Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal.

The quote reframes “obstacles” as partly perceptual: difficulties loom largest when attention shifts from the desired end to the intervening problems. It does not deny that barriers exist, but suggests that fixation on them can magnify fear, hesitation, and distraction, reducing forward motion. By contrast, keeping one’s “eyes on the goal” implies prioritizing purpose, planning, and persistence—treating setbacks as navigable details rather than defining realities. In motivational rhetoric, this functions as a cognitive strategy: maintain a clear objective, and obstacles become tasks to manage rather than reasons to stop.