With your goal or problem in mind, let me share a simple step that you can take, at this very moment, that will shift your thinking from goal or problem to potential steps that you can take to achieve that goal or solve that problem: just ask! In other words, take your goal or problem and turn it into a question.
By way of example, let’s say that, during these pandemic times, you’ve found yourself feeling restless and bored, frustrated, or filled with angst, and that all of those calorie-laden, comfort foods in your refrigerator and pantry have been calling your name . . . constantly. Chances are you’ve heard of the “freshman fifteen,” the roughly fifteen pounds that many incoming freshmen tend to gain during their first year in college. But have you heard of the “COVID nineteen?”
All joking aside, if you’ve turned into a junk-food junkie in the midst of the pandemic, you might find yourself feeling kind of sluggish right about now. And knowing that we’ll likely be in this situation for the foreseeable future, maybe you’ve realized that you’re not doing yourself any favors by continuing down this prepackaged, processed food path.
So your problem might be, “I’m not as health conscious as I’d like to be” and your goal might be “to become more health conscious.” You can turn those statements into a question by asking “how can I become more health conscious?”
Do you see what we just did by turning those statements into a question? We shifted our focus from the problem or goal to potential ways in which we might solve that problem or achieve that goal; this is because a question, by its very nature, invites answers—possible solutions that can lead you into action.
Exercise 2: Crafting a Goal that’s SMART, SMARTER, or SMARTEST