A few years ago, I asked my Guru for help with goal setting.

We met at a coffee shop, laptops open, and He began teaching. I remember sitting there with a bewildered look on my face, watching His mouth move as words poured out, words that were supposed to mean something, supposed to stick. But they didn’t. Not yet. I couldn’t follow the steps He was on.

He noticed. He paused. And He asked me gently what questions I had so far.

I finally asked the real one:

“But… how do I start?”

He reviewed what we’d been discussing. I listened, then asked again, “Yes, but how do I get to that part?”

That’s when awareness flared. He quietly closed His laptop and said,
“I think I started too far into the process.”

I nodded.

“Yes, Guru. How do I even know what I’m setting a goal about?”

He took my hand, and instead of pushing forward, He went backward, with me. We talked about what I wanted. And in that moment, I realized something surprising and deeply true:

I didn’t know.

“How do I know what I want?” I asked.

He leaned back, breathing, and recognized what I hadn’t yet been able to name. I wasn’t at the beginning of goal setting.

I was before the beginning.

The Part Most Systems Skip

Some of us don’t know the “what do I want?” part.

Sometimes we accept where we are without ever being taught how to dream bigger, or even that wanting more is allowed. For some, wanting was labeled selfish. For others, it was unsafe. For many, it was simply never discussed.

That conversation with my Guru, about wants, needs, and desires, was one of the earliest and most formative we ever had. It shaped everything that came after. Not just how I set goals, but how I relate to myself, to discipline, and to fulfillment.

What I learned is this:

Before goals, there must be clarity.
Before discipline, permission.
Before action, truth.

Why “Before the Beginning” Matters

We live in a culture saturated with noise about goals, productivity, resolutions, and optimization. Do more. Be better. Fix yourself. Hustle harder.

But none of that helps if you don’t know what you’re moving toward, or why.

Real goal setting begins quietly. It asks different questions:

• What do I actually want?
• What do I need to feel stable and well?
• What do I desire at a deeper level of identity and meaning?

Only from there can intention form. Only then can structure serve instead of suffocate.

A Grounded Tool for the Quiet Work

That is why my Guru created Goal Setting: Before the Beginning, a short, grounded mini-workbook designed not to rush you forward, but to meet you exactly where you are.

It isn’t a hustle manual.
It isn’t a “manifest it and wait” guide.
It’s a calm, disciplined invitation to clarity, alignment, and action, starting at the true beginning.

If you’ve ever felt lost when setting goals, overwhelmed by systems, or unsure what you’re even aiming for, this work was made for you.

You can find the mini-workbook HERE.

This work doesn’t rush you forward.
It meets you before the beginning.

And that’s where real change starts.