Thirty three years ago I was just like this little boy in the picture... no limits, imagination running wild, energetic, excited and seeing a world of possibility. I even wanted to be a pilot one day (though this changed over time). I'm sure many of you felt the same at that age: that sense of boundless potential; that your dreams could take you anywhere; and that so many simple things could be the start of the next great adventure.

I remember setting my early goal: "to fly fighter planes". I also remember the absolute belief that this was totally possible, and was fortunate enough to have a family that wouldn't judge my goal, knock it down or take the energy out of my enthusiasm. I bought the latest plane magazines with pocket money. I did extra chores to buy plane toys. I drew planes. I watched TV programmes about planes. I folded paper into origami shapes that resembled planes (some even flew!). I even made plane shaped things out of random Lego blocks and whizzed around my bedroom, having aerial hand-assisted dog fights with the family dog. (She was playing the part of the dastardly monster I was saving the planet from... much to "Perdy Dog's" bemusement, and the occasional destruction of my aerial sortie with a sneaky tail-whip assault on my creations).

The point here is that, in the imagination of most children, anything is possible. That is where kids are truly geniuses! If imagination was good enough for Einstein, it has to be good enough for all of us. As children, even when we are not actually training to be a 'fighter pilot' just yet, our dreams excite us; and when they do, we start to do things about those aspirations to bring them to life. So what, if ten years later I was planning on a business degree rather than joining the RAF. Goals are allowed to change, as are we.

The key here is: we choose a destination, get excited about it, and start to work with what we have to get there while picking up more along the way.

So why do so many of us lack the passion, adventure and possibility with our adult goals? Why do we think that if a target is simply specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound that we have the recipe for success? Why, when we have a SMART recipe, do we often either fall short of what we want, or feel a little 'meh' when we get there?

It's because many times we stop looking through the genius lens children have...

Looking through the lens

There is so much we can learn about our own adult goals and aspirations if we look through the same genius lens that kids so often do. I'm blessed to have two amazing children to remind me of what life is like through their lens. I get to see the genius kids' innately have, when it comes to goal setting.... and there is so much to take from it:

1. Anything is possible (even if it is not realistic). I could never dream of a world where I would say to my 7 year old daughter "Let's be realistic. You are unlikely to sell out Wembley Stadium for the first leg of your world tour". We wouldn't kill their dreams with 'Realism' so why do we compromise our own? Just because something hasn't been achieved does not mean it is not possible. With the right energy, time, acquired skill, and commitment most things are!

Action: Explore what you think is possible as a goal to put your energy behind (even if it feels improbable) and allow it to excite you.

2. Imagination is everything! Inspiration comes from what we dream and imagine. Einstein says it nicely "Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere."Without these limitless dreams of others, we would never have worked out how to fly, how the universe works, or how to power our cars with fuel. Start imagining the possibilities, the scenarios, and what we need to bring our goals to life. As Stephen Covey said "Start with the end in mind" and work backwards from there the steps to achieve it.

Action: Imagine what you would truly want and what it might take to get there.

3. Connect what you want with what you need to do. Doing chores and earning pocket money served a whole new purpose when I was set on being a pilot. It served a purpose to wash cars, and even clean up the dog mess, as I could connect it to what I really wanted such as buying the next plane magazine. What are the tasks you need to accomplish, and how can you use your goal to give these tasks a purpose which serves what you really desire? The energy boost you can get from this can be a revelation.

Action: Look at what you need to do, and what it might require to take the next single step forward to your deeper goal. Next, explore how one might support the other.

4. Love the process and make it an adventure! While we often dream, kids get on and start doing stuff. They revel in acting it out. Researching it. Doing things, even if it's not yet sounding like a Wembley Stadium filling vocal, or managing to fly as far as the distance from the tree to the floor, puts you in motion. Thrive in the 'doing'. A goal simply sets the direction, action is what gets you there. We learn more from our mistakes than we do from our successes; so get on, do lots of stuff, and make mistakes along the way if you have to. Just remember to learn from them (I learned that I will choose a different mode of flying apparatus to the table cloth, for taking flight from a tree). 

Action: What are the first things you can start to do to take a step forward to your goal, that will excite you by doing so?

Final Thoughts

My final thoughts are that often our goals as grown-ups become too easily limited. Sales targets, corporate mission statements, performance targets, etc, etc have become two dimensional and uninspiring far too often. Why? They don't need to be. With a little imagination, communication and thought they can become so much more. People will go as far as clean up metaphorical dog mess for a higher purpose and their dreams. I know I have! So I challenge any who read this to look through the children's lens, even just a little, and feel what is possible.

The genius I mention is there to plug into. The question then becomes "how?". My answer is, put your goal through 'flight school' and give it a work over. If looking at your goal doesn't; fire the imagination; give you a buzz of possibility; align with what you are doing; or turn the process into an adventure, then change it until it does.

Richard Cash, as well as being a former 'childhood fantasy fighter pilot' , is the CEO of iAspire and a specialist in person-centred development, performance systems, and how to tap into the latent potential organisations have within their people. If you'd like to know more how Aspire can tap into more of what's possible then you can reach him at richard@iasys.uk