Setting Goals: Reasonable And Realistic Are In The Eyes Of The Goal Setter

When I was a brand new real estate agent, my broker was providing guidance in the art of setting goals for my first year in the business. 

She started by asking how much money I planned to make.  I answered that I’d like to double what I was earning in my old job with the federal government , and that was at the top of the government pay scale. 

But there was a problem, she thought.  Such an ambitious goal might not be realistic, and I could frustrate myself trying to reach it.  Perhaps, she suggested, that I could plan to equal my previous earnings during my first year.

I decided to ignore her advice.  And I failed to make my “unrealistic” goal.  But I missed it by only a few thousand dollars.  So here’s the math.

In those days, (the early 1980’s) government employees earned a maximum of a little over $50,000 a year.  I set a goal of $100,000.  I worked my butt off and earned $96,000, or $46,000 more than if I’d been more “reasonable” or “realistic”.

I certainly didn’t feel like a failure because I didn’t quite reach my goal.  And my manager was pretty stunned when the final numbers came out.

And I had to wonder.  I’ve always been pretty goal oriented.  If I’d set a lower goal, would I have worked so hard and earned as much?

Of course, setting the goal is just one part of meeting it.  You also need a plan. 

Oh, and you need to get out from behind your computer and list and sell houses!