Achieve by giving up

Setting great goals, pursuing them with focus and maintaining motivation are all critical elements of success. [Of course!]

But there’s another aspect of goal striving that you don’t often hear about: Giving up.

Giving up tends to be viewed negatively, as reflecting a lack of drive or ambition or commitment. And that is curious. Because if it is done consciously and strategically, giving up can actually encourage greater achievement and boost psychological and physical well-being.

Super!

So folks, here it is: Goal Disengagement 101: How to Achieve By Giving Up.

First, it is important that you give up selectively: the goal you’re giving up on has to be too hard to achieve [no room here for: I just can’t be bothered].

Then, it is critical that you actively disengage. Giving up but staying committed to the goal will just make you feel rotten.

Finally, it is important to choose an alternative. If you give up and don’t identify a new focus you will find yourself feeling aimless, empty and lonely. ergh. Let go of your original goal and choose either to:

+ Pursue a scaled back version of the original goal (one that it is actually achievable);

+ Form a new goal altogether; or

+ Reinstate your original aim but commit to a completely different path to achieving it.

Giving up is often interpreted as failure. But actively disengaging and consciously choosing an alternative is anything but a loser proposition.

Tags: achievement, goals