When I coach lawyers, I ask: Do you have an incredibly ambitious goal that energizes you?

Why ask that question?

As you will see in the video clip below, there is a biological reason. Scientists would tell you it is because of dopamine.

Do you know what it is and how it contributes to your success?

Scientists have studied it for years. It can have both good and bad effects. I read:  Scientists seek to manage dopamine’s good and bad sides and found:

 Its presence creates feelings of satisfaction, enjoyment or excitement, and so motivates people to repeat behavior, good or bad…

Dr. Jay Giedd, a psychiatrist at the National Institute of Mental Health in Rockville, Md., explained dopamine’s effects in a radio interview earlier this year:

“If we make good decisions, our dopamine goes up. It tells our brain, you know, good call, that was the right move, you know, do that again next time, and it literally changes the anatomy of the brain. It strengthens certain connections. It decreases others.”

The problem is that behavior that shouldn’t be repeated also releases dopamine.

I found this Psychology Today article: The Plunge of Pleasure Like all roller-coaster rides, dopamine highs have their dangers, with this interesting thought by Richard Depue, Ph.D., professor of human development at Cornell University:

When our dopamine system is active, we are more positive, excited, and eager to go after goals and rewards, whether it’s food, sex, money, education, or professional achievement,” he says. In fact, he suggests that people who are goal-directed are not only more motivated but are generally happier.

If you have time Watch this  Simon Sinek video clip. If you don’t have time, watch 8:00-9:30 to get further support for “seeing” your goal.

So, what is the bottom line? If you can visualize an incredibly ambitious goal that energizes you, then you have a great chance of achieving it.

So, what is your incredibly ambitious goal? Can you see it? Can you create a written plan now to start your journey?

P.S. If you are a regular reader, you may recall that when I was a teenager visiting my grandparents, out of boredom I pulled a book my grandfather’s bookcase: Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill.

Last week I found a blog post written about how I had used that book in my career. Given our topic today, I invite you to read: Think and Grow Rich Success Story: Cordell Parvin.

I can only assume the blogger pieced together posts I had written on the book. In any event, other than a couple of typos, the blogger captured how reading the book had helped me come up with incredibly ambitious goals and helped me pursue them.

I hope you get a “nugget” from reading the blog post.