all day without actually doing anything because it feels productive. This is how we can be super busy without getting anything done. To avoid this, plans must serve as the means to an end. We need to define what we want to accomplish before we define how to accomplish it. A goal without a plan makes progress slow. A plan without a goal makes progress impossible. But when you combine the two, anything is possible.
Okay. Let's recap. Resolutions are commitments to outcomes. They aren't practical because outcomes are something we can't control. Instead of resolutions, we want to set meaningful goals. To set meaningful goals, you need three different components: one, goals that define what we want; two, plans that define how we will get what we want; and three, a purpose for why it matters. That is where intentions come in, and that is something that I'll be covering in our next video in the series. So please be sure to subscribe and turn on notifications to find out when it goes live. If you can't wait until then, be sure to check out the accompanying article that I wrote on our blog. Links to that in the comments below. I hope you found this video useful. If so, please like this video and subscribe to our channel. If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments below. Thank you for taking the time. Happy bullet journaling, and I'll see you in the next one.