How Does EFT Tapping Help In Setting And Achieving Goals?
EFT Tapping FOR GOAL SETTING
Tired of setting goals and failing to achieve them? If you think that this is just another blog on goal setting, then you will be surprised to find that it’s not! Read on to know about why one should set goals, what are some effective and practical hacks to goal setting, and how to use EFT Tapping technique for goal setting.
Do you feel that your life is boring?
Do you feel like you hardly have anything to look forward to?
Do you feel clueless as to how should you spend your time?
If your answer to the above questions is a yes, it is likely that you need to define clear goals in life.
While many of us may not have clear goals, there are a lot of us who are tired of setting goals because of the failures to achieve them.
And then there are some who have simply given up on setting goals because they know that just like previous times, they won’t succeed this time as well.
I remember feeling so frustrated with myself for not being able to take action on my goals that I just found it useless to set goals knowing that I anyway can’t achieve them.
Most of us struggle with following through our goals. Especially when new year is around the corner, most of us are filled with an excitement to set new year resolutions.
But that motivation withers away very soon, and we end up falling back to our same old ways.
So, how do we get out of this cycle? How can we set the right goals and actually achieve them?
You will find the answers to all these doubts as you go through this blog, and you will also learn about an amazing self-help tool that would immensely help you on your goal-setting journey.
“It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach”.
Benjamin E. Mays
WHY SHOULD ONE SET GOALS?
Before diving deeper into how to set the right goals and the ways to achieve them, it is important to understand why should one set goals? Why are they so important in life?
Firstly, setting goals gives us a sense of meaning and direction in life. When we have clear goals, we use our time and energy purposefully and productively by engaging in things and people that align with our goals.
Not having goals in life is like flowing in a sea like a dead fish, getting thrown away wherever the waves take you.
When we set goals, there is a positive shift in our identity. We see ourselves as someone who wants to get better, and wants to grow in life.
According to the famous American coach, author and speaker, Tony Robbins, “Setting goals is the first step from turning the invisible to visible.”
Research says that our brain cannot differentiate between reality and imagination. Hence, when we imagine a future where our goals are achieved, our brains perceive it as a reality.
Studies have also shown that when we train our mind to think about our goals and dreams, and what exactly we want in life and work towards reaching it, the brain automatically rewires itself to acquire a confident self-image and makes it an essential part of us.
We feel a sense of fulfilment, when our goal is achieved. If we can’t achieve our goals, the brain keeps nudging us until we achieve it.
Someone asked Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, “You are a great man while we are ordinary people. What’s the secret behind your greatness?”
He answered,
“I am also an ordinary man, just like you. The only difference is that people like me have high and great goals in life. When we try to achieve those goals, a part of the greatness of these goals gets imbibed into our personality and hence people think that we are great.”
New to EFT? Learn how Emotional Freedom Technique Tapping heals.
Emotional Freedom Techniques (tapping) is clinically proven to lower stress, tension, anxiety, past-trauma to enable health, happiness and vitality.
WHAT ARE SOME HACKS TO GREAT GOAL SETTING?
We set many goals but often fail to achieve them. All of us have some of the other goals in life. But most of the time, it gets overwhelming and stressful to keep up with those goals. And if we fail to follow through, there is a whole ocean of guilt and frustration that takes over.
Why is it so difficult to accomplish the goals we set for ourselves? Can we not tackle them with ease and at the same time, live a happy and peaceful life?
Well, we sure can! Our journey of fulfilling goals can be wonderful if we follow some hacks to set our goals.
1.
Begin with the end in mind
I read this concept for the first time in one of the best self-help books called “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”.
It says that in order to set the right goals, it’s a good idea to align them with your purpose or end result.
For example, if your end goal is to become a millionaire, your immediate goal would be wise investments of money.
I like to do an exercise where I visualize the ultimate goal of my life and then it break it down into smaller goals.
Bring your notebook and pen, and follow this exercise:
- Someday goal: What is the one thing you want to achieve someday?
- Five-year goal: Based on the someday goal, what’s the one thing you can do in the next five years?
- One-year goal: Based on the five-year goal, what’s the one thing you can do this year?
- Monthly goal: Based on the one-year goal, what’s the one thing you can do this month?
- Weekly goal: Based on the monthly goal, what’s the one thing you can do this week?
- Daily goal: Based on the weekly goal, what’s the one thing you can do daily?
- Right now: Based on the daily goal, what’s the one thing you can do right now?
I find this exercise very powerful as it fills one with vision and clarity about their goals and also helps one use their time in alignment with their goals.
2.
Find your “Why”:
Have a strong reason as to why you want to set a particular goal. Ask yourself why do you want to achieve that particular goal?
Find as many reasons as you can. If you can’t find enough reasons, then it would indicate that you don’t really desire to achieve this goal after all.
Maybe you are not pursuing your own goals, but other people’s.
Think about this:
“Is this what I really want? Or is it just what my parents or friends expect me to do?”
