We all know setting goals is important, but the type of goals we set makes the difference between success and failure.

Goal setting suffers survivorship bias. We concentrate on the people who end up winning—the survivors—and mistakenly assume that ambitious goals led to their success while overlooking all of the people who had the same objective but didn’t succeed.

There are three types of goals: outcome, process and identity goals. Outcomes are about what you get. Processes are about what you do. Identity is about what you believe.

Outcome goals are focused on achieving a specific result. For example, losing 20 pounds or earning a promotion at work. These goals are great for short-term motivation, but they can also lead to disappointment if we don't achieve them.

Process goals, on the other hand, focus on the actions we take to achieve a desired outcome. For example, exercising for 30 minutes every day, reading for 20 minutes before bed, or writing 500 words a day. Process goals are helpful because they break down larger outcomes into manageable steps, but they can still fall short if we don't fully commit to the process.

Identity-based goals, however, focus on becoming the type of person who can achieve a desired outcome. For example, becoming someone who prioritizes their health and fitness, becoming someone who consistently reads and learns new things, or becoming someone who is a writer. Identity-based goals are powerful because they align with our sense of self and who we want to be. Every action we take becomes a vote for the type of person we want to become.