每年我會和太太在新年第一天，開只有我們兩人的年會。今年1月1日我們也開了會。經過半年來的風風雨雨，不可否認地，我感覺這好像是很久很久以前的事了！即便如此，年會的內容是讓我們撥出時間，回顧財務狀況、協調目標和規劃假期。我們查看去年的目標是否順利達成，並且評估這些目標是否太大或太小。

幾年前，商業領域中有一個流行用語叫做：BHAG(發音為BeeHag/逼駭格)（Big Hairy Audacious Goal），意思是偉大、驚險且大膽的目標。其實就是比較有技巧的說：設定一個遠大到不可能實現的目標。或者有人如此解釋：瞄準星星射擊，也許碰巧能夠射中月亮。如果你設定一個偉大、驚險且大膽的目標，就能實現任何超乎想像的事。

並非每個人都想設定目標，尤其是那些看似遙不可及的目標。沒達成目標可能會讓人沮喪。因此，一些願意設定目標的人，傾向於設定合理且能達成的目標。這能提供激勵我們前行的成就感，且規避失望。但這也讓我們沒有機會完成令人終生難忘，且可能改變整個人生的事情。

我剛讀完喬恩．阿考夫（Jon Acuff）的書《完成：把不了了之的待辦目標變成巳實現的有效練習Finish- Give Yourself The Gife Of Done》。他的結論是：「你拒絕追尋的目標不會消失，它們會成為揮之不去的幽靈。你知道人為什麼會在網路上嗆人，且很容易被激怒嗎？這是因為他們的熱情無處宣洩。許多酸民都是來自他未完成的目標。網路酸民就是一個多次放棄自己目標的人，最後決定毀掉其他人的目標。」

如果你發現自己不快樂，批評所有的人事物，或許最好檢查一下你的目標。有可能你的目標大到讓人灰心，或者小到無法激發你的熱情跟動力。

或者更糟糕的是，你發現自己達成了錯誤的目標。也許你有很優渥的工作，或者賺很多錢，但仍然感到不快樂。請捫心自問你追求的是正確的目標嗎？重新評估或設定目標永遠不嫌太遲，總比拒絕追尋那些可能比你想像得更有意義的目標來的好。

聖經對這個主題解釋得非常好。我喜歡《擴大版聖經》中的以弗所書5章16節：「要愛惜（在世上的）光陰（並留意、掌握每一個機會，明智且勤奮地善加運用），因為現今的世代（充滿）邪惡。 」 換句話說，如果機會出現時我們沒有把握住，它很可能永遠消失。

我們也要尋求智慧，知道自己是否在追求正確的目標。正如耶穌在馬太福音6章33節中所說的：「你們要先求他的國和他的義，這些東西都要加給你們了。」如果我們的主要目標是討上帝喜悅和尊崇上帝，就可以相信祂會引導我們訂定目標。

我和內人覺得1月是檢查目標的理想時間。但如果你覺得現在的目標不可行，或沒有給你帶來喜樂，為什麼還要再等整整一年才做出改變呢？今天或許就是制定全新，甚至是看似不可能的目標的最佳時機。你還在等甚麼？

©2020JimMathis是堪薩斯州歐弗蘭帕克的作家，攝影師和企業主。他的最新著作是《駱駝和針The Camel and the Needle》，《基督徒看財富和金錢A Christian Looks at Wealth and Money》。他曾任堪薩斯州堪薩斯城和密蘇里州堪薩斯城的CBMC咖啡店經理和執行理事。

反省與問題討論

1. 你會制定年度目標嗎？如果有，流程是什麼？你制定的目標又是什麼？你如何知道你的目標是否達成了?
2. 你是否曾制定過作者所描述「偉大、驚險且大膽的目標」？你如何看待這個目標？它是對你的挑戰還是威脅？
3. 你對作者引述的這段文字：「你拒絕追尋的目標不會消失，它們會成為揮之不去的幽靈。」有何看法？
4. 你同意要讓上帝成為制定目標過程的中心嗎？如果同意，你認為我們要如何讓上帝參與在我們的決策和目標設定中？

