Moving the Goalposts

The phrase, “moving the goalposts” usually refers to someone changing an objective or a standard on you while you are amid the process of achieving the original goal. For example, your boss sets a target for you of $1 million in sales over the next quarter. If you achieve it, you receive a $5k quarterly bonus. However, just as you are closing in the mark, your boss announces the target is now $1.25 million for the quarter. Frustrating, right? It is like running a marathon and just as you are completing the 26^th mile, you are informed the finish line was moved to mile 30.

This can happen in many areas of life: work, school, interpersonal relationships, etc. It is both confusing and frustrating when a standard continues to be altered and we are not sure how we measure up. We feel like the donkey chasing a carrot on a stick in front of us; no matter how fast we run, the carrot is out there just a little further.

Usually when people refer to “goalposts” being moved, they are referencing finish lines or objectives being moved farther away. As frustrating and infuriating as this might be, there is another hazard in moving the goalposts: when we bring them in closer for ourselves.

When we bring in the goalposts for ourselves, we succumb to our own limiting beliefs. As we move down the field of life, fatigue and frustration will certainly set in. We encounter obstacles that we did not anticipate. We experience unexpected setbacks. All these things tempt us to move in the goalposts and make the target a little easier to hit.

Don’t cheat yourself or the process. Resist the urge to move in the goalposts.

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