In 1519 at the height of Spain’s colonial era, Hernando Cortes arrived at the Southern tip of Mexico with 508 soldiers, 100 sailors and 16 horses to conquer a nation of 6 million Aztec people.
When all his men were ashore, he ordered them to burn all the boats and told them that the only way back was to win or die. There’d be no retreat. In the end, Cortes’ men fought and won, if only out of sheer desperation for their lives.
The moral of the story aside; this is a powerful story of committing to a vision.
How many of us are willing to lead with such single minded commitment to a vision?
How to commit to your goals
1. Get clear on what you want to achieve
Write down your goals and become crystal clear about the end result and the time frame in which you want to achieve this goal.
In order to know what actions you have to take, you have to get clear on what you want to achieve.
To quote Ernest Hemmingway, “Life breaks everyone, some people are stronger in the broken places.”
2. Be at peace with uncertainty
By ordering his men to burn the boats, Cortes, sent them a very strong message – we're in this together and there are only 2 options: live or die.
Take a risk. There’s no certainty in life, sometimes we put our heart and soul into something and it doesn’t work out.
The goal isn’t as important as what we learn and who we become on the road to reaching it.
3. Create an action plan
Once you know what you want to achieve, you have to set an action plan and decide what you’re going to do to make that a goal a reality.
Determine what you need to make the goal a reality and who you can ask to help you with the tasks in your action plan.
The next step after that is to take constant action.
4. Write your goal down and look at it every day
Russell Simmons says you should freeze your vision in your mind and keep it with you at all times.
It’s the same with your goals – freeze frame them in your mind, write them on a piece of paper and look at them everyday so you don’t forget what you’re working towards.
5. Trust yourself and the universe
Paolo Coehlo says, “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
Commitment means never giving up but it doesn’t mean being stubborn.
To reach your goals you have to have faith in yourself and the universe but you also have to be willing to adapt to situations that arise.
Be willing to innovate and change course and open windows when doors close. And be willing to carve out new doors if there’s a brick wall.
It’s never about the destination, but always about the journey and who we become on that journey.
How do you remain committed to your goals?
What are some tips you can share?
Let know in the comments section below.
