Dear Matt,
I have a question about deadlines. Sometimes they help me succeed but at other times I feel that they weigh me down and lead to failure. What do you think about them? Should I use them?
Kat N. Cannery
Dear Kat,
All daily goals have a deadline. I prefer to call them lifelines because whenever you get your goal you are rewarded with more energy – and as Dr. Maltz would say, “more life.”
For goals that take a week or a month, timelines can also help, provided you stay focused on the small daily goals that lead to accomplishing them. If there’s ever a hiccup, your daily goal is probably too big. When you make it smaller you’ll gain the necessary momentum to achieve the bigger prize.
As for big, long-term goals, deadlines can create a conundrum and weigh you down, especially when the time frame is five, ten, or twenty years from now.
By and large, I stay away from the long-term as all we have to work with is NOW – the short-term. I also focus on how I practice each day, and by that I mean the mindset I bring to what I’m doing.
If I find myself “going through the motions,” I recognize this as inferior to practicing each day with enthusiasm and desire.
Daily goals light up your life and help you focus; long-term goals often weigh you down and lead to less concentration.
Just as an athlete must play one game at a time to win a championship, you win in life when you focus on winning the game you’re playing today, which leads you to the finals.
Matt Furey
