The Importance of Setting Unrealistic Goals

Have you ever wondered what it takes to achieve greatness in life?

Maybe you’ve heard of the power of setting unrealistic goals, but you’re not quite sure if that’s the right approach.

Well, let me tell you a story about how I discovered the power of setting unrealistic goals and how it changed my life.

It all started when I failed my matric. I didn’t see it as a failure. I simply wasn’t interested in academics and didn’t see the point of studying for a qualification that I didn’t think would help me achieve my goals. I wanted to make a lot of money.

But my mother had other plans for me. She told me that without a university degree, I wouldn’t have an unfair advantage in the competitive world. 

So I went back to school and passed my matric, but my mother still insisted that I go to university to have an unfair advantage over people who only had a high school diploma.

I started university, but I quickly realized that it wasn’t going to work. I was bored, disinterested, and felt like I was wasting my time.

So I dropped out, much to my mother’s disappointment.

A series of failures followed. I couldn’t find a job, and I failed miserably at several sales jobs. I started two businesses, but both failed, and I found myself at the edge of defeat by the age of 24 in 1982. I felt like a complete failure, and I had no idea what I was going to do next.

That’s when I picked up a book by Og Mandino called “The Greatest Secret in the World.” I was hoping to find the reason why some people are successful while others aren’t.

I couldn’t find the secret until I read scroll four, which changed my life.

It said, “I’m not on this earth by chance. I’m here for a purpose, and that purpose is not to shrink into a grain of sand, but to grow into a mountain and insult. I’ll apply all my efforts to become the highest mountain of them all, and I will strain my potential until it cries for mercy.”

That passage spoke to me on a deep level.

I realized that I had been playing it safe my whole life, staying in my comfort zone.

I knew that if I wanted to achieve my goals, I had to do something different. I had to set big, audacious goals that seemed impossible to achieve.

I had to strain my potential and push myself to become the best version of myself.

So I made a commitment to myself that the past wouldn’t equal my future. I sat down and wrote out several goals, even though I had no idea how I was going to achieve them.

I was inspired to know that I was never born to become small, a grain of sand. I was there to become the highest mountain of them all, and I was prepared to strain my potential.

Of course, I didn’t know at that stage what it actually meant to achieve that, to become the person that can make my dreams a reality.

One of the goals that I set was to be financially free by the age of 60. But I didn’t want to just be financially free; I wanted to have a house that was fully paid for and five other houses that would give me a passive income. I also set a goal to obtain a PhD.

These goals seemed so unrealistic that they seemed unachievable, especially since I had failed my matric and dropped out of university.

These goals were so unrealistic that they seemed unachievable. But I had an unstoppable mindset, and I was determined to achieve them.

I discovered that the moment I knew exactly what I wanted and set a great goal that motivated me, everything changed. I developed the right attitude, the right belief system, and the right habits.

It wasn’t easy, and it didn’t happen overnight. But with the right mindset, I was able to achieve everything that I dreamed of.

I wrote a book about “PowerGoals,” which are unrealistic goals that challenge you to become the person who can achieve them. I’ve seen this approach work time and time again with my students.

Once that seed is planted, and you have an unstoppable mindset, commitment is crucial. Without commitment, nothing happens.

I was only interested in becoming successful at a young age, even while I was failing. But the true commitment was only made when I started to understand what it meant.

Years later, I discovered that it’s the intent that matters. 

The moment you commit to it, the results are there, but you must take the necessary steps to make them a reality.

When you hear my story, you might think I’m crazy. I met my wife three weeks before I asked her to marry me.  She said it was too quick, but six months later, she agreed. 

I promised her a house, but I had no job, no income, and nothing to offer. Despite this, I made a commitment to get her a house within a year. 

Eleven months later, we moved into our first house. This unstoppable mindset is what I want to share with you. 

You can follow a recipe to make all your dreams come true. Don’t settle for less. Set high, realistic goals, and share them with me. With commitment, everything changes. 

An unstoppable mindset is the key to unlocking your full potential and reaching levels of success you never thought possible.

I am currently working on a challenge to turn a small rental into a successful business generating R100,000 per month in South Africa. People are laughing at me because it, to them, it is unrealistic.

Do I need to know how to do it? No, there’s a strategy and system to follow.

Setting unrealistic goals creates a vision of what’s possible and what motivates us to do what normal people can’t.

Setting unrealistic goals is not a recipe for disappointment and failure. 

Instead, it’s one of the most effective ways to unlock your full potential and achieve greatness.

It may seem daunting at first, but with an unstoppable mindset and the right approach, you can make all those unrealistic goals a reality.

So, don’t settle for mediocrity. Strain your potential and become the highest mountain of them all.

Have an unstoppable day
Hannes

P.S. The Unstoppable Mindset Masterclass mentioned in the video is not ready yet, but stay tuned and we will let you know once it is. 

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Dr. Hannes Dreyer
Dr. Hannes Dreyer

Hannes is one of the world’s leading authorities in Wealth Creation. As a speaker and author on the subject he is at the forefront of this personal development industry. He is the founder of the Wealth Creators University and the Wealth Creators Method. The University is a private education organisation based on the culmination of 30 years of experience, research and study into finances, economics, psychology and philosophy.