We are a week into December, and like many people, are spending time thinking about goals for 2021. As an agency, we have goals for next year that we are excited about, but at times it can seem a little hard to imagine that we will be able to accomplish them. If you’re setting goals to improve your fitness, finances, or relationships, you might be able to relate. Today, we’d like to take a step back and talk about another major challenge that seemed impossible at the time, but that changed the world forever. This one is a little bit bigger than what we are taking on, but there are lessons we can all learn from it.

In 1961, shortly after he took office, President John F. Kennedy committed the nation to landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth within the next decade. This was a massive, intimidating goal. Do you know how many Americans had orbited the Earth at the time he set such an audacious goal?

Zero.

Alan Shepard was the only American to have ever flown in space, and it was not even a complete orbit, but just a fifteen-minute suborbital flight merely twenty days before Kennedy’s throwing down of the gauntlet.

Many experts at NASA actually doubted it was even possible, much less something they could accomplish within the timeline and budget that they were working with.

There was a reason for this mission though, beyond just “why not go to the moon?”. During his campaign for the presidency, Kennedy had often talked about the “missile-gap”, which was the disparity between American and Soviet ballistic missile capabilities, and the vulnerability to attack it created. The unfortunate reality of the day was that a nuclear war seemed a very real possibility, and people were concerned that the United States was falling behind the rival Soviet Union.

However, Kennedy reasoned that by achieving such a monumental goal, we would be demonstrating that Americans had both the technical skill and the human courage to accomplish anything. We would show the world that America had the guts to do this, as well as the expertise and financial resources necessary. Establishing supremacy on the world stage in such spectacular fashion would leave little doubt as to who would be victorious in a war with the USSR, and would make Moscow think twice about a nuclear attack.

This achievement did not come easily though. Even by the time of Kennedy’s death on November 22nd, 1963, it still seemed doubtful we could accomplish this goal at all, and particularly ahead of the Soviet Union. They were accomplishing one breakthrough after another.

Things took another dire turn for the US when the Apollo 8 fire occurred, killing the crew on the launchpad, dealing a heavy blow to US space exploration efforts.

However, on July 20th, 1969, the US landed on the Moon first, with five months to spare before Kennedy’s deadline, effectively ending the space race and achieving the goal the President had established for us. Even though Kennedy was not there to see this victory, the challenge he had issued many years before had persisted, providing the drive to take us to the Moon.

You might think after reading this that your goals aren’t quite so lofty. Maybe so. But no matter the size of your goal, there are a few things we can all learn from this momentous chapter in history.

Tell People About Your Goal. If you never tell anyone about your goal, it becomes far to easy to give in to failure when the road gets rough. “No one will know I didn’t make it” you might think. Kennedy issued his challenge to a joint session of Congress, leaving no room to back out if the going got tough. You don’t have to inform Congress of your goals, but it certainly helps to tell a friend, spouse, or colleague what you mean to accomplish. They can provide you with encouragement, support, and accountability. Who knows, you might just inspire someone else to make a change in their life too!

Establish a Deadline for Your Goal. Someday isn’t anywhere on the calendar. You have to give yourself a deadline, otherwise you will always have the opportunity to put off the work needed to accomplish your goal to another day, because “someday” never gets any closer. Kennedy gave a definite timeline: “the end of this decade”, which amounted to 3143 days. Only 3143 days to invent the technology, perform the calculations, build the rockets, and train the people necessary to fly to the Moon and back. It was accomplished with 165 days to spare. Do you think if Kennedy had said “We choose to go to the Moon someday” or “We choose to go to the Moon eventually” we would’ve gotten there at all?

Commit the Resources Needed to Achieve Your Goal: By May 25th, 1961, little progress toward landing on the Moon had been made, and many doubted it could even be done. Something that cannot be overlooked is the commitment of resources by the United States to this goal. From 1961 to 1962, NASA’s budget nearly doubled, then from 1962 to 1963, it doubled again. By 1965, NASA’s budget was over 4% of all Federal spending. Getting to the Moon by the end of 1969 would need a massive surge in technological advancement, and NASA’s funding amounted to the largest commitment ever made by any nation in peacetime. You may not have the might of the Federal Budget behind your efforts, but you’ve got to be willing to have some skin in the game. If you want to improve your fitness, then consider investing in a gym membership, and shopping for healthier groceries. If financial growth is your goal, then maybe sitting down with a Financial advisor is worth the fee. Could you reprioritize some of your purchases to allocate 4% of your budget toward accomplishing your goal?

Remember, someday isn’t on the calendar. What can you do today to move yourself closer to the things you want to accomplish in 2021?