We all strive for something or the other and we are willing to work for it. 

I so believe in the quotation by Coleman Cox, “I am a great believer in luck. The harder I work, the more of it I seem to have.” Sometimes though, the best laid plans fail, despite our hard work. What do we do then?

Take for example the case of a kid who did not make it to the school he/she desired? What next! 

2020 did that to a lot of us, it put a spanner in our works. The dreams that we were about to realize in 2020, the ones that we were really close to achieving, now seem to be a distant reality. So, we come to the same question: What next?

I believe it is time to relook at your goals! Just like the kid who did not make the school of his/her choice, we may need to reset our immediate targets and make sure that we score some wins! It is not that we will not achieve the long-term goals, maybe we will achieve even more, only the path must be different now. This is the real “agility”, that the whole world has been talking about for a while now.

There is only so much energy!

All of us have finite energy, and we cannot afford to waste it by worrying about our situation or feeling like a victim, “What was my fault?” The pandemic has affected the majority of the people, working professionals, business leaders, entrepreneurs. The future is not really recognizable; so much of it seems to have changed. We must reflect upon the past events and how things are unfolding, but only to take some lessons from them and look for hints to the direction we must take. 

Whenever you feel like a victim, ask yourself– What knowledge can I gain from this experience? What success looks like for me? How can I be successful despite the difficulties?

My GPS!

Take some time to reflect deeper and see what strengths helped you to sail through these tough times in 2020. Stay connected to those strengths consciously while you are resetting you goals for 2021. Connecting to our strengths rather than fears helps us acquire a growth mindset.  Growth mindset allows us to look beyond what limits us, it allows us to look for possibilities when plans and backup plans fail. Let us keep moving!  

New Lens 

A lot has changed, so it is important to understand what changes are required in your vision for yourself, and the direction you must take.  Reflect on what has changed in your immediate circumstances-personal/professional, business environment etc.? What are the new opportunities you see? And if you are not able to see these on your own, do talk to a senior or a peer in the same industry and get another perspective before you do your exercise.

Goals must motivate us!

When you re-look at your goals, make sure these are your own goals and you feel motivated to work for them. Sometimes, we set goals that look ideal or look good in your circumstances. I encourage you to ask yourself how motivated you feel when you look at your goals?   When you are motivated, you stay the course and keep on achieving more, crossing one milestone after the other. Keep reflecting on- what small (it must be really small) step would take you in the direction you planned for yourself? It could be as simple as having another conversation with your manager on your performance, enrolling in a program, talking to HR prime for an application for a training program etc. 

A self-fulfilling prophecy!

Consider an entrepreneur who is meeting with potential investors for his/her startup and seeks to win them over. If he/she has worked hard on this and believes that the investors will love his/her ideas and will be keen to invest, it will likely make him more confident. The confidence with which he/she presents influences the investors in the positive way and he/she eventually finds the right investors for financing for his/her startup.

A confidence in yourself that leads to behaviors that ultimately prove the belief or expectation true is a self-fulfilling prophecy. When used positively, this can be a great tool for professional success.

Also do acknowledge yourself for all the work and efforts you put in towards your success.

Well, it is a time to reset your goals, create new milestones, believe in yourself, and get on with it!