Food for Thought

Setting Realistic Goals

Part of growing up is learning to set realistic goals for ourselves. Our grandiose egos used to dare us into dreaming great dreams, which led to feelings of failure when the dreams did not materialize. If we expect the impossible of ourselves, we are bound to be disappointed.

Those of us who come into OA with many pounds to lose need to be realistic about the amount of time we allow for achieving the weight loss. We also need to be realistic about the fact that we may never look like fashion models. If we expect all other problems to vanish upon the attainment of a weight goal, we are not being realistic.

Maintaining abstinence, working the Twelve Steps, and attending meetings regularly keeps us in touch with the reality of our disease. The goals we set for ourselves are determined by where we are in actuality right now. Some of us have farther to go than others. The goals we set should challenge us rather than defeat us before we begin.

Show me the goals that are realistic for me today.

From Food for Thought: Daily Meditations for Overeaters by Elisabeth L. ©1980, 1992 by Hazelden Foundation.

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I once had huge, unrealistic dreams..........not achievable dreams, actually........but I never associated those dreams with a grandiose ego.  I've learned so much in OA, especially about ego versus humility.

The goals I once set for myself were so unrealistic, that I was defeated before I even began.

I strive to be reasonable & realistic with myself nowadays, to stay in touch with my disease & recognize the various manifestations of it. When I keep abstinence as my #1 priority, I have my disease in remission and my entire life on the right track.

For today, my realistic goal is to stay abstinent, to exercise my body, and to do a few chores around my house that need attention.