Goal Setting Is All About Timing

Is there anything more maddening than working hard on a goal and running into constant obstacles that keep us from getting where we want to be? The past couple of weeks have been exactly like that for me. I have some big projects I’m working on, and every time I tried to progress to the next point, something would happen. My computer problems were the biggest part of it, but also other little obstacles kept me from getting from point A to point B.

I kept trying to find a way around the obstacles, or through them, but then another obstacle would pop up! I was ready to tear my hair out in frustration. Finally I started to get the feeling that the universe was trying to tell me something. Even though I wanted to move this project along, the universe was saying, “Wait, wait, not yet.” I still don’t know why, but I’ve lived long enough on this earth to know that situations have a way of working out in exactly the right way, at exactly the right time. Some things just can’t be rushed.

Now, here is the important turning point. Does that mean we have to quit? Give up? Abandon something that means so much to us? No! Just because the timing isn’t right in this moment doesn’t mean it will never happen. We don’t have to give up altogether. We just need to release our expectations of the outcome. We need to stop trying to force things to happen when we think they should happen. In the meantime, we can still keep working toward our goals, keep planning and preparing for that moment when the timing is right. And when that moment arrives, everything will flow so smoothly and effortlessly we will be amazed.

I can almost hear you groaning, “But I want it right NOW! I don’t want to wait.” Why? Examine this desire within yourself. What are you expecting this situation to provide you with? Will you still be okay if it doesn’t arrive quite yet? What if you had a guarantee that it would arrive within the next six months, would you be able to wait it out? I think you would. Sometimes we have the tendency to attach ourselves to a particular outcome, and once we get attached to that idea, we have a hard time letting go of it.

Release your fear, worry and frustration. Embrace the present moment with joy and thanksgiving. Do what you can and let the rest go. In the meantime, know that the universe has something wonderful planned for you, and it will arrive at exactly the right time.