Until you have your own “why”, you will never feel driven to achieve your goals.
3.
Set SMARTER goals
Many times, we set goals that are not very practical and hence we fail to work on them. Our goals should undoubtedly be high and challenging, as only then will it motivate us to pursue them.
But, those goals should be approached by breaking them down into smaller chunks so that they seem achievable and that they encourage us.
Make the smaller goals so easy that they are laughable. This will get you to work on them without any special efforts.
One such strategy to create clear and practical goals is setting SMARTER goals:
SMARTER is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-based, Ethical & Responsive. These are the qualities a particular goal should have, in order for it to be clear and concise.
- Specific: The goal should not be vague, rather should be narrow and to-the-point.
- Measurable: The goal should be set in a way that the progress can be quantitatively measured.
- Achievable: The goal should be attainable enough
- Realistic: The goal should be practical and shouldn’t be like castles in the air
- Time-based: The goal should be set with a deadline
- Ethical: The goal should be ecological
- Responsive: The goal should give you a positive outcome when it is achieved
An ideal goal has all these qualities in them. Some examples of SMARTER goals are:
- “I will read 10 books in a year.”
- “I will exercise a minimum of 20 minutes per day, 5 days per week, until I lose 5 kgs.”
- “I will have an ‘us time’ with my partner every Saturday.”
- “I will practice my piano 4 days per week and learn new 5 songs to play for our annual family gathering this year.”
- “We will invest 20% of our income per pay cheque until retirement at age 65.”
- “We will explore the world by travelling to 15 countries on vacations, before I turn 60.”
In all the above examples, you must have observed that the goals follow all the aspects of SMARTER.
When we clearly define our goals in such a way, it makes them look realistic, and hence makes them easy to achieve.
4.
Plan for failure and action
Once you have set your goals, think about the challenges that you are likely to face in your journey and how will you encounter them.
By identifying potential stumbling blocks, you’ll make sure they don’t into a reason to abandon the habit entirely.
Also, if you are someone who is fall off the wagon, then think about how you will keep yourself accountable.
Come up with a system to keep track of any new habit or goal to ensure consistency and ongoing positive results.
“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps”.
Confucius
ARE THERE ANY DISADVANGES OF SETTING GOALS?
While setting goals is of paramount importance to navigate life, there are also some drawbacks of setting goals that may occur if one is not mindful in the process of achieving them.
Sometimes, in the passion for achieving goals, one may become too obsessed with them and fail to balance other aspects of life. It may also bring about rigidity and a lack of openness to explore new things.
Setting goals and working on them may also lead to perfectionism and needing to succeed at any cost.
When someone becomes too obsessed, they may feel stressed and pressured to accomplish their goals and may end up feeling extremely sad and frustrated when faced with failure.
Hence, it is important to be kind to yourself and allowing and forgiving yourself for mistakes and failures while working on your goals.
HOW DOES EFT TAPPING HELP IN SETTING AND ACHIEVING GOALS?
Now that you know the hacks to great goal setting, you may be wondering, but what if I am not able to achieve my goals even after trying all these hacks? What if something feels missing?
If you are facing this issue and feeling stuck, then you may be having certain limiting beliefs which may not be allowing you to move forward.
For that, Emotional Freedom Techniques or EFT Tapping is here to your rescue!
Emotional Freedom Techniques or EFT Tapping is a holistic therapeutic technique that aims to balance the disrupted energy system of the body by clearing unresolved negative emotions.
Unresolved negative emotions are nothing but emotions that are experienced as a result of negative or limiting beliefs and memories.
According to the theory of EFT, these unresolved emotions which are suppressed for a long time, take the form of physical issues like chronic pain or illnesses as well as mental and emotional issues like anxiety, stress or depression.
EFT Tapping involves a process of tapping on the specific “meridian” points on the face and upper body, which are based on the ancient science of Chinese medicine.
The common meridian points used in EFT are:
- Karate chop point on the hand
- Eyebrow
- Temple
- Under the nose
- Chin
- Collarbone
- Under the arm
Along with tapping, the person is supposed to say out loud statements that are related to the issue they are trying to resolve.
For those new to the concept of EFT, if you would like to experience the power of EFT Tapping firsthand, just download the EFT Tapping Booklet below.
New to EFT? Learn how Emotional Freedom Technique Tapping heals.
Emotional Freedom Techniques (tapping) is clinically proven to lower stress, tension, anxiety, past-trauma to enable health, happiness and vitality.
After undergoing the process of EFT Tapping, the person’s disrupted energy system gets balanced, and the emotional charge associated with past memories no longer remains. This helps us free ourselves from limiting belief systems.
Limiting beliefs are the assumptions and views we have for ourselves and our life that hold us back from succeeding. They keep us stuck in the same patterns.
Some examples of limiting beliefs we may have which hinder our process of achieving goals are:
- “I am not good enough.”
