What next When a goal flops?

Have you ever pursued a goal only to eventually realize it’s just not working out? This has happened to me, and I can tell you there’s nothing more frustrating. After all, we usually don’t achieve goals because 1. we purposely set them aside to focus on something more important or 2. we get too busy (or lazy) and don’t give them the time and attention they deserve.   

But what about the times when we do everything we should do to make something happen, and we’re persistent about it, but despite herculean efforts, we just don’t see results? For example, from the time my friend was a child, she wanted to be an actress. After she graduated from college, she attended workshops, spent money on head shots, went on hundreds of auditions, and networked like mad. But several years later, my friend still had no results to speak of, save one walk-on part on a network sitcom.  

My friend realized the cosmos was trying to tell her that she was meant to do something else, but she had been tuning it out. She started listening, and recalled how she’d helped a friend in marketing come up with one of the most successful brand names in that company’s history. Now she’s an extremely successful independent naming consultant, pulling down a six-figure salary and loving every minute of it.   

Sometimes, we may think we’re destined for something, only to find out there’s an entirely different plan in place for us. When you keep hitting a brick wall despite trying your damndest to achieve a certain outcome, perhaps that means you should look at other possibilities. As a unique human being, you have your own brand of genius to offer the world — even if it’s not exactly what you thought at first.

– Alexandra Levit is the author of “They Don’t Teach Corporate in College: A Twenty-Something’s Guide to the Business World,” and a nationally recognized authority on workplace issues facing young employees.

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