Don’t “Gap Out”

“I try to avoid looking forward or backward, and try to keep looking upward.”
– Charlotte Bronte

About every three months I go to Chicago and spend a day learning the concepts of The Strategic Coach.  This program teaches strategies that help people achieve more from their business and personal lives.  It is a powerful program, and one of the most powerful principles taught is about “The Gap.”

At a recent Strategic Coach session we spent half a day on “The Gap,” but I plan to spend only a paragraph or two on it.  The basic concept will make you think about how you measure your successes.

Basically, it is about goal setting, but not about achieving goals.  It is about recognizing your accomplishments.  Let’s say you wanted to sell 1,000 widgets in the next 90 days.  In the past, the best you had ever done was 750.  On day 90 you realize that you didn’t reach your goal.  Do you become upset?  No!  Instead, take a look at the last 90 days and realize what you accomplished?  Perhaps you sold 850 – a little short, but still not too bad.  It is still better than what you’ve done in the past.  You enjoy the success of the achievement, not the failure.

Or maybe you wanted to lose twenty pounds.  At the end of your predetermined time period you only lost twelve.  You might be disappointed that you didn’t lose all twenty.  But, you did lose twelve!

People seem to always be obsessed with reaching their goals.  If they fail, they become unhappy.  Even when they reach their goals, they aren’t always happy.  Maybe because they realize they could have done better.  Or, they were let down because it turned out not to be such a big deal.  There are many reasons.  Have you ever noticed there are some people that, no matter how successful they are, are always unhappy or frustrated?

Goals are important.  They give us something to shoot for.  But the concept of “The Gap” teaches that it is not only about accomplishing goals, but celebrating successes.

(For more information about The Strategic Coach program and their Knowledge Products, such as “The Gap,” go to www.strategiccoach.com.  Tell them Shep sent you!)

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.

(Copyright ©MMXII, Shep Hyken)