Hotshots: Getting your Goal.

Title: Getting your Goal.

Talk:

What’s the best excuse you’ve ever used for handing in a piece of homework late?

How about the dog ate it? My little sister scribbled all over it or if it’s maths homework how about ‘I came up with a mathematical theory so incredible that genius Stephen Hawkings is still looking into it?’

Or how about this one ‘My homework’s late because I’ve been playing computer games for the last three months.’

That’s not likely to get your teacher to give you an extension but it’s actually the excuse that famous Scottish author Iain M Banks once used. Take it from me, he is famous. He missed the publisher’s deadline for finishing one of his novels because he’d got hooked to playing the strategy game Civilisations. In fact he was so hooked he had to take the games discs and snap them in half so he couldn’t use them!

So what’s stopping you from achieving your goal in life? Your goal may not be to do your homework well but maybe it should be. But how about if you want to be a great musician? What’s getting in the way? Too much time on the Playstation and not enough time practising your instrument?

Well here’s a story of someone who’ll stop at nothing to achieve their goal.
Barbara Haddrill is intent on living an environmentally friendly lifestyle. When she was asked to be a bridesmaid the other year for a friend in Brisbane Australia she realised that flying there would produce 5.2 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

So what did she do? She took the bus instead. Well several buses, and a few trains and a boat. First to London, then to Moscow by coach, more coaches and a train to Shanghai and a boat from there to Brisbane.

It cost her four times the air fare and the journey was 49 times longer than flying, but that didn’t put her off. Because even though she took all those trains, coaches and a boat her journey only produced 1.4 tons of carbon dioxide.

You might think she’s taking a great stand against the pollution flying causes. You might just think she’s nuts but you have to admire her for not letting anything get in the way of her achieving a life goal.

So think about what’s getting in the way of you achieving your goal? Could be computer games, could be friends who encourage you to play up in class when you actually want to study.

Think about it. What steps do you need to take in order to become the person you really want to be?

Further Illustrations:

Christian Perspective:

Matthew 6.33 – Seek first his kingdom, in the sermon on the mount Jesus says that focussing on reaching this goal is the key to life.

Facts:  

Green stats at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/yourenv/

Film Clip:

Million Dollar Baby, 20 mins 0 seconds to 22.05
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