How to Create an Inevitable Goal
In trying to achieve my goals, I have developed several tools for success. One of my newer, and fast becoming one of my favorites, is the concept of inevitability. Below are a few pseudo-mathematical equations. Their usefulness is in their ability to illuminate certain qualities of progress, or lack there of, towards a specific goal while setting up a framework for improvement if necessary.
P = (Average Magnitude of + Changes) * (Frequency of + Changes).
P is for positive. Its value is the average magnitude of the positive changes towards the goal multiplied by the frequency of those positive changes. In layman’s terms, P is the total good stuff for helping a specific goal. In my opinion, the most important part of P to consider is the frequency of the positive changes.
N = (Average Magnitude of – Changes) * (Frequency of – Changes).
N is for negative. Its value is the average magnitude of the negative changes towards the goal multiplied by the frequency of those negative changes. So, much like P, N is the total bad stuff that is currently mounted up against a goal. I see frequency playing a huge role here too.
In general, I see that the average magnitudes of both the negative and positive changes cancel each other out. There are obvious exceptions to this rule, but as a whole I believe it stands. Frequency serves its important role because it looks at the trend of changes over time. If only one change is ever made, then effectively the frequency is 0. On the other hand, if one change is made every month, the frequency is 1 change per month. Pretty obvious, but I feel that it needs to be stated.
Inevitability happens when P > N.
To sum above up up, if more good stuff is regularly happening then bad stuff, it is inevitable that the goal will be reached at some unspecified time. There is no assumption of a time limit. Of course, due to having no limit on the time that passes before the goal is achieved, having an inevitable goal does not mean it is going to happen with any alacrity. That is where tempo comes into play.
Tempo = P – N.
Tempo measures the speed of the current state as it is moving towards a specific goal. The lower the tempo, the longer it is going to take to reach the point of achievement. This also indicates that even with no negative influence, a goal can still take a long time to finally manifest if P is small. The concept of tempo seeks to provide some understanding of a current position in time relative to a goal. It doesn’t give specifics, but it can be inferred that a large/fast tempo is going to grant results much quicker than a small/slow tempo. (Note: Positive tempo implies inevitability, and negative tempo implies that the goal is moving further away.)
The last concept that I’m going to introduce isn’t very closely tied to tempo or inevitability. Call this a bonus.
Momentum is a somewhat of vague idea that I have heard others speak on. It is often said that if you have momentum, things will just keep going your way. I wanted something more definite so that I could informally measure the amount of momentum I had. This is what I came up with.
Momentum = (Number of + Changes) / (Number of + Actions).
The number of positive changes over the number of positive actions equals the momentum towards a specific goal. Momentum increases as the number of positive changes grows larger than the number of positive actions. If you are doing less and getting more, you have momentum. The stable state is when they are equal and the momentum is 1. This implies no momentum—you get what you put in. If the momentum is less then 1 it implies that you have reverse momentum. The number of actions you are doing are outnumbering the number of benefits. This may be due to the inefficiency of your actions, or it may just be that you are fighting against momentum towards a the reverse outcome. Some would call that particular case digging yourself out of a hole.
All of these concepts exist really to bring awareness to a situation. The concepts of inevitability, tempo, and momentum grant some control over situations by displaying the results in a very white hat manner. They throw up a flag when changes to a set of tactics should be made for better results, and they also play bells and whistles when everything is going right.
Inevitability with a good tempo shows me that I’m doing what I should be doing, even if I don’t immediately see the results I want. When I notice that good things are happening without very much effort on my part, I know that I have momentum. In reference to the title, I would say that a goal becomes inevitable proper if it has good tempo and good momentum behind it. This is where most people want to sit with their goals. If everything is happening fast and without too much input of effort, it very well seems inevitability is on their side.
December 24th, 2006 at 8:00 am
The Personal Development Carnival - December 24, 2006
Welcome to the December 24, 2006 edition of the Personal Development Carnival!
It’s almost Christmas! Woo Hoo!
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