Why do so many of us never start down the road to what we really want? Why do we let fear and doubt stop us from reaching our goals? One of the reasons why so many people never follow through on their dreams and aspirations is that they are too busy thinking about the 'how' before they have thought about the 'what'.

Lets say it has always been a dream for you to start your own business. But whenever you begin thinking about it seriously, your thoughts turn to all the things that could go wrong, or all the hard work and risk involved in being self-employed. You start asking questions like: What if I can't get finance? How will I cope if my income drops? Do I have the skills and experience to run my own company? How can I own a business when I know nothing about accounting?

Thinking about how you are going to achieve something before you know what you want to achieve can lead you into a quagmire of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, and stall your progress before you have even begun!

The first step to reaching a goal is to identify exactly what it is you want - and I mean exactly. Make your goal challenging but achievable, and make it as specific as you can.

"To get rich by having my own business" is not a goal - it's a daydream. Add numbers and dates to your goal; make it bold, clear and concise. For example, your goal should be something like "To have my own successful business in central Auckland called Flora's Flowers Ltd earning at least $50,000 net per year by 1st December 2010".

Once you have written down your goal, take a good hard look at it. Is it what you really want? Is it realistic? Do you think you can reach it if you really put in the effort? You may need to adjust your goal until you are truly happy with it.

Now that you have something concrete to work towards, you will find your thinking change from "It's too overwhelming" to "How do I make this work?". You will start to see obstacles as challenges, and hard work as enjoyable tasks.

When you have a dream, don't get ahead of yourself. First, turn it into a goal, and then put sound strategies in place to get you to where you want to be. Always think about the "what" before the "how".

If you live in Auckland, and would like to find out about personal coaching, visit www.eclipselifecoaching.com or call Kris on (09) 629 6080.
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