How committed are you to your goals?

According to Webster, commitment is the state or an instance of being obligated or emotionally impelled.

In www.wiktionary.com, commitment is defined as being bound emotionally/intellectually to a course of action or to another person/other persons.

And in his book, The Fifth Discipline, Peter Senge states that someone is committed when they want it, will make it happen and will create whatever "laws" (structures and systems) are needed to do so.

At Impossible Futures, we believe someone is committed to a goal and / or vision, when they are willing to do what ever it takes to make it happen. But it is important to note that as coaches, we do not judge or rate the commitment of our clients towards their goals or vision - that's not what we are there for. We simply ask them the question, "Are your actions demonstrating the commitment that you say you have?" And help them see the truth.

Because when it comes to commitment, saying it isn't enough.
Deeds and actions speak volumes.

Interestingly, when asked, most people will tell you they are committed to their company and its goals and / or vision. They will tell you that they are doing everything they "can" do to reach the vision - it's just that little things keep getting in the way.

Sound familiar?

In reality, very few people do everything they "can" do, they only do what they are willing to do - they only do what is convenient. There is a big difference between the two. And the difference is usually the difference between reaching your goal - or NOT reaching your goal.

To make my point a little more tangible, let me give you a couple of examples that stand out. Both are from the world of sports, not because they are the only ones that apply, but because most people can relate to them. But these examples are only a very small sample from a long list of stories where people have overcome very large odds, simply because they did "what ever it took" to reach their goals.

A little over a week ago the professional golf world witnessed commitment to a goal, unlike anything it has ever seen. Tiger Woods, with a torn ACL and two stress fractures in his knee, played through pain and did "whatever it took" to reach his goal, which he told his doctor when he stated, "I'm playing the U.S. Open, and I'm going to win." Yes, Tiger has talent that most of us only dream of, but he also has a commitment that is second to none. It would have been easy for Tiger Woods, with a searing pain ripping through his knee, to bow out of the tournament - no one would have questioned him. But he didn't, he committed to a goal and made it happen.

Likewise, Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, writes about a Triathlete friend of his that is so committed to eating correctly (because he feels it gives him an edge on race day) that he rinses his cottage cheese in a strainer to wash off the fat. Does he need to rinse his cottage cheese? Probably not. But this Triathlete is so committed to reaching his goals that he wants to make sure he leaves nothing to chance.

Now, you and I are lucky, we don't have to play 91 holes of golf with stress fractures and a torn ligament or rinse our cottage cheese to keep our body fat to a minimum (although the cottage cheese thing would probably help me a bit), but we do need to make sure we are leaving nothing on the table when it comes to reaching our goals.

Are you and your employees doing whatever it takes to reach your company's goals and make the corporate vision vision become a reality?

Are you willing to cut the fat out of your budget?

Are you ready to make more phone calls to prosepective customers, even after you've already heard countless "I'm not interested replies."

Are you willing to make a promise / guarantee to your prospective customers that no one else in your business is willing to make?

Think about it.