Recently, a speaker flashed the following statement up for a group to see and it got me thinking about goal achievement.

There are 2 kinds of pain.

* The pain of discipline.
* The pain of regret.

You Choose.

It seems like a valid statement. Think of the “one goal” that you chose for your own leadership improvement. How easy is it to accomplish your goal and turn it into a strong habit? If it’s easy for you, then congratulations! Yippee! However, if there is a challenge involved with the change, then my hunch is that you have felt some pain along the way. And, as another saying goes, “No pain, no gain.” It’s like there’s this internal rope at work striving to pull you back toward old habits and for you to stay focused on what you really want calls for energy, sacrifice, and some feelings of pain.

Now, consider the pain associated with regret on having given up on your goal accomplishment or on having never even begun the journey toward want you really wanted. That’s painful. No one wants to stand looking back toward lost opportunities, and uttering the words, “Oh, if only…”

So, either way, there will most likely be some pain involved in the goal you have selected. Which kind of pain do you choose?

By Vicky Dearing, PCC