- “I fail everytime I try.”
- “I can’t remain consistent.”
- “I am a procrastinator.”
- “I don’t have enough time.”
- “I can never change.”
- “I don’t know what I want.”
Limiting beliefs are formed as a result of our childhood experiences and conditioning by parents or teachers, and also by different experiences we have throughout life.
For a transformational change, you need to work on rewiring your beliefs. EFT Tapping helps you to uncover your beliefs and gives you the your power back by helping you frame new beliefs.
EFT TAPPING FOR GOAL SETTING
Below mentioned are the basic of EFT Tapping for Goal Setting:
Step 1
Identify limiting beliefs
Think about the limiting beliefs that are preventing you from achieving your goals. Pick one limiting belief on which you want to work first.
Step 2
Ask yourself
Now, say the belief out loud and ask yourself how true does the statement feel by rating it on a scale of 0-10, where 10 is very high and 0 is very low.
Just go with whatever comes up in your mind spontaneously, without thinking much about it.
Step 3
Start tapping on the side of your hand (Karate Chop)
Tap on the limiting belief and the associated emotions.
Start tapping on the side of the hand (Karate chop point) by saying:
“Even though I have this belief that (say the belief)_____________ and and it’s at a number (the rating you gave initially)_____________ and it makes me feel (emotions that you feel) _______________ I deeply and completely love and accept myself.”
Repeat this statement 3 times while simultaneously tapping on the Karate chop point.
Step 4
Start tapping on the upper body, facial and finger tapping points:
- Eyebrow: This belief_________
- Side of Eye/Temple: It makes me feel ___________
- Under Eye: It’s at a number _______
- Under Nose: It makes me feel _______
- Chin: This belief______
- Collarbone: It makes me feel_________
- Under the arm: So (feeling) ____________
- Thumb: So (feeling) ________________
- Index Finger: Feeling (emotion) because___________
- Middle Finger: I feel it in my ______________
- Little Finger: So________________
Step 5
Complete the sequence by tapping on the Karate Chop
Close the sequence by repeating the setup statement once:
“Even though I have this belief that __________ and it’s at a number _______ and it makes me feel _______, I deeply and completely love and accept myself.”
Step 6
Breathe and relax
Take a gentle breath in and out, and have a sip of water.
Step 7
Test yourself
After the round of tapping, ask yourself,
“How true does the limiting belief feel when said out loud?”
If it has reduced to a level you feel happy with, you can stop. Or you can repeat this process if you feel like the number could come down a little more.
Step 8
Discover past experiences
Discover past experiences or events of when this belief may have come to you and clear them.
To reveal the memories linked to feeling it, you can ask questions like:
- When have you felt like this before? When has this limiting belief come to you before?
- What does this feeling remind you of?
- When is it that you don’t experience these feelings related to limiting beliefs?
- What can trigger and bring about the feeling related to the limiting beliefs?
Step 9
Continue tapping on memories
Tap on these memories and events as you uncover them using the same tapping process as given above.
Step 10
Shift to positive beliefs
Now, shift the negative limiting beliefs to positive beliefs.
For example,
“I don’t think I can do it” to “I am capable of doing it well.”
Step 11
Close with positive EFT Tapping for Goal Setting
Example of a positive tapping statements are:
- “Even though I doubt myself, I choose to believe that I can accomplish all that I desire.”
Repeat as often as needed and you can stop when you feel relaxed.
Goal setting is not just about motivation, discipline, or success. Many times, there are deeper aspects to it and we may not understand what is keeping us stuck in the same cycle and what is holding us back from achieving the goals we want to.
EFT Tapping is one such technique that helps you understand those deeper aspects that unconsciously keep you stuck. By identifying and changing your limiting beliefs, you become limitless!
You will effortlessly reach your full potential once you remove the roadblocks of limiting beliefs from your way. Use EFT Tapping for overcoming your limiting beliefs and free yourself from the shackles of the past.
Continue to learn and explore!
Love,
Dr Rangana Rupavi Choudhuri (PhD)
P.S. Want to discover if EFT is right for you? Book a Complimentary Discovery Call.
How To Self-Heal & Become An EFT Practitioner
Discover how EFT Tapping can help you to self-heal or to become professionally qualified as a Certified EFT Practitioner. Emotional Freedom Techniques (Tapping) is clinically proven to lower stress, tension, anxiety, past trauma to enable health, happiness and vitality.
In summary, the biggest obstacle to achieving your goals are your beliefs about yourself and the world. EFT Tapping is a great tool that gives rapid as well as long lasting results for many psychological and physical issues by healing them from their root cause. Find and heal the root cause that is keeping you from achieving your goals and soar high!
Disclaimer: The information on this website is purely for educational purposes and does not in any way replace the requirement for medical and psychological diagnosis and treatment. Please seek professional medical and psychological diagnosis and advice for all medical and mental health conditions. It is advised to always book any consultations with qualified professionals.
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