備註：如果你手上有聖經，想要閱讀更多關於這個主題的內容，請參考：

箴言10章4-5節
10:4 手懶的，要受貧窮；手勤的，卻要富足。
10:5 夏天聚斂的，是智慧之子；收割時沉睡的，是貽羞之子。
箴言12章11節
12:11 耕種自己田地的，必得飽食；追隨虛浮的，卻是無知。
箴言14章23節
14:23 諸般勤勞都有益處；嘴上多言乃致窮乏。
箴言21章5節
21:5 殷勤籌劃的，足致豐裕；行事急躁的，都必缺乏。
箴言29章18節
29:18 沒有異象（或譯：默示），民就放肆；惟遵守律法的，便為有福。
傳道書9章10節
9:10 凡你手所當做的事要盡力去做；因為在你所必去的陰間沒有工作，沒有謀算，沒有知識，也沒有智慧。
羅馬書13章11-12節
13:11 再者，你們曉得，現今就是該趁早睡醒的時候；因為我們得救，現今比初信的時候更近了。
13:12 黑夜已深，白晝將近。我們就當脫去暗昧的行為，帶上光明的兵器。

MINUTE FOR A MID-YEAR GOAL REVIEW?

By Jim Mathis

Each year my wife and I have an annual meeting, just the two of us, on New Year’s Day. That is what we did on January 1 of this year. Admittedly, that seems like a long, long time ago, given what the current year has already served us! Nonetheless, this annual meeting is the time we set aside to review our finances, coordinate our goals, and plan our vacations. We look at the previous year’s goals to decide if we accomplished what we intended to get done, as well as to assess whether see those goals might have been too big – or too small.

Some years ago, there was a buzz word circulating in the business world, identified by the acronym, BHAG – Big Hairy Audacious Goal. It was a clever way of saying, “Shoot for something so big, so great, you can’t possibly see how it will ever happen.” Or as someone said, “Shoot for the stars and you might hit the moon.” If you conceive a big, hairy, audacious goal, you could achieve beyond anything you could have ever dreamed.

Not everyone is eager to set goals, especially ones that seem far beyond reach. Failing to reach goals can be discouraging. For that reason – if they set goals at all – some people prefer reasonable goals that can be checked off. This builds momentum to keep us motivated. It avoids disappointment. But it also kills any chance we might have for accomplishing something memorable, so rewarding that it could even be life-changing.

I just finished reading Jon Acuff’s newest book, Finish. He concludes with the statement, “Goals that you refuse to chase don’t disappear, they become ghosts that haunt you. Do you know why strangers rage at you online and are so easily offended? It is because their passion has no other outlet. Many a troll was born from the heartbreak of a goal he didn’t finish. A troll is just someone who gave up on his goals so many times, he decided to just tear down everyone’s else’s.”

If you have lost your joy, and find yourself criticizing everyone and everything, it might be a good idea to check your goals. They may be so big they discourage you, or so small that they don’t inspire passion or motivate you.

Or worse, you discover you have accomplished the wrong goals. Maybe you have a great job, or are making lots of money, but still feel unhappy. Ask yourself if you are pursuing the right goals. It is never too late to re-evaluate or rewrite your goals. It is only too late when you make the determination not to pursue goals that might have proved more rewarding and fulfilling than you could ever have imagined.

The Scriptures address this very well. I like Ephesians 5:16 in the Amplified Version of the Bible: “making the most of your time [on earth, recognizing and taking advantage of each opportunity and using it with wisdom and diligence], because the days are [filled with] evil.” In other words, if we don’t take advantage of an opportunity when it presents itself, it might be lost forever.

We also find wisdom on how to know whether we are pursuing the right goals. As Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” If our primary goal is the please and honor God, we can feel confident He will guide us in the goal-setting process.

As I said, my wife and I have found January to be an ideal time for doing a goal check. But why wait an entire year to make changes if your current goals are not working, or not bringing you joy. Today might be the best time to create new goals, even ones that seem impossible. What are you waiting for?

© 2020. Jim Mathis is a writer, photographer and small business owner in Overland Park, Kansas. His latest book is The Camel and the Needle, A Christian Looks at Wealth and Money. He formerly was a coffee shop manager and executive director of CBMC in Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.A.

Reflection/Discussion Questions

1. Do you set annual goals? If so, what is the process you use – and what do your goals look like? How do you know when you have accomplished them? 
2. Have you ever established any of the “big, hairy, audacious goals” Mr. Mathis describes? How do you feel about that idea – does it challenge you, or does it intimidate you? 
3. The quote from the book says, “Goals that you refuse to chase don’t disappear, they become ghosts that haunt you.” What do you think about that?
4. For setting goals, it is suggested to make God a central part of the process. Do you agree? If so, how do you think that should be done? How can we make God part of our decision-making and goal-setting?

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about this subject, consider the following passages:
Proverbs 10:4-5, 12:11, 14:23, 21:5, 29:18; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Romans 13:11-12

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