We’ve all heard of S.M.A.R.T. Goals but have you ever heard of S.T.U.P.I.D. goals? And I’ll be honest, it’s not my acronym, not my idea (thank you to Shane Krider for introducing the concept). I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be completely insane about my goals instead of smart. I really don’t consider myself smart in any way, shape or form. I failed High School by 2 points. In fact, I repeated my final year of High School and still failed. I’m far from being the sharpest tool in the shed, and yet I consider myself to be well – pretty successful. So what is the difference between being ‘smart’ and being ‘stupid’? Let’s look …
Firstly, let’s investigate the acronyms themselves.
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable
- Realistic
- Timely
- Specific
- Timely
- Unbelievable
- Prioritized
- Intoxicating
- Date Specific
What comes up for you when you read those? I actually get more excited about being stupid! LOL But seriously, let’s dig a bit deeper.
Both are specific. And that’s super important. If you don’t set your car GPS when you leave home to go somewhere you’ve never been before, do you think you’ll arrive at your destination? Of course you won’t! It’s the same with your goals. If you are not specific about what you want, how do you think the Universe/Spirit/God will deliver it? Not possible, so be as specific as you can. If it’s a car you want – be specific about the year, make, model, colour, trim colour, what sort of wheels does it have, sound system. Go deep. Measurable kind of takes care of itself so to me, it’s a mute point. You’ll know when you’ve achieved it and what it took to achieve. Attainable – I mean, really? Who the hell sets a goal they know they will achieve? What would be the point at all in setting a goal if you knew it was well within your grasp. That’s not a goal, that’s just an intention and those two a very, very different things. And realistic? What the? We are entrepreneurs, we are far from being realistic. If we were not completely ridiculous about what we set out to achieve and be a visionary, how do you think anything would change? Setting goals is all about stretching yourself out of your comfort zone – nothing is ever achieved within it. Realistic is for the masses. Realistic is for the mediocre. Realistic is for the afraid. Seriously – realistic is for absolute wimps! Such a wishy washy word. I don’t live my life in the ‘real’ world – because I want to live an extraordinary life and that does not exist in the world of the realist. Look at those around you who call themselves realists – are they positive, uplifting people who encourage you to achieve your goals? I bet now. Timely – well that’s important too. If you don’t put a timestamp on your goal, it will remain firmly in the future. I set a very specific goal last November to double my income in 6 months’ time and guess what? I did it. I wanted to buy myself a new car before the end of the year and I did it two weeks’ ago. I set myself deadlines to pay for certain things and sometimes I might miss the mark by a week or two but I always get it done. Is your goal unbelievable? Not to you – but to others. Not that you are going to care what others think about your goals but set yourself something that when you achieve it, you know you will be the best version of yourself by having achieved it and you will feel different. You will feel as though you can conquer Mt Everest. It propels you higher and higher. That’s called being unbelievable to the masses. Prioritize your goal – how important is it to you? If it isn’t, then you won’t take the necessary actions required to get the job done. Do you feel completely intoxicated when you set yourself this goal. My ultimate goal is to buy a French chateau for cash and live there 6 months’ of the year. When I made that goal I had absolutely no clue whatsoever as to how I was going to make that happen – only that’s what I wanted. And the how has come about and I feel very confident that I’ll be able to make it happen. Now I’ve never lived in another country before so the idea absolutely terrifies me – especially the fact that my French is far from parfait! But I now see a way and am working on it knowing that the Universe/God/Spirit will take care of the rest. And of course, I’ve set myself a time of moving in by April 2024. And it’s excites me beyond explanation. That is called being intoxicated and setting something that is completely unbelievable to the masses!
So give this a go today. Start writing down your S.T.U.P.I.D. goals. Go all out. What’s a car that you really would love to own? Where would you really love to live if money was no option? How would your life be different? What airline would you fly if you could and would you fly Business or First Class? Where would you holiday? And don’t say Florida when you could say Bora Bora. Don’t choose a Ford when you really want a Maserati. Don’t say EasyJet when you really want to fly Etihad’s The Residence First Class apartment. Be ridiculous. Be unreasonable. Be unbelievable. Be exceptional. Be extraordinary.