1 Proven Way to Increase Your Odds of Success
As I was preparing to write this week, I found myself reflecting on one simple principle that is proven to drastically improve your chances of success. Here it is…
Write it down.
Have you ever tried to remember a grocery list without writing it down? If you have, then most likely you’ve also felt the pain of returning home without the single most important ingredient needed for dinner (and probably the main reason you went to the store in the first place).
In a study that took place at Dominican University, Dr. Gail Matthews found that writing down your dreams and goals on a regular basis will increase your success at achieving them by 42%.. Just like a shopping list can help you find all the items you need during your grocery experience when distractions, advertisements, and samples bombard your memory, having a written goal can help you stay focused on what matters most to you when the clutter of life begs for your attention. Dr. Matthews highlights the benefit of writing your goal on a card and keeping it in your pocket where it is easy to reference multiple times a day. This exercise will encourage you to keep it on the forefront of your mind and kick any distractions to the curb!
When it comes to achieving our goals, or anything for that matter, writing them down and referring back to them regularly will help you keep the main thing the main thing. Dr. Matthews went on to say that making a frequent habit of thinking about your goals and taking action toward them is the key to the written goal becoming reality.
If we keep our dreams and goals confined in our own minds, we will often fall short of following through with them successfully. I have found my greatest accomplishments come when I write down my goal, talk about it with other people, and take action toward it. When we put our dream on paper, we’re beginning to bring it to life. The more we think about it, talk about it, and plan steps to achieve it, the more life will come to it.
Apply It:
So, if you’re up for giving yourself a significantly better chance at success this week, try doing the following:
Write down your single most important goal for the week, and keep it close. Maybe it’s a stickly note on your computer or a card you carry in your pocket.
Every morning look at the card and write the single most important task you need to do that day in order to make your week’s goal a reality.
Finally, make sure you do what you’ve written down every single day before you do anything else… And see what happens.
This is a simple principle that has a proven track record of success. Simplicity, not complexity, will help you shorten the gap between where you are and where you want to be.