Is commitment really necessary to succeed in life? 

Commitment is the glue that binds our desires to our actions, it’s hard to gather but if set is tough to break.  Organisations crave it.  Sportspeople live and breathe it.  Business leaders and motivators espouse it.  Spiritualists consider it essential (but might call it faith) and our personal relationships demand it.  Commitment as a concept exists in all aspects of our lives and without it… you’ll get nowhere fast.  So how is your current level of commitment helping you out in the things that are important to you?  And perhaps more importantly, how can you improve your commitment. 

I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on this topic but my view is that commitment is ABSOLUTELY essential in order to succeed in life. 

In fact, I’m starting to think that commitment may actually be one of the biggest predictors of your ultimate success.  Now I know there are loads of analogies and metaphors out there about getting what you focus on, about really valuing what it is that you’re going after, about using plans to achieve what you want, about tapping into your sense of purpose.  That’s all good stuff and highly relevant but I’m not talking about that today.  I’m talking about good old fashioned blood, sweat and tears ‘commitment’.   

As defined in an online dictionary commitment is defined as either:

• A promise or agreement to do something in the future
• Being bound emotionally/intellectually to a course of action or to another person/other persons.

So in essence, it’s about an agreement that something will be done and the resolve (or staying power) to see it through, to stick with it and make sure it happens. 

I want you to think about your own situation.  What is it that you’ve committed to?  Is it your financial situation, saving for a holiday, trying to keep the winter warmer belly off this year, getting ahead in your career, being a better manager, spending more time with your friends or on your hobbies?  You can leave your comments here on our blog.   

Now for those of you who are having no troubles sticking to your commitments, that’s great.  What I’d love you to share with me and our other readers is what approaches you take to make sure that those things you commit to actually get done?  Especially when things are difficult or unpleasant? 

Now, for those of you who are struggling to remain committed to your goals, here are a few ideas.  Please keep in mind that these ideas all assume some level of planning and thinking has gone into establishing said goal and laying out a course of action for you to achieve it. 

Check With The Plan.  Make sure you have a plan, are still on track with the plan and that it is still fit for purpose. 

Revisit The Goal.  Are the goals still inspiring?  Do you still want them? 

Conduct a Scan.  Have a look at your situation, the environment you’re in.  Look for what’s different; it may give you some clues as to what’s eroding your commitment.   What can you do about what has changed?  What insights does that generate for you?  Example:  Change of seasons impacts early morning starts and exercise options pretty significantly.   

Increase Your Accountability. In some case’s simply enlisting the help of a friend or family member can help your commitment enormously.  You’re less likely to stand your friend up who’s on the corner waiting to go to the gym with you than you are if you’re on your own.   

Get Some Professional Help.  If your goal is really important to you and watching it slip away causes some distress, then perhaps you need to get some professional help.  Personal trainers help with exercise, financial planners help with money, therapists help with our emotions and behaviour.  There are plenty of well qualified people who can help whatever the topic.  If it (your goal) is really important to you perhaps you’ve underinvested in your commitment to achieve it? 

Check your reasons.  Understanding and emotionally connecting with the “why” you want to achieve a certain goal is a powerful motivator and can rekindle a flagging commitment.  Here’s what someone told me to do.  Try it and see if it works for you.   

Step 1.           Write down your 1, 3, 5 & 10 year goals... all of them.

Step 2.           Choose your top four in each category. 

Step 3.           List your reasons why you want the top 16 goals.  

For each of the top 16 (4 for each timeframe) write down all the reasons why that goal is important to you, the reasons why you want it.  It stands to reason that if you can’t come up with some really good reasons… reasons that will inspire you to action then the motivation for achieving that goal isn’t as strong as it needs to be for your commitment to weather all storms.  In this case ask yourself.  “Do I really want this goal?”  

So, if you’re struggling to stick to a plan, or failing to get traction on your important projects, maybe it’s your reason for doing the task in the first place that’s not quite lined up??   

Let me know your thoughts on this topic, I’m very interested in it.  You can post your comments on our blog or respond to this newsletter. 

As always, the tips and approaches above are sometimes enough to get unstuck but many of our clients need additional support and guidance.  If you would like to talk more about how we can help you with your plans and ambitions please feel free to give our office a call on 0402 054 303. 

For more information on our short blast programs please click here.

Have a great July and do your best with all your endeavours.

Warm Regards

Sean