He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.
Friedrich Nietzsche
1844 – 1900

In our first four questions, we covered how, who, where and what. With the last two questions, the power of the questions greatly increases. This question gives you the incentive you need to reach your goals:

Why do I want ___________________________?

Here, you need to fill in the reasons why you want a particular goal. For example: I want to go to Australia because I have a strong spiritual connection with Australia. I believe that I will discover more about myself and my purpose on earth by visiting Australia; it will help me on my journey to discovering who I am and why I am here.

You’ll notice that the reasons are personal and strong; it isn’t about visiting the Great Barrier Reef or seeing the native wildlife. This is a key point: no matter what your goal, you need strong reasons for wanting to achieve it. If you just want to visit Australia to see the Great Barrier Reef, you might not be moved to take the action necessary to make it a reality. But if you’re a diver and view the Great Barrier Reef as the ultimate diving experience, that rationale would probably work for you. Your reasons must be personal and extremely strong. They must make you totally focused on achieving your goal.

If your why is compelling enough, you’ll find the resources to make it happen. If you don’t have a really strong reason for wanting to achieve something, you won’t have the motivation to do all it takes.

So here’s the lesson. Take a look at the things you want to accomplish in life. Then ask the question, “Why do I want ___________?” You’ll need lots of strong reasons, and the reasons need to be emotional. Rational arguments, despite sounding good, won’t sustain action when things get tough. We can say we want to earn more money, slim down, and any number of other logical things we should do. But we’re not rational beings; we’re emotional beings and we need strong emotional motivators to take action.

The question of why we want something is the key to having the drive to achieve it. But too often we chase rainbows, dreams that we think we want but really have no commitment to achieve. This leads to the habit of constantly chasing dreams but never truly focusing on a few important, achievable goals.

Get really clear on why you want something. Keep reminding yourself why you want that new career, house, soul mate or whatever is important to you. If your why is strong enough, you will find the resources to make it happen.

For true success ask yourself these four questions: Why? Why not? Why not me? Why not now?
James Allen
1864 – 1912

Copyright © 2009 John Chancellor