Believe in yourself no matter what -- Learning from bumblebee can help you achieve goals Published June 5, 2006 By Chief Master Sgt. Ben Futrell 315th Airlift Wing CHARLESTON AFB, S.C. -- One of the most common elements you hear about in any self help or management literature is the power of setting goals. We’re told to set long term goals, short term goals, daily goals, monthly goals, personal goals, organizational goals, ten-year goals and lifetime goals. It can be a little overwhelming. Goal setting is obviously a powerful process. It causes people to focus their energy in a direction. I think of a goal as a rudder on a ship. Without the rudder, there is no control or direction. The ship goes wherever the current or wind steers it. However, despite their obvious value, our feelings about goals are mixed. Some folks can set tremendous goals, exercise great discipline and achieve incredible things. Others can’t keep a New Year’s resolution and are eating that dessert again on Jan. 2. The success or failure of achieving a goal might be attributed to some simple steps that should be used when pondering a goal. The first thing to ask yourself is “what?” What do I want to accomplish? What is the contribution I want to make? What is the end I have in mind? Next ask yourself “why?” Why do I want to do it? Here is where you have to be honest with yourself. The key to motivation is the motive. The motive is the “why.” It gives us energy to stay strong in the hard moments. If the goal isn’t connected to the why, you need to question the goal. The stronger the connection, the stronger the motivation. And then you must ask yourself “how?” How will you do it? What steps and strategies will you use? When some people get to the how, they usually say they will just “gut it out.” It might work sometimes but usually success will depend on a well thought out approach to the how. A common excuse you hear about someone setting a goal is, “I’ll never be able to do that.” Why do people say that? Because they have told themselves that they can’t succeed before they even ask themselves the what, the why and the how. It reminds me of the story of the bumblebee. A few years ago, scientists at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration developed an interest in bumblebees. The lab folks figured the insect held some secret of flight that may provide answers to questions about operation in space. They asked themselves how such small wings could produce efficient lift for such a relatively large and hairy torso. And how could a round body and flight position violating many principles of aerodynamics move so efficiently through the air? They felt there was much to be learned from the bumblebee. These scientists set about studying the bumblebee to discover its flying secrets. They hypothesized, scrutinized, examined, dissected, measured, timed, filmed, observed, compared, quantified, thought about and debated the bumblebee. After weeks of study they came to one conclusion – bumblebees are not capable of flight.But no one has told the bumblebee. The single most critical part of achieving a goal is believing in yourself and your capability to succeed. Henry Ford once said, “If you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re probably right.” The bumblebee thinks it can fly. Actually the thought of anything else never even crosses its mind. It just keeps on flying. If you are ever going to succeed in your goal, the first thing you must do is believe in yourself just as the bumblebee does. So I encourage you to think about your personal and professional life in terms of goals. Make an education goal for yourself, complete the necessary courses and get your degree. Make a physical goal for yourself such as competing in a 5k race. The process of setting and achieving goals keeps us engaged in the world around us. Think like a bumblebee.