Have you ever read the book ‘Dream Big‘ by Bob Goff? We recently listened to it on audio, and he said something that struck us; if you don’t write down your ambitions, you won’t attain them. He compared it to why we shouldn’t trust our memory — you have this great idea, and it’s there one minute and gone the next. And wow, we’ve all had those moments, right? So is there power in writing down your goals and ambitions?
YES! Of course, there is.
In this post, we want to give you five reasons why writing down your goals and ambitions is a great idea and an action we hope you will take.
Try out this activity.
Before we dive into the ‘meat and potatoes,’ here’s a little appetizer we hope you try. For the next seven days, write down the goals and ambitions you would like to achieve. Please don’t filter these with limiting beliefs based on current circumstances, etc. Go big here — dreams, goals and ambitions, big or small.
What you can expect from doing this activity won’t be miraculously these noted things being delivered at your doorstep, but instead, here’s what you can expect;
- A more profound clarity and understanding of what the goals and ambitions are
- Writing them down (repeatedly) will help your focus shift your daily activities to support them.
The act of thinking about them, writing them down, repetition — they all favour supporting those big dreams. And by completing this for seven consecutive days, you are creating a habit that will also help the process.
Are you open to trying this? If so, definitely let us know in the comments below!
Now, for the five reasons we promised.
There is power in Writing Down Your Goals and Ambitions
Reason #1 — Helps Increase your Motivation
One of the main reasons you’ll experience increased motivation is related to self-accountability. This action of self-accountability happens the moment you commit on paper your intent to reach an end goal. When you put pen to paper, it’s as if you’re subconsciously giving yourself a call to action — and you are far more likely to work towards it when you’ve written it down.
Reason #2 — Helps you Concentrate your Efforts
An unwritten goal or ambition will just get jumbled with all your other wants and wishes. When it’s unwritten, it becomes scattered, along with everything that runs through your mind daily (and if you’re anything like us — that is a lot of stuff!)
However, when you write your goals and ambitions down, your intention to achieve that goal becomes focused. And the more laser-focused you are on achieving a goal, the more concentrated your efforts to achieve it will be.
Reason #3 — Makes you 42% More Likely to Achieve
You have a 42% higher chance of reaching your goals and ambitions when you start writing them down. So yes, writing them down is worth the effort. After all, you could start by writing them in the comments following this article as a great place to get started — you’re here anyway!
Reason #4 — Helps you Tap into the Full Potential of your Brain
When you dream, desire, and/or long for something that you want, you are only using the imaginative right side of your brain. However, when you actively write your goals and ambitions down, when you start becoming more apparent and begin defining and giving life to them, you begin to use the left side of your brain.
Think about that — if you could use your entire brain to nurture those goals and ambitions, why wouldn’t you?
Reason #5 — ‘Success Leaves Clues’
We understand not everyone longs to be a billionaire, own a Fortune 500 company, travel the world or attain a ridiculous level of success … However, if successful people have mastered writing down their goals and ambitions and ultimately achieving them — it’s safe to say it’s a good bet that the process would work for dreams of all shapes and sizes, right?
Learning from others who are where we’d like to be or who have demonstrated a pattern of success are the people we want to learn from. And take a page out of their book along the way.
Above all else, remember, whenever you achieve one of your goals or ambitions — regardless of its size — take the time to celebrate it! Own your victory and prepare for the next one.
