For the purpose of this blog I am going to dive into common pitfalls I encounter with people from all walks of life, who want to take on the world, yet fall dismally short; time and time again. These are common occurrences within all industries and I am not here to single anybody out, however will give examples from my profession as it is a realm that I have good experience within.
Goal setting:
Something that you need to consider when approaching a goal, is a principal coined the SMART approach. It stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely. For a goal to be within your reach either short or long term, it needs to tick all of these 5 boxes. Now, I am not saying to not be ambitious but it is important to be real with yourself and true to your desires. A good example is an attempt to lose