Should you share your goals?

I know it’s been a while since I posted on the blog.  I once read somewhere that you should focus on one goal at a time and my one goal for half this year was running a marathon.  Now I’m ready to move on to my next goal which is getting my blog back in order.

I’m all about setting goals.  I encourage other people to set some goals to keep them on track. I love goals.  People do share their goals to have accountability.  Sharing and accountability are a great thing.  Now I’m starting to wonder, should you share your goals at all?

Share your goals

Social media isn’t a kind place.  Sharing is giving the world the permission to comment or question what I am doing. Sometimes it can be a distraction.  Sharing online or in person does add pressure to the situation because obstacles or setbacks are hard to share those moments.

There are benefits to sharing your goals.  I love the community that builds around me when I share something that I’m working towards.  While training for my marathon this time around, I found a group of people who were running their FIRST marathon on the same day (different marathon) as mine and we went through every step of the training cycle together.  Although it wasn’t my first marathon, everything felt brand new to me and it was nice to go through the experience with some others.

Connecting with others online is the magic of the internet.  We get to meet new people, share our experiences, and get different points of view. 

In the end, it becomes a matter of personal preference.  If you share your goals online and with others, you need to feel comfortable sharing and receiving the feedback that might come with sharing your goals.  Just be careful, of what you choose to share with people you know and don’t know.

The one thing I’ve have learned along the way is not one is going to care about your goals as much as you do.  When we set goals, those things become personal and we form attachments to those goals. People will not completely understand what you’re doing and WHY you’re doing it.  

Like I said before, sharing can sometimes be a distraction from your goal because you’re too busy trying to show everyone that you moving toward your goal instead of just working toward your goal.  Goals are not achieved easily and take work.  Don’t add extra work by trying to prove yourself to others.

Most importantly, all goals don’t need to be shared.  Keep something for yourself.  If you feel like your goal is so important to you and you don’t want the distraction of discouragement or judgment, then don’t share it with anyone.

It’s hard for me to choose in this situation. I feel like accountability will push me forward in some instances but it can be hurtful in other instances. Nine out of ten times I’m sharing my goals not to brag, but for the accountability aspect. 

Do you find it helpful to share your goals? Or do you keep some things to do yourself?