3 Ways To Optimise Your Goals And Have More Fun

By Doug Bennett aka The Goals Guy® with special guest Nicky Marshall

What do you think might happen if you channelled your inner Tigger when you’re goal setting? How much more fun do you think you might have? And, would you be surprised if that new-found playfulness turbocharged your results?

Tigger, the fictional character from The House at Pooh Corner (part of the Winnie-the-Pooh series by author A.A Milne), is known for his infectious enthusiasm and determination to find joy in every situation.

On the Goals Do Come True podcast, I recently interviewed the director of Discover Your Bounce (wellbeing and mentoring), Nicky Marshall. After a diving trip, she developed decompression sickness (the bends) in her lungs, shoulders and brain, and having lost the feeling in the left side of her body was told she’d likely never dive again – but she went on to prove everyone wrong.

Nicky is also a published author who supports aspiring writers to get their books out into the world. You can listen to our podcast chat by clicking here.

Before her diving incident, Nicky had fulfilled one of her goals by setting up a coffee shop, but had come to realise it wasn’t bringing her much joy. In this blog, I’ll share with you her top three tips to fulfil goals you really want, with less effort and more fun!

1) Be playful

Nicky: “Life is an adventure, and it’s good to be playful about your goals because if we get serious, goals don’t come. Whenever I’ve had goals that felt impossible, I’d think, ‘Wouldn’t it be amazing if that happened?’ which helped me become more creative and more open.

Years ago, my husband gave me a bracelet that had rock, horse, arrow and bear charms on it (horses for healing, arrows for direction and bears for strength). Someone told me the rocks were from Sedona in Arizona – and that I would be going there. It seemed ridiculous because life was busy and I didn’t have the funds, but then a conference came up near Sedona and I decided to go.

While I was there, I had the most amazing experience and decided I wanted to bring other people there on a retreat; no sooner had I thought about that, then the negative voice kicked in saying it was a ridiculous idea; but I did go on to do that. I think being playful creates far more potential for those ‘impossible’ dreams to happen.”

2) Be open to opportunities

Nicky: “When my daughter was a baby, anytime she was teething or hurt herself I’d imagine white light coming out of my hands and making her feel better. Someone told me that I had ‘healing hands’. I had no idea what they were talking about but was interested in knowing more; I then went on holiday to Ibiza and met another mum with young children who was a reiki master!

She explained that reiki is a form of healing that channels universal energy; needless to say I went on to become a reiki master, and that all came about from a ‘chance’ conversation with another mum.”

3) Set your goal and ask for “this or something better”

It was clear from our conversation that Nicky kept discovering things in unexpected ways that made her feel great. It’s perhaps not that surprising that she then chose to start writing down her goals and focusing more on them, while adding an interesting twist (that I’m going to pinch!).

Nicky: “You never know exactly what the universe has in store for you or how your goals might come together, so on my birthday I love to create a new vision board for the year, say thank you for all that I have, thank you for the amazing things that are on their way, and state that ‘I am ready for this [the goal she’s shared] or something better’, because who knows what else is possible that you hadn’t even thought of yet!

For example, if you want a certain type of car, perhaps the company is just about to release a better model or is offering upgrades – if you are too specific about your goal, you might be missing out! Asking for ‘this or something better’ has served me well.”

I love the idea of stating your goal and leaving room for something even greater to come to you. Life is for living and loving; it’s so much more fun when you can enjoy adventure, so why not try out some of Nicky’s tips?

In the meantime, if you’re ready to add a whole lot more fun to your life, why not progress your business or personal goals with me? You can read more about how I bounced back from the brink of bankruptcy in one of my books by clicking here, and I’d love to hear what you’re passionate about creating. If you’d like my professional support, book a complimentary discovery call by clicking here.