The Lie of Forward Motion

Movement has become our favourite proof of progress. As long as something is happening, being planned, being discussed, or being announced, we tell ourselves we are moving forward. Leaders measure it in meetings. Organisations measure it in activity. Individuals measure it in intention. And yet, year after year, the same frustrations return, the same patterns repeat, and the same promises quietly expire.

This is the lie of forward motion. The belief that movement equals change, that activity equals progress, and that declaring intent is the same as transformation. It is one of the most convincing illusions in leadership and business, because it feels productive while protecting us from the one thing real progress demands: honesty.

We have built systems, language, and rituals that reward motion without requiring truth. Plans are drawn, goals are set, strategies are announced, and everyone nods in agreement. But beneath the surface, behaviour remains unchanged, culture stays misaligned, and identity goes unchallenged. The organisation moves, but it does not shift. It accelerates, but it does not evolve.

This is not a motivation problem. It is not a discipline problem. It is not even a strategy problem. It is an authenticity problem. Until leaders are willing to confront what is actually happening inside themselves, their teams, and their cultures, forward motion will remain exactly that motion without meaning.

Why Forward Motion Goals Don’t Stick

Most goals fail because they are not rooted in truth. They are written by people who wish they were, not who they actually are. They are set without confronting habits, patterns, and behaviours that have been repeating for years. People carry the same identity into a new year and expect a different outcome simply because the calendar changed. Albert Einstein says it better: "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"

On the flip side, they don’t fail because people lack discipline. They fail because people are avoiding the truth. Authentic goals require uncomfortable self-awareness. They require leaders and teams to admit what isn’t working, what they are tolerating, and where they are out of alignment. Without that honesty, goals become performative instead of transformational

Around this time of the year, leaders announce ambitious goals without addressing the cultural gaps that made last year hard. Teams are asked to stretch while carrying unresolved fatigue, misalignment, and mistrust. Strategies are launched without honest conversations about capability, capacity, or commitment. The result is predictable. The goals appear impressive on paper but often fail to materialise in execution.

What makes this worse is that we’ve normalised it. We expect goals to fail. We joke about it. We call it “January enthusiasm” and move on. But in doing so, we accept mediocrity disguised as optimism.

Goals that stick are not exciting at first glance. They are grounded, specific, and deeply connected to behaviour. They demand consistency more than enthusiasm. They are built on who you are willing to become, not what you want to achieve.

Why Leaders Lose Their Teams in January

Many leaders believe goal-setting is about direction. In reality, it’s about trust. Teams follow goals they trust. They commit when they feel seen, heard, and included in the process. When goals are handed down without dialogue, people comply on the surface and disengage underneath.

In business, leaders often set goals they hope will motivate people, rather than goals that reflect reality. They avoid difficult conversations about trust, accountability, skill gaps, and burnout. Instead, they raise targets and call it leadership. But pressure without alignment does not create performance. It creates compliance at best and disengagement at worst.

The beginning of the year is a fragile emotional space. People return carrying personal pressures, financial stress, family expectations, and unspoken fatigue. Leaders who ignore this and jump straight into targets miss the moment. Emotional intelligence matters more than strategy in January. Without psychological safety, no goal will survive the first quarter.

Leaders must create spaces where people can speak honestly about what they want, what they fear, and what they need to succeed. This is not softness. It is strategic maturity. When people feel ownership over goals, they protect them. When they feel imposed upon, they abandon them.

How to Set Goals That Actually Stick

Goals that stick are clear, lived, and revisited constantly. They are not announced once and forgotten. They are reinforced through behaviour, language, and decision-making. Leaders must model the standards they expect. Culture either amplifies goals or erodes them.

It begins with authenticity: Authentic goals start with brutal honesty. Before asking “What do we want this year?” leaders must ask “Who are we right now?” What behaviours are we repeating? What conversations are we avoiding? What standards have slipped? What are we pretending not to see? Until those questions are answered, any goal is just theatre.

For individuals, this means acknowledging patterns that have followed them year after year. The procrastination. The self-sabotage. The fear disguised as busyness. The comfort zones that keep getting renamed as strategy. Without addressing these, goals become another way to lie to yourself politely.

For teams, it means aligning personal goals with organisational purpose. People don’t commit to goals they don’t understand or believe in. If company goals are vague, abstract, or disconnected from people’s lived experience, they will never gain traction. Leaders must translate vision into meaning. They must explain not just what the goal is, but why it matters and how each person contributes to it.

Clarity is non-negotiable. If people cannot explain the goal in their own words, it is not clear enough. If they cannot see how their daily work connects to it, it is not real enough. If leaders are not willing to adjust behaviour to support it, it is not authentic enough.

Most importantly, goals must be anchored in identity. People do not rise to goals; they fall back to who they believe they are. Change the identity, and behaviour follows. Ignore identity, and goals become wishful thinking.

A Different Way to Start the Year

The most dangerous part of the lie of forward motion is not that it slows us down, but that it convinces us we are progressing when we are not. It allows leaders to feel responsible without being honest, busy without being brave, and optimistic without being aligned. Real movement is not measured by how much activity fills the calendar, but by how much truth we are willing to face. Until identity shifts, behaviour will repeat.

Until culture is confronted, performance will plateau. And until leaders stop mistaking motion for meaning, the scam will continue quietly, comfortably, and convincingly. The question is no longer whether we are moving forward, but whether we are willing to tell the truth about where we actually are.

This year does not need louder goals. It needs truer ones. Goals built on honesty instead of hype. On alignment instead of pressure. On courage instead of comfort. The real scam is not goal-setting itself. The scam is pretending that nothing needs to change inside us for goals to work.

As leaders, the question is simple: are we brave enough to tell the truth before we set the target? Are we willing to build goals that challenge identity, behaviour, and culture, not just performance metrics? Because the year doesn’t change people. People change the year and that is where real goals begin.