What is the difference, however between someone who has those setbacks but still over the long term achieves what they set out for and others who get more and more cynical and never achieve the greatness they had hoped for themselves. When you understand the answer to this, you will also know how to easily recouperate from any setback and go into your next project or objective with greater energy, better attitude and with a much higher probability of success.

So here is the answer:
Lots of times we set goals. Goals for sales, income, health, life style, investment, relationships, families, etc. Those goals that you do NOT get, may not have been achieved for one of several reasons: First, perhaps there was no PLAN for how you were going to achieve it. Second, because you had no TEAM to support you in it. Third, it could be because you had low CONFIDENCE in your ability to achieve it because maybe it was too unrealistic for you based upon your current state.

Yet the biggest reason that you may not get some of the things that you set out for is because it was the WRONG GOAL!

Engage Your Spirit
You're thinking, How could it be the wrong goal? Simple. Deep inside, you have something called your spirit. It is that part of you that drives your energy, your passion and your life force. You know what I mean. It's that part of you that picks you up after you have been knocked down, that keeps you going when you are totally spent and that lights up when your two-year old smiles at you and gives you a big hug.

That spirit knows what it wants. It may not be the same thing that your head wants. And if the goal is big and bold and your spirit is not engaged... guess what... aint gonna happen! For example, a client and friend of mine had set some extremely bold income goals for himself. Year after year he was frustrated because he didn't achieve them. He was becoming depressed about it and was considering switching industries.

As a matter of fact his income while it had rose, had now since leveled off and was actually in a slow decline. (Sound familiar to anyone?) So I pulled him aside and began to ask him a few questions. I asked him what things he actually HAD ACHIEVED on the way to this goal that he had not gotten. (This process is one I recommend you do for yourself any time you feel that you are not getting your goals. It is also spelled out in great detail on the Little Voice Management Systems CD. On the CD it is called the Failed Goal Process.)

As he spoke about his accomplishments, I noticed that certain items and events seemed to light him up more than others. When he spoke of being asked to speak at a convention of his peers and when he described the flood of people that came up to him after his presentation, he had a smile from ear to ear and his eyes had the passion of a victorious prize fighter. When he mentioned that he had been recognised as the business leader of the year in his community, a similar energy came over him. Yet along the way he had never quite gotten the income that he was looking for.

Acknowledge and Recognise your Achievements
Here is why. The real win for him, deep inside, was the recognition by his peers and his community for his efforts and achievements. More than the money, what he really wanted was to prove that he could play with the big boys. As a kid he explained that he was a mediocre student, not a great athlete and was never expected by his teachers to aspire to any greatness. As I heard him speak about it, I could see and feel the determination and passion welling up inside. His real goal was to prove that he could achieve greatness. He did it! And once you have done it, there is a part of your spirit or subconscious that then says, Been there done that what's next? I had him acknowledge himself for what he did achieve. (You always are achieving something!!) It was a huge aha for him. It was like unwrapping a present that had always been there.

He admitted that the recognition was better than the money! You see it's like tearing yourself in two. If you do not acknowledge what you are really trying to achieve and keep beating yourself up for the goals that you have not gotten yet, your energy and power will drop big time. You have to have ALL OF YOU engaged if you are going for big goals. If part of your life force is not checked in on them, you haven't a prayer. The reason that you aren't getting some of the things that you want is because it's not what you REALLY want! If you follow the process that I have described here, you will achieve beyond your wildest dreams in half the time!

Crystal Clear Focus
The most successful people around may not be the smartest, but they are crystal clear on what drives them and that is where they focus. So here is how I recommend working with goals so that you can achieve them quickly:

1. Assess your stats

   Look at all your numbers, achievements, finances and activities. Look for patterns to emerge from those stats. They are there. The pattern of successes in your numbers and achievements is your spirit talking to you, giving you powerful road signs as to where you should be going. Out of the chaos of your life, there are some things that work really well. Focus on those things as you set your new goals.

2. Set goals that will leverage the existing success patterns

   If you are generating lots of success through speaking, do more. If you are generating income through referrals, do more. If you are generating lots of business through serving others, do more.

3. Choose your own goals

   Don't set goals for what other people think you should achieve not what your parents, friends, colleagues or family think. That's the kiss of death to success and is set up for frustration. This is only between you and your spirit!

4. Create a plan for each of the goals.

   Set key milestone events on paper that will help you measure your progress along the way.

5. Assemble a powerful team that will support you, push you and be a great resource for you. Nothing great was ever achieved alone.
6. Create a Code of Honour for yourself that holds you accountable and committed to the mission.
7. Celebrate and acknowledge all wins along the way and follow the process for assessing successes along the way when you do NOT achieve a goal. It will help redirect you onto the path of what you really want deep inside.
8. Find out what your spirit really wants in the first place
   My friend Jayne Johnson hosts the most brilliant 2-day goals workshop that I have ever done. She has a process in which you actually discover the goals that your spirit really wants and even ranks the top twelve in the order of their probability for success. It is the same program in which Robert Kiyosaki wrote his plan for Rich Dad Poor Dad and in which I did the same for SalesDogs and for building my family. I go to the course every chance I can get.
9. Wait for the magic to appear
   That's right. If you follow the power, passion and deliberate messages that part of you already knows, you will succeed beyond your conscious expectations. You have to be patient, vigilant and commit to the processes that I have referred to. It is your destiny and divine right to win! You deserve it. Don't beat yourself up for trying to achieve goals that other people want for you. Have what you really want! Be awesome and outrageous.

Blair Singer, author of the book SalesDogs® and The ABC's Of Building a Business Team That Wins in the Rich Dad Advisors series, is one of the premier trainers in sales today.

www.salesdogs.com or contact Blair via Email at info@salesdogs.com