“I want to be a millionaire.” “I want to get all A’s this semester,” “I want to lose ten pounds.” We love to set goals for ourselves, dreaming of what life would be like if we just accomplished that next thing. I’m a “big goal” kind of person – things that seem out of reach motivate me to push forward and achieve, and I don’t mind working towards something for a long time.
The problem is that most of our goals aren’t any good. In fact they may even be sabotaging our lives.
Measurements Aren’t Goals
We set goals because we have a vague sense of what a better life might look like. Wealth, achievement, health – these are things that when you don’t have them, look awfully attractive and worth aspiring towards. They are, and we should. But the same thing happens to almost everyone I’ve spoken to about this, including myself: we lose track of the real goal and instead focus on the measurement.
- $1,000,000 is a number. Dollar bills are useless in their own sense. We don’t actually dream of having a huge stack of green paper, we dream of the things we could do (or stop doing) if we had it. Your bank balance is a measure of your financial wealth – and wealth is something that’s built through hard work and careful managing of your finances.
- 4.0 is a number. No one actually cares about a set of digits written on a transcript. Those numbers are a measurement (at least they try to be) of how much you’ve learned about a particular subject. The grade isn’t the goal, learning the material is – and higher grades are a measurement of how well you learned the material and can do something new with it.
- 10 pounds is a number. It is one measurement of overall fitness (though its infinitely more complex that most people trying to lose weight give credit for). A person is no more or less valuable if they lose or gain ten pounds. Being healthy is a great thing to work towards – and the reading on the scale is one measurement of our progress.
While we’re at it, we should be careful about what the measurement even means. My weight fluctuates daily based on how much water I drink – am I less healthy if I drink a lot of water today? My weight doesn’t account for weather I’m losing fat or muscle – I can starve myself to weigh just about anything, but that doesn’t mean I am healthy.
Measurements are out of your control
I’ve been working on improving my fitness since I moved to Las Vegas. One aspect of that is losing unnecessary weight. Every morning I step on the scale and see a number. There is nothing I can do to change the number that the scale reads (other than manipulating it to display an inaccurate value).
In the same way, I can’t actually control the purchasing power of the dollars in my bank account – the market does that. Nor could I control the grade that my professor wrote down in response to an assignment I submitted – the professor did that.
What can we control?
We cannot in a moment change the value that the “scale” reads. But we can control our actions.
- If I take actions that tend to lead to weight loss (eating properly, exercising regularly) I will see that number change in the direction I want it to. I have control over my actions, and the outcomes of those actions are a natural result.
- If we take actions that tend to cause us to learn, we will learn and our scores will increase. If we take actions that tend to feel good but don’t lead to learning, it’s the equivalent of me eating nothing but bacon and donuts.
- If we take actions that add value, we’ll receive a paycheck. If we then take actions that lead to building wealth, we will see our account balances move in the direction we want them to.
We don’t control outcomes. We control actions. Take actions that tend to lead to the outcome you desire.
Focus on the Process, not the Result
When I look at the scale each morning, it gives me feedback. Not about my quality as a person, but about my process. If the numbers are moving in the direction I want them to, my process is working. If they aren’t, then my process is broken and should be adjusted.
The same goes for your finances – your bank account balance gives you feedback. It tells you how much value you’re producing compared to how much you’re consuming.
Your grades work the same way. Don’t consider a low score as a failure (despite the fact that we literally brand it as that when we use words like “pass” or “fail”). A low score is simply a measure of the process you’re following to learn.
In any case, don’t prop up unhealthy numerical goals that are out of your control. Reflect on the process that you’re following and ask if the numbers are moving in the direction you hope they will. If not, then it’s time to inspect your actions to find out what isn’t working.
