You’ve reached the goal; now what?

Understanding this concept will change everything!

I wish I would have understood this years ago as it would have alleviated so much emotional turmoil and the one step forward, two steps back dance I was doing with myself.

It’s the Goal Dip…no, not the kind of chocolate dip you might enjoy with fresh strawberries and champagne as you celebrate your win.  I’m talking about something else and something rather unexpected; it’s the low point or anticlimactic feeling you might feel right after reaching the goal or milestone.

AND…the more significant the outcome or achievement, the greater the dip!

For me, it looked something like this.  I started running and getting into endurance sports. I would hang out with runners, join running clubs, compete at the races, and from the outside looking in, I was a runner.

I started increasing my mileage from 5 to 10 to 10K distances and then eventually the marathon.  Every time I reached a new milestone distance and completed a race, I never experienced the joy of a job well done.  

I was perplexed!  This is what I worked for, and I thought I would be over the moon filled with joy.

I didn’t understand what was wrong with me or if I was even capable of finding joy in my achievements.

I realize now that there was nothing wrong with me; I just didn’t understand the “dip” and what to do about it.

You see, I was a runner…I talked like a runner, dressed like a runner, did things that runners do…run, but in my mind, I didn’t see myself as a runner.

I reached my goals, but the image I had of myself didn’t have time to catch up.  I didn’t know how to alter my self-image, and it was my self-image (paradigm) that was fighting me.

Now I know how to help people shift their self-image so that when they experience the dip, they know it’s just the paradigm playing tricks on them. 

Just knowing about “the dip” can be life-changing for you.  Most people experience this phenomenon and mistakingly use it as feedback to quit or try something else. NO!!!  The dip is simply your paradigm trying to keep you in your comfort zone.

What can you do?  Shine the light of awareness on it by acknowledging how you feel, then let it go.  Choose not to engage with your old paradigm and do not permit it to drive your decisions.