If you don't know specifically where you're going, then you'll never get there. And if you don't set the bar high enough, you'll never live up to your potential.
如果你不明確該往哪走，那你永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)到達(dá)目的地。如果你不把界限設(shè)高些，你永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)爆發(fā)所有的潛力。

This is accepted common sense in the business world and it's reinforced by research. Like that study done on the Harvard Business School class you may have heard of, in which only 3% of the graduating students wrote down clear goals. Twenty years later, those 3% were worth 10 times the worth of the rest of the class combined. Compelling, right?
在商界這是大家都認(rèn)為理所當(dāng)然的事，而且經(jīng)過研究，這個(gè)觀念被加強(qiáng)。就像你可能聽過的在哈佛商學(xué)院某班做的研究一樣，在研究中，只有3%的畢業(yè)生寫下了清晰的目標(biāo)。20年后，這3%學(xué)生的身價(jià)是班中剩下所有學(xué)生的身價(jià)總和的10倍。很有說服力是吧？

It would be if it were true. But it isn't. That study doesn't exist. It's pure urban myth.We might debate which goals to set, or how to set them, but who would debate whether to set goals at all?
如果這件事存在的話確實(shí)是很有說服力，但事實(shí)卻不是這樣。這個(gè)研究根本不存在，只是“都市神話”而已。我們或許會(huì)討論建立何種目標(biāo)，或如何建立它們，但誰會(huì)討論要不要設(shè)立目標(biāo)呢？

I'd like to.
我會(huì)。

When we set goals, we're taught to make them specific and measurable. But it turns out that those characteristics are precisely the reasons goals can backfire. A specific, measurable goal drives behavior that's narrowly focused and often leads to either cheating or myopia.
當(dāng)我們設(shè)立目標(biāo)時(shí)，經(jīng)常被告知目標(biāo)要明確可以度量。但結(jié)果說明正是目標(biāo)的這些特性會(huì)讓結(jié)果適得其反。一個(gè)精確、可度量的目標(biāo)限制了行為，也會(huì)導(dǎo)致欺騙或短視。

So what can you do in the absence of goals? I want to propose one: Instead of identifying goals, consider identifying areas of focus.
所以在沒有目標(biāo)的情況下你應(yīng)該做什么呢？我想提出一條建議：明確目標(biāo)范圍而不是具體的目標(biāo)。

A goal defines an outcome you want to achieve; an area of focus establishes activities you want to spend your time doing. A goal is a result; an area of focus is a path. A goal points to a future you intend to reach; an area of focus settles you into the present.
目標(biāo)定義了你想要獲得的結(jié)果，目標(biāo)范圍明確了你想要花時(shí)間做的事。目標(biāo)是結(jié)果；目標(biāo)范圍是過程。目標(biāo)指出了你想要得到的未來；目標(biāo)范圍讓你把握現(xiàn)在。

How do you do it? It's simple: identify the things you want to spend your time doing — or the things that you and your manager decide are the most valuable use of your time — and spend your time doing those things. The rest takes care of itself.
那你該如何做呢？很簡單：明確你想花時(shí)間做的事——或者你和經(jīng)理覺得對你最有價(jià)值的事——然后花時(shí)間完成它們。其他的自會(huì)有解決之道。

And in my experience, not only will you achieve at least as much as you would have if you had set goals, but you'll enjoy the process far more, avoiding unnecessary stress and temptation.
而且據(jù)我的經(jīng)驗(yàn)，當(dāng)你用這種方法設(shè)立目標(biāo)后你不只會(huì)達(dá)成目標(biāo)，也會(huì)更享受過程，并避免不必要的壓力和誘惑。