Until recently, I’ve never heard of the shiny object syndrome.
It’s the “syndrome” that causes one to be easily distracted by “shiny objects” and lose focus on the tasks at hand. You see it with parents overcommitting their kids. You see it in entrepreneurs starting several businesses at the same time. You see it in churches dabbling in everything except the main thing.
Are you interested, or are you committed?
How do you know the difference?
Why does it matter?
Interest vs. Commitment
I heard a story one time that discussed the difference between commitment and interest. Two guys independently created an objective to swim a mile. The first man calculated how many laps he would need to swim in the community pool to complete the distance goal and proceeded to attempt the objective.
The second guy had a friend drive him out in the ocean one mile, drop him off and leave him to swim back to shore. For the first guy, it was a matter of convenience, if he became tired, he could simply get out of the pool. For the second guy, there was not an option to simply get out. He would have to push through the fatigue, sore muscles, to achieve his objective. That is the difference between commitment and interest.
Are You Interested in Your Goals, or Are You Fully Committed
A common complaint among goal setters is that there’s just not enough time to get to the ones that “really matter.” The real culprit is that most people don’t raise their goals beyond the level of general interest.
There is a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in something, your mindset is “yeah, that would pretty neat to do …” and you do it only when it’s convenient. When you are interested in something, you fit it into your life when it’s convenient and comfortable.
With a commitment, it creates a limitation where nothing can change—it does not leave the door open for a greater possibilities. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results. You set a realistic goal, execute it consistently and don’t make excuses, even when it’s not convenient and many times difficult. You press on toward the goal and vision you created.
When you’re interested in something, you’re temporarily motivated. What’s left after the motivation dies? Commitment keeps you going when pursuing the goal becomes boring, inconvenient or painful. Make that commitment and you automatically create an obligation that you’re bound to fulfill.
When you are interested in something, you fit it into your life when it’s convenient and comfortable. Commitment is what keeps a person going the motions every day, even when they would otherwise rather just stay in bed. Commitment is far more important, and it’s the reason no one will pay 5 cents to attend a ‘commitment seminar.’
Here are differences between being interested and being committed.
1. If you are interested, you show up sometimes. When you are committed, you show up all the time.
2. If you are interested, when things get tough, you give up and move on to your next “interest.” If you are committed, no matter how tough things get, you find a way over, under, around or through obstacles.
3. If you are interested, you dabble in a bunch of interests. If you are committed, you concentrate your energy on achieving a much shorter list of objectives. In short, you focus.
4. If you are interested, you are easily distracted and often fall victim to shiny object syndrome. If you are committed, you are so focused that you often don’t even notice the irrelevant shiny objects around you.
5. If you are interested, you don’t set goals; rather, you just let it happen. If you are committed, you set goals in a way that maximizes the probability you will achieve them, and you regularly monitor your progress. You use the S.M.A.R.T. approach to goal-setting.
6. If you are interested, you let the fear of failure and other fears keep you from achieving your objectives. If you are committed, you realize that every “failure” is just another step in the direction of achieving your goals.
7. If you are interested, you allow perfectionism to inhibit your progress, working hand-in-hand with fear of failure to limit your success. If you are committed, you understand that perfectionism is the enemy, and you continue to make forward progress, even if each step is not perfect.
Are you interested, or are you committed?
When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results.
