I’ll be the first to admit that until recently, I was never much one for goal setting.

I suppose it crossed my mind from time to time but I never really thought too much about it.

I obtained my Master’s degree many years ago, that was a goal. And since that time, I’ve had some goals around travel and reading but that was the extent of it.

Running a Half-Marathon

It crossed my mind a few times that it would be great to run a marathon. But I figured that there was no way I would ever be able to do that.

Then, in 2018, I started thinking about setting a goal for myself and my mind drifted back to running a marathon. Again, that seemed way out of my league, but after some research, I found I could do a run/walk plan for a half marathon. So, I signed up for one in Kuwait in November of 2018.

I remember those training sessions as painful, for many reasons, and I have to say I did suffer physically.

But I kept going. And there was a point, with the marathon a few weeks away, I suddenly knew that I would do this. I flew to Kuwait and cried when I went to pick up my race bib and t-shirt. I was never prouder of myself. Running the race the next day just seemed like icing on the cake. Although technically, it was a lot of work and painful.

I still run. I was 6 weeks away from running my first marathon in Prague when COVID started shutting everything down. I’ve run one more half-marathon and I plan on running another later this year.

But I digress. The point is, that journey for me was extraordinary. I still sometimes think back and think who was that woman who decided to do that. I thank her because she has now set me up for everything I’ve done since and everything I will do in my future.

Goal Setting as a Spiritual Practice

Goal setting is one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves.

Achieving the goal is not so that we can be happier than we are today. We set goals in order to evolve and become better and bigger versions of ourselves.

Do you have to set goals? Of course not.

But, if you want to find out get to know yourself on a deeper level, and discover how great you really are, goal setting is an amazing way to find out.

Setting goals and going after them will present obstacles and challenges that force us to dig deep to overcome them. And they give our brain something to focus on.

An amazing life doesn’t just happen to us. Our lives don’t become richer without focus and determination.

Setting that first goal of running a half-marathon opened my eyes and my mind to the possibilities that I tended to ignore previously.

My life and my world is expanding at a rate that I never could have imagined. I set bigger goals for myself and I don’t dismiss ideas now if they cross my mind. I dream more. More importantly, I don’t think of them as just dreams anymore, but possibilities.

Goal setting is the gateway to the life you want to live.

If you want help knowing what you want and going after it, I offer free one hour coaching sessions that can help gain some clarity and focus that will start you on your way.

Sign up here and get on my calendar so we can talk.