We all strive to set goals. Smart goals. Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time- bound goals. That’s THE thing. But it isn’t the THING.
In order to achieve outcomes consistently and reliably, we must look into who has the outcome we want. Whether it is a real person or a fictitious one.
Like if I want to be in the NBA. I might look at what Michael Jordan did. OR I might imagine what someone in the NBA does or has to do without needing a specific person in mind. Either way, why would I do that?
Because in order to achieve your goal, you MUST become the person FIRST. If you want to be someone who enjoys running, then look at someone who enjoys it and create it. What are their habits and patterns and beliefs? Again, fictitious or real (i think it is actually better to pick a fictitious person so that you aren’t tied to anything irrelevant, or unhelpful, like if Michael Jordan’s dad died, then I would also have to have a dead dad, and my dad is very much alive right now so… I would have to… you get the point).
Once you have identified the habits and patterns AND beliefs, you can create actionable tasks to perform at a frequency that creates the outcome. But just dreaming it up doesn’t do shit for you. You have to DO THE WORK.
Let’s workshop a couple of common examples.
GOAL: Lose 30lbs
If someone loses 30lbs, reliably, what do they do to accomplish it?
-Eat Less
-Move more
-Be consistent
-Never Quit
Alright now we dig into what each of those mean.
Eat less: How much do you eat now? How are you measuring it? What macro breakdown are you using? Answer them, if you cannot, start. There is a lot of ways to eat less though, so we may have to circle back.
Move more: How much do you move now? How are you measuring it? Same as before, if you can’t yet answer, then you need to find the answers to these FIRST.
Be Consistent: What is consistent? How are you measuring it? After those are answered you can start strategizing all of them but you have to always ask, can I be consistent with that change? If you don’t think you can be consistent, then it is likely not worthwhile.
Never Quit: What will you do when things don’t go to plan? What changes will you make if it doesn’t work as expected? The journey always has an overwhelming obstacle.
For instance, you can eat less by skipping a meal, but then it might make moving more REALLY tough, or it might make you miserable to be around, and it might push you to make more emotional eating choices, or it could make you crash when finally do eat. So can you skip a meal consistently if all of those problems occur? The answer is no, ESPECIALLY if it makes you emotionally eat.
Moving more is a lot the same. “I will workout 6x/week.” Are you lifting, CrossFitting, Running, or walking? Can you be consistent with that? Or will it make you feel crappy and sleepy and too tired to care about anything? This particular category takes some tweaking, but for weight loss, walking more is low risk high reward, but boring, can you make it more engaging?
Once you have found consistency in eating less and moving more, the outcome may very well be there. Or you found that something didn’t work. NEVER QUIT. Make a change and keep going.
What about getting your first pull-up? A person who earned their first pull-up has some habits and patterns and beliefs, what are they.
Beliefs – I can do it. I have the discipline. I am capable.
Habits – Goes to the gym 4x/week. Resistance trains 3 hours per week. Manages time to prioritize their workout schedule.
Patterns – Does more upper body pulling resistance training than pushing and/or lower body, core, or conditioning. Progresses each workout in difficulty.
The most important thing you need to do is BECOME the person that _______. And the how is in those daily actions. It really is that simple when we zoom out… People just make it too complicated when they are zoomed in too far. Save that for when you already have the thing and are working on next level shit.
Lastly, choose ONE goal. Sometimes working multiple goals simultaneously is a great way to achieve neither!
If you want to schedule a free virtual call to workshop a goal and create your action plan shoot me a text or email.
EMAIL: mitch@crossfitmagni.com
TEXT: 208-994-8876
