Motivational speakers have always confused me a little bit because they’re sort of a cross between preacher and pitchman.
I couldn’t sell water in the Sahara desert, and no amount of motivation is going to make me believe any differently. That said, I enjoyed the talk by Patrick Snow Friday morning at the Greater Marysville-Tulalip Chamber of Commerce.
Snow, of Bainbridge Island, clearly is of the preacher and pitchman mode, with glib phrases such as “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.”
But as you sort through his stories of kids surviving cancer and self-deprecating jokes about extra weight, he has what appears to me to be some solid advice about meeting your goals.
Since today’s goal for me is to wrap up this column, let me share some of Snow’s ideas.
The first is to figure out what it is you want to do. Better health? Better wealth? Better relationships?
Snow says he has a sheet on which he writes down his goals every year. He calculates that he nails about 70 percent of them annually, which he acknowledged to the teachers in the crowd might only be considered an average grade in the public school system.
But for those who aren’t setting any goals at all, 70 percent is a great average.
I try to set goals for myself regularly, but I’m often sidetracked by trying to figure out just how I’m going to get there and how I’ll deal with all the problems I’ll run into.
Snow isn’t worried about that. He just suggests that you get started without knowing how you’ll get to the end.
“Not knowing how is OK,” he said. “Because it will present itself.”
Snow suggests you should really dream about what will make you happy in life.
“The problem is that we only dream while we’re asleep,” he said. “Think about what you want. Think about what are your dreams and write them down.”
Snow talks about freeing your mind of doubt and going after your goals a step at a time. He also recommends that you talk to people a lot about what you’re trying to do, because you never know who might help you get to the next step.
“When you decide what you really want, self-doubt is the only roadblock,” he said, again adding one of his pitchman phrases, “Destiny happens by choice, not chance.”
If you’re operating a business, Snow recommends that you look for partners to team up with for business promotions.
But in the end, he said, you have to learn which risks you’re personally willing to take.
Then its just a matter of taking action to achieve your goals.
“Ideas without action are worthless,” Snow said.
With Snow’s ideas, I’ve taken action and met my goal. Column delivered.
Mike Benbow: 425-339-3459; benbow@heraldnet.com.
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