Tips for achieving your goals Blog by Susanne Nickel

No. 9 Your (inner) team for goal achievement – What does your lazybones want? This fellow is certainly known to everyone. He likes to speak up and make himself heard. When we are full of energy and making plans, he remains silent. But when it comes to starting something new and taking action, or when things get tough on the way to the goal, he likes to show up. He has many names. He is also called a slacker, idler, or inner pig dog. The lazybones and his facets of action can best be explained with two examples. Example The goal of one of my clients was to take on a position as an international project manager in the engineering field. He had made a 12-month plan to achieve his goal. But there was still a lot to do until then. One of his sub-goals was to improve his English skills and attend a business English course. He signed up for a renowned language institute. The course took place once a week on Tuesdays from 7 pm to 9:30 pm – ideal for my client, who used to finish work at 6 pm. However, on the first Tuesday afternoon, his inner lazybones paid him a visit: "Why not start next week instead? There's football on tonight, and you're too tired anyway and would rather spend a cozy evening on the couch." My client postponed the start of the course to the following week. But on the next Tuesday, his friends asked him to join them for a beer after work. His inner lazybones kindly signaled: "Go ahead – one week won't make a difference!" And so it went on, week after week. My client paid for the course but never attended. In this example, the lazybones already prevents the start of something new. But there is another strategy of the lazybones. Let's modify the example a bit. Example The client has the same goal, but the circumstances are different: He works in a small company where he carries a lot of responsibility and is busy for at least 60 hours a week. Often, he also takes work home in the evenings. The pressure on him is high, and accordingly, the stress he is under. He only allows himself an evening off, a free weekend, and recovery breaks when the work is done, which is almost never the case. Every week he plans to take the English course and is totally frustrated because he can't motivate himself for it. Every week, the inner lazybones in him says: "Better go to the course next week. You still have plenty of other things to do this week." So he keeps postponing the course week after week. In both examples, the goal is the same, but the context is different. In the second case, with his at least 60 hours of work per week and on top of that the English course, the client is demanding too much, if not too much, from himself. The inner pig dog wants to prevent him from taking on more work. The result is the same in both cases: A guilty conscience sets in. When the lazybones strikes, he prevents our actions. He resists like a stubborn billy goat or a stubborn donkey, making our will balk. The result: We don't even start or give up in the middle and no longer pursue our goal. What does your inner lazybones want? If we want to achieve goals, we must leave our comfort zone. Any adventures are outside this area where comfort and familiarity lie. New things and changes always mean unknown, uncertain, or cumbersome, bumpy terrain. These uncertainties lead to a fear of the new. The lazybones discourages and wants us to stay in the safe zone and familiar terrain. One of the lazybones' arguments is to maintain the status quo as it is, to not change anything, to live safely and comfortably. If influenced by the lazybones, we internally resist against our new goal and still push ourselves forward, only to encounter more resistance. And often what happens next: After we have laboriously moved out of the comfort zone despite the resistance of the lazybones, the inner critic greets us outside and says, "Well, that wasn't anything special!" Why your lazybones is important With all of this, one might think that the lazybones is more of an unpleasant companion who harms us more than benefits us. But like many things, the lazybones also has its justification and represents an important side of our personality. It helps us to regenerate, relax, catch our breath, and refuel after exhausting phases. If this does not happen for a long time, we can suffer physical or psychological damage. Many people with a weak lazybones component are at risk of burning out and jeopardizing their health due to chronic stress. So, rehabilitate your lazybones. It also has its good sides. For people who are constantly under stress, this means allowing idleness, simply doing things slowly or nothing at all, establishing fixed breaks. Practical tip: Your lazybones daily or weekly plan Ask yourself: At what times do you consciously regenerate to recharge and then continue marching towards your goal? If you can't answer this question, you should quickly create a plan for such regeneration periods. In detail, specify the day and time period in which you consciously take lazybones times. What do you like to do during this time? Read, take a walk, take a hot bath, go to the sauna, enjoy nature? Do not let the enjoyment these breaks bring be clouded by your guilt or your inner critic, who may speak up. Out of the comfort zone: Grab your lazybones by the scruff of the neck It is important to acknowledge the lazybones within us. But it is also important to know when he is taking unnecessary lazybones times and preventing us from reaching our important goals. If you have generally scheduled enough recovery periods in your week, then there is no excuse. It's time to step out of the comfort zone! Be vigilant when the lazybones knocks and tries to keep you from your goal. Grab him by the scruff of the neck and outsmart him. Reward yourself when you have overcome your inner pig dog and he can no longer prevent you from achieving your goals. Don't let guilt or the critic in who says, "It's not that great to deserve recognition!" Making friends with the lazybones and outsmarting him Often, it is not helpful to ignore or resist something. This also applies to the lazybones. It is better to welcome him and then put him in his place. When you pursue a sub-goal or goal and the lazybones speaks up, first greet him with a respectful attitude: "Hello, lazybones, you are important for regeneration and take care of me so that I don't overdo it. But now you can take a break from your goal. Thank you, and see you later in the sauna!" And off you go to the English course! You can find more inner team members in the book by Susanne Nickel "Achieving Goals. From Vision to Reality," published by Haufe Verlag.