Most people are so tied up in goals that they fail to focus on the more important things. Life is more about achieving a lengthy list of goals. More importantly, you need to sharpen your focus and get better results rather than just dissipating your energy in every corner. There are several people who are successful and rich yet they do not enjoy contentment. This is because they lack focus on what they are and would like to be.
You need to decide how you see yourself and how you wish others to see you. Based on these you need to pick values that reflect that image. There is no predefined set of values that you can adhere in general. You need to fix on three values and make them the core of all your beliefs and actions.
This requires significant personal alteration because your every action has to reflect those chosen values. Any decision, personal or professional, that does not fall within the scope of these three values needs to be reconsidered before application.
Another thing you need to understand is the difference between a goal and a mission. Goals are the milestones in a mission. A personal mission is an ongoing process that may or may not complete during your lifetime. This is basically an ideal that you strive for. For instance, ending world poverty is a good and worthwhile mission yet a nearly impossible one. Most people do not have any mission at all, just a bunch of goals.
The point is that these simple factors are what lend focus to life and also encourage a greater ability for accomplishment and the contentment that follows. Choosing goals carefully and focusing on the mission is the secret of successful people. Setting a dozen personal goals is less effective than choosing a couple of them from that dozen and dedicating yourself to their fulfillment. Selective focusing will save more time for other goals instead of wasting more time through dissipation of your efforts. Establishing focus is also important so that you do not waste time doing things that may be related to your goals and mission but not critical for them.
Most people complain that they never have time to pursue what they think is important but the fact is that they spend way too much time doing things that are completely unimportant and then turn around and say they have no time left. This happens because people see their tasks in order of convenience and not importance.
Successful people work for fewer hours a day not because they have succeeded but because they are focused and clear on what they need to do. That is why they finish their tasks sooner and have more spare time.
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