Your Goals Aren't Clear Enough | Here's How To Fix That | Build With Rob EP 121

Summary

The speaker candidly discusses the common struggle between creating chaos and clarity when pursuing goals. Despite having a clear vision, the drive to achieve can often lead to overwhelming and chaotic strategies, potentially resulting in burnout. The talk emphasizes the importance of staying adaptive and being sensitive to when a goal needs realignment. It highlights the need for a balance between innovation and maintaining a clear path towards one's objectives, using personal anecdotes to illustrate the pitfalls of overcomplicating goals and the importance of returning to a structured approach.

Takeaways

• 😌 Clarity is essential when setting goals, but even with clear intentions, chaos can ensue if too many tasks are undertaken simultaneously or if adjustments are made without proper planning.
• 🚀 It's crucial to start with a clear end goal in mind and understand the purpose and strategy for achieving it before embarking on the journey.
• 🔄 Adaptability is key; recognizing when a strategy isn't working and being willing to pivot can be the difference between success and failure.
• 💡 Introducing new elements to a goal should bring further clarity and accelerate progress, not create more chaos or confusion.
• 🤔 Feeling and intuition play a significant role in determining whether a new strategy or element is the right move towards a goal.
• 🛑 When chaos arises, it's important to stop, reassess, and realign with the original goal and strategy before proceeding.
• 💥 Over-optimism and unrealistic goals can lead to a loss of belief and eventual quitting if the strategy doesn't work as expected.
• 🔄 Even with a clear plan, goals are dynamic and may require adjustments based on new insights and experiences.
• 🌟 Sometimes plans can work perfectly or even better than expected, but this is not the norm and should not be the only expectation.
• 🔮 Being truthful with oneself is vital; acknowledging when a strategy isn't working and making necessary changes is part of the process.
• 🛠️ The process of achieving goals involves a mix of art, science, and magic, requiring sensitivity to when adjustments are needed and ensuring they lead to clearer understanding and progress.

Q & A

What is the main issue discussed in the transcript regarding goal setting?

The main issue discussed is that people often create chaos while pursuing their goals due to trying to do too much or adding too many elements, which can lead to confusion, extended timelines, or even abandoning the goal altogether.

What does the speaker refer to as 'the fine line' in the context of goal setting?

The 'fine line' refers to the balance between maintaining clarity in one's goals and strategies while being adaptive and open to changes or new ideas that could potentially improve the path to achieving those goals.

Why does the speaker share his personal experience of driving a goal into chaos?

The speaker shares his personal experience to illustrate the common pitfalls of goal setting and to emphasize the importance of maintaining clarity and not overcomplicating the process, even for someone who is known as 'the clarity guy'.

What is the speaker's advice on how to handle a goal that starts to become unclear or chaotic?

The speaker advises to stop, reassess the situation, and ensure that any new elements or strategies added to the goal bring more clarity and are aligned with the original purpose, rather than contributing to chaos.

Outlines

00:00

🔄 The Chaos of Ambition

The speaker discusses the common issue of creating chaos while pursuing goals, even when one has a clear plan. They admit to falling into this trap themselves, despite being known for clarity. The speaker emphasizes the importance of starting with a clear end goal, understanding the purpose, and having a strategy. However, they also acknowledge the fine line between maintaining this clarity and adding new elements that can lead to chaos, as seen in business ventures where products fail to sell and companies pivot to new ideas without success. The speaker shares a personal anecdote about a goal they had that ended in chaos, highlighting the need to stop and reassess when things go awry.

05:02

💡 Clarity vs. Chaos in Goal Pursuit

This paragraph delves into the feelings associated with clarity and chaos when pursuing goals. The speaker explains that when new ideas align with the goal and bring further clarity, they are motivating and hopeful. In contrast, chaos is characterized by inconsistency, slipping discipline, and a change in continuity. The speaker admits that even with the best-laid plans, goals are dynamic and can become murky, requiring adaptation and careful decision-making at crossroads. They stress the importance of being truthful with oneself about the feasibility of goals and strategies, and the need to reassess and realign to maintain progress.

