A Unique Way To Effectively Set Goals For Writing

There is a lot of information out there about how to set good goals. And for unknown reasons a lot of that information sets my teeth completely on edge. Yes, I know they should be ‘Specific – Measurable – Attainable – Realistic – Timely’ (aka SMART), but who wants to be smart when setting goals? Where is the fun in that?
I think goal setting, at least the major, end goals, must be exciting and depict the life and death nature of it all. So, I think they should be more like an Indiana Jones movie than a strategy.
How does my little analogy work? Follow me!
(Helps if you have seen Raiders of the Lost Ark, or at least a take off of it. If you haven’t, just YouTube ‘Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark Famous Scene’.)
You should first see the goal before you like an idol (this is simply for illustration purposes, as a Christian I never advocate idolatry, unless you like plagues). Can you see it? Gleaming on its little pedestal asking to be reached? Awesome.
At this moment look at the bag of sand you have been carrying and work out if you have sufficient sand for the weight of your idol. Sand is the every day substance that you will need to give up: time, resources, money, etc. Is your idol heavy? What quantity will you have to give up in order to attain it? Have you got enough?
You are tense for a little bit as you slowly place the sand for the goal and rejoice when you pull it free – you have just agreed to a goal you think you can achieve.
Hold on! It’s not the end. You still need to escape from the cave together with your goal to realize it. That doesn’t count until you are safely home with the idol. And everyone knows it’s once you have decided on a goal that everything in your life tries to prevent you from reaching it.
You begin running. Next comes your first pit with stakes or snakes (not snacks as I originally wrote, except if tempting snacks could very well distract you from your goalhmmm, snacks).
Some kindly person yells to you that you should throw them your goal and they will give you the mundane life item to get you across this barrier. Maybe they say to give up the goal for a sensible job, just for a bit so you can pay the bills.
Do you throw them the idol? Well, if you do, you still need to escape the cave alive, and you do not achieve anything at the end!
Perhaps you are fearless and you keep your hands on it, working out a way through yourself. But then life might throw a massive, rolling boulder towards you. Bare in mind, as long as you are running towards the entrance, it’s all good. Just don’t forget your hat.
Of course, when you break out with your goal, there will be a thousand people pointing arrows and spears of criticism that want to cut you down to size, so it is always best to have an escape plan such as your own plane that you can fly off and enjoy your achievement.
That is the way I think goals should be dealt with. A lot more exciting and adventurous than being SMART.
Likewise, in case you make a goal that isn’t worth the sand you are trading for it, or risking your life to cross the pit for, or perhaps facing all the tribesmen attempting to kill you, then you haven’t really got a good enough goal. Stick with your sand and your day job.