10:04

🚫 The Pitfalls of Over-Acceleration

The speaker warns against the dangers of trying to accelerate goals without a clear strategy, which can lead to chaos and loss of belief. They discuss the importance of being honest with oneself about the effectiveness of a strategy and the need to make adjustments that lead to clarity, not more chaos. The speaker uses their own experience with a health and wellness program as an example of how even with a clear goal and plan, overdoing it can result in chaos, necessitating a regroup and a more incremental approach. They emphasize the need for sensitivity and development in recognizing when a goal or strategy is not working and the importance of making adjustments that enhance clarity and progress.

15:04

🛑 Reflecting on Chaos and Resetting Goals

In the final paragraph, the speaker reflects on the chaos they created in their health and wellness program and how it led them to stop and regroup. They stress the importance of having a vision, creating a plan, and doing the work to achieve the goal. The speaker advises taking the time to get deeply clear on actions and their effects on the overall goal to avoid diving into solutions or changes that may lead to chaos. They end with a reminder to always have a vision, be willing to create a plan, and ensure that the work done leads to harmony and progress towards the goal.

Keywords

💡Chaos

Chaos in this context refers to a state of disorder and confusion, particularly in the pursuit of goals. It is related to the video's theme as the speaker discusses how attempting to do too much or adding unnecessary elements to a plan can lead to chaos, thus hindering progress. For example, the speaker mentions driving a goal 'into absolute chaos' by trying to implement too many things at once.

💡Clarity

Clarity is the quality of being clear, understandable, and free from confusion. It is central to the video's message, emphasizing the importance of having a clear plan and strategy to achieve goals effectively. The speaker contrasts clarity with chaos, noting that clarity brings focus and direction, as seen when discussing the need for 'crystal clear' goals and the positive feeling associated with clarity in action.

💡Goal

A goal is an aim or desired outcome that a person is striving to achieve. The video discusses the process of setting and pursuing goals, highlighting the potential pitfalls of unclear goals leading to chaos. The speaker uses personal examples to illustrate how goals can become muddled and the importance of revisiting and refining them, such as when discussing the 'big goal' that was driven into chaos.

💡Strategy

Strategy refers to a carefully devised plan or method for achieving a particular goal. In the video, the speaker talks about the necessity of having a clear strategy to guide the pursuit of goals. The concept is integral to the theme as it directly impacts whether the pursuit of a goal results in clarity or chaos, as illustrated by the discussion on questioning and adapting strategies during the journey.

💡Adaptability

Adaptability is the ability to adjust to new conditions or changes. The speaker mentions the need for adaptability when goals become unclear or when new challenges arise. It is exemplified in the video through the story of a business pivoting from a failed product to a successful one, demonstrating how adaptability can lead to clarity and progress.

💡Burnout

Burnout is a state of chronic physical and emotional exhaustion, often caused by excessive and prolonged stress. In the video, burnout is mentioned as a potential consequence of trying to force a goal into reality without a clear plan, leading to frustration and loss of motivation. The speaker warns against the chaos that can lead to burnout and the importance of maintaining a clear vision to avoid it.

💡Intentional

Intentional describes actions that are deliberate and purposeful. The speaker describes himself as 'highly intentional,' emphasizing the importance of being purposeful in setting and pursuing goals. The concept is tied to the video's theme by illustrating how intentional actions can either lead to clarity or chaos, depending on the presence of a clear plan.

💡Product Launch

A product launch is the introduction of a new product to the market. The video uses the context of a product launch to illustrate the potential for chaos when expectations are not met, and the importance of having a clear strategy for success. The speaker recounts a personal experience with a product that did not sell and the chaotic decision to create another product instead of refining the existing one.

💡Pivot

Pivot refers to a change in direction or strategy. In the video, the term is used to describe a successful shift in business direction that saved a company. The pivot from a problematic product to a more viable one is highlighted as a clear example of how adaptability and a clear strategy can lead to clarity and success, rather than chaos.

💡Belief

Belief is the state or quality of accepting something as true or real. The video discusses the importance of belief in achieving goals, noting that when belief is lost, so is the motivation to continue pursuing the goal. The speaker emphasizes the need for a clear strategy to maintain belief and avoid the chaos that can lead to giving up.

💡Harmony

Harmony refers to a state of balance, order, and agreement. In the context of the video, harmony is presented as the desired state when pursuing goals, in contrast to chaos. The speaker advises aiming for harmony by ensuring that any changes or additions to a plan contribute positively to the goal, rather than creating disorder.

Highlights

The paradox of creating chaos while pursuing clarity in goal setting and the tendency to complicate plans.

The importance of clarity and the potential for it to be lost when trying to achieve goals too aggressively.

Personal anecdote of the speaker driving a clear goal into chaos, emphasizing the commonality of the issue.

The process of defining goals and the strategy for achieving them, including the initial clarity and potential for chaos.

The dilemma of adding new elements to a strategy and the risk of introducing chaos instead of clarity.

The analogy of launching a product and the pitfalls of creating new products without understanding market needs.

The story of Outstanding Foods and the pivot from pigas bacon chip to pigless pork run as a successful adaptation.

The difference between making necessary adjustments and adding chaos to a goal.

The feeling of clarity and its role in guiding decisions towards or away from chaos.

The importance of being adaptive and recognizing when a goal or strategy is not working.

The speaker's personal experience with health and wellness, and the chaos created by trying to do too much at once.

The need for a balance between having a clear vision, a plan, and the work required to achieve a goal.

The idea that even with the best plans, goals are dynamic and require ongoing evaluation and adjustment.

The speaker's advice on being truthful with oneself when faced with a failing strategy and the need for reassessment.

The concept of 'art, science, and magic' in goal setting and the importance of intuition alongside planning.

The final message on the importance of harmony, clarity, and incremental progress over chaos in goal achievement.

Transcripts

are you creating chaos or Clarity in the

goals that you have cuz most of us think

that we are clear have an amazing plan

and we're marching towards it but we

actually end up creating Chaos on the

way there trying to do too much because

we want that goal to happen so

badly we make it worse we make it more

chaotic and potentially push it to take

even more time or God forbid get

completely burned out and not even want

to do it anymore that

happens and I'm going to share with you

um you know a a big goal that I had that

I recently was so clear on H as clear as

a guy could be crystal clear because I'm

the clarity guy and I drove that thing

into absolute chaos drove it into chaos

to where I had to stop I had to

completely stop and it's embarrassing

for me to have to even share this with

you but at the end of this this episode

I'm going to share it with you um

because it happens to me someone who you

know lives life so uh like highly

intentional has you know a goal for all

aspects of Life have so many different

things that I measure and I'm constantly

growing and evolving into a higher

version of myself that I can quantify in

so many different ways have so many big

goals that I want to achieve

continuously and I still find myself

driving

uh big ideas and big goals into chaos

and it's this fine line you know because

you got to think about everything that

you ever want to do in life any goal

it's the same structure right you always

got to start at the end what am I hoping

to achieve what is what is the purpose

for this in my entire life and how is it

going to ultimately lead me to a better

version of my life and a better version

of me and and what is the strategy and

the stuff that I've got to implement to

get

there and then you you you head off on

the journey to get there and as it's

happening all these different things

begin to to reveal themselves and you

start uh you know questioning the

strategy that you created and now you

want to add another thing to it like

well maybe it's this and then boom

everything's in complete chaos and then

now you're trying to figure out what is

the chaos is the chaos the original

strategy that you were sure of or is it

the new thing that you implemented and I

think this happens you know so much in

business and and it's happened to me you

know so many different times throughout

the process of creating companies when

you launch with your product that you

really think is going to be uh the white

space and the opportunity and and

understanding uh the market and this is

what's missing and we're going to

deliver in this product and then you get

there and nobody buys it and rather than

focusing on how to how to optimize

further and understanding the customer

and figure out how you can drive conver

version you just start thinking about

what other product could we possibly

make

uhoh uhoh you know if if you launch a

product and it doesn't sell and the

first thing that you think you should do

is make another product boy you welcome

to chaos welcome to chaos and you know

I've done it so many times so many times

because you you just you just really

don't know you know and and you

um when you you know Define and create a

goal that's so clear to you in the

beginning and it gets murky um you do

have to be adaptive you do have to

sometimes pivot on a product you know in

the case of outstanding Foods you know

the pigas pork uh pigas uh bacon chip

was a little bit too Innovative having

supply chain issues it was tough to

produce tough to you know convince the

uh plant-based consumer that hey this is

uh a mushroom that tastes like bacon uh

it was it was confusing and the pivot

immediately into the pigless pork run

really saved the business and blew it

up you know it it's one of those cases

where it really really mattered and it

it saved the business and it was the

right

decision um but so often so often in so

many different cases

in so many different companies where it

doesn't it just basically creates an

even more murkier chaotic

situation and and it's that way with

with anything that you do in life when

when you set a goal you know and and you

begin to push towards that goal and you

want to accelerate that goal or

something's not working and you add

another piece to

it you've just created more work more

time more chaos and if it doesn't work

man it's it begins to Rattle the

foundation of everything because and you

also know when you add something uh to a

goal to accelerate it or if you create

some sort of new aspect of of that you

want to introduce into achieving

something it has the right feeling when

it's the right thing you know when when

it's the right idea like man it's it's

you understand it and completely know

why you're doing it right if it's going

to bring Clarity further Clarity and and

help accelerate you towards that goal

man you understand it you understand it

like if if it's um you introduce

something new and it's working boy it's

motivating you it's motivating you

because because Clarity when it's

actually working and you're introducing

things that makes sense towards where

you're headed man it it there's a

feeling to it there's energy to it

there's hopefulness to it and and the

other thing about really having Clarity

in in a

goal is you know where the the

Nuance um in where you can be adaptive

that's still going to lead you towards

it versus what it feels

like when you enter into that chaotic

Zone you know when you add a new element

what does chaos feel oh you know like

we're going to add something uh uh you

know knew that that that's going to help

this whole project and then all of a

sudden like things start to feel

inconsistent uh you know it's it's the

discipline starts to slip the continuity

in the hole starts to change like all of

these things make it clear to you that

man I I've just entered into a world

that where things aren't what I expected

them to be and again it's it's we all do

it you know we all do it because

you know even the best plans they they

they're they're sort of living you know

goals are living they're revealing

themselves and showing themselves as you

move into it and as you push forward you

know versus like very rarely will you

define an amazing plan and then it will

uh work perfectly but it does people say

oh it never works perfectly no it does

sometimes you can create a plan that you

completely understand in a world you

completely understand and you can

create um you know the outcome you

desired and envisioned in the very

beginning swiftly and quickly because

you understand all the variables and

then nothing came in that disrupted it

that does happen you know there there is

hope for the world for everybody that

just thinks like you know no plans ever

actually go according to plan sometimes

they do you know sometimes they go

better than you expected and and boy oh

boy is that a gift from the universe you

know it it is

possible but when you uh push forward

into something and you don't fully

understand it and things start to um you

know not reveal themselves to be working

and things begin to feel chaotic and

things uh don't feel like they're

progressing and then you add on a new

thing you interject something new that

you think is going to help accelerate or

change the whole you have to be absolute

certain that that is bringing a higher

level Clarity to you actually achieving

it rather than creating the chaos and

again it'll always be how you feel you

know it'll always be about how you feel

and you know goals in anything big

always reveals itself in time and part

of you know Gathering the Insight of How

It's revealing itself and guiding you

towards what you should really be

doing will always be dictated by how it

feels you know and so often you know

even even for me I will you know build a

strategy that I believe in knowing that

hey I I believe this is the be best path

forward I believe this is possible

because any anything especially if

you're you know building a company a big

idea you know creating different uh you

know types of things there's still this

unknown that has to show it to you as

you begin to create it that's part of

the process you know and when it begins

to you know reveal itself that it's not

quite working the way you had envisioned

it you know you come to a crossroad you

come to a crossroad and you have got to

like sit at that Crossroad and and spend

a lot of time getting very clear on what

the right decision decision is so that

you move forward with a higher

probability of of creating the progress

to move towards that goal rather than

just going for

it not being clear and just hoping it

works and then boom you're just creating

absolute chaos and there you have it all

you did was create chaos instead of

clarity in the goal that you hope to

achieve thus pushing that goal away way

further and further from from possibly

realizing it and it's interesting

because you

you you don't know when you're faced

with it and and it is a process where

you've got to be very truthful with

yourself you know cuz we're super good

at lying to ourselves about goals in the

beginning you know we will set an

unrealistic goal that we're super

optimistic about we'll build a strategy

that we were are confident is possible

even though we don't fully understand it

we know we'll figure it out when we get

there we always have and then you take

off on the journey and it's not working

but we got the drive and the wherewithal

to to push it forward and we just add

new things to it to make it happen and

then boom we are in absolute no man's

land and we tip right off the edge into

losing belief and we know what happens

when we lose belief we quit we

quit there's just there's no person on

this Earth that still believes in the

goal that they're hoping to achieve and

just quits it's never happened it's

never happened the only time any person

would ever quit a goal is when they lose

belief and more often than not they had

a strategy that was not clear and as

things got uh murky and started to fall

apart rather than take the time to get

clear and realign and push forward they

just start throwing things that they

think might work just to be uh pushing

it forward and then boom everything is

in absolute chaos and then eventually

the belief is gone and that's when you

quit and again you know sometimes some

people should quit you know I've said it

a million times like if you created a

strategy and it did not work and you've

tried a million different things and it

just gets worse and worse and you're not

making progress don't lie to yourself it

didn't work you know take what you've

learned um look towards something that

that you believe you have a better

possibility of doing and jump in and do

it but but the truth is is is it's it's

you know a little bit of art science and

Magic as we say down here because you've

got to

recognize when a goal is not uh you know

you've got to recognize when the

strategy that you've created for the

goal that you hope to achieve is not

working and you've got to be able to

make

adjustments but you have to make sure

that the adjustments that you make lead

to having a clearer understanding of

where you need to go not just adding

chaos to the whole process and and it's

something that you've got to develop and

be incredibly sensitive to and and and I

do it in all aspects of my life and I

still lose it you know and

recently you know I've been you know

into like super Health you know I had

this year of just being 100% dedicated

to all aspects of my health and now you

know the vision of living a million

hours of life and now I'm pushing into

the longevity plan I got my clear goal

I'm living a million hours like now I

need uh someone to help me push my

overall longevity Pro program to the

next level

I'm I hired a consultant and then

literally rather than incrementally

begin to build a program and and put it

in place to play the long game of uh

continually evolving my knowledge of my

body and mind to grow um the strength

and the longevity in the overall system

I try to just do everything at once try

to do everything at once every single

thing that there is on Earth that I

could possibly do in it to try to push

my longevity out in like a three-month

period how can I do everything give me

brain scans body scans give me

hyperbaric give me the injections give

me the you know give me everything you

got every pill load me

up I went full Brian Johnson I went full

Brian Johnson you know who's the tech

guy who is you know spending a million

dollars a year uh who's who's got the

heart of a

14-year-old got the lung capacity of a

of a you know like a super Stout

bull I went full Brian Johnson and I I I

I just literally drove absolute chaos

into my health and wellness program

where I had to stop it all and go back

to my more basic structure and now the

new plan is I have to implement each one

of these things slow over the next year

and that's just an example of somebody

who's already so organized so

intentional who has a clear goal clear

plan clear

strategy and I just overdid it and sent

myself into chaos to the point where I

had to stop and regroup you know so so

even someone like me who who's there and

lives it at the highest level still

finds themselves you know driving

chaos into to into their big goals and

the things that they hope to achieve so

I say to you you know everything that

you ever want to do as you're doing it

and as you're looking at ways to

potentially accelerate it or change it

take the time to get deeply clear on uh

what you want to do how it's going to

affect the whole and what you actually

can do in order to lead you towards

getting that energy and that progression

back towards that goal rather than just

dive in hoping um this solution or this

change U is going to to be the

difference that accelerates everything

and finding yourself in chaos because

you don't want to be in chaos you want

to just be in absolute Harmony and you

know what it is you always got to have a

vision you always got to be willing to

create the plan to make sure you can

even get there then you got to put in

the work to get there until next time

see you believe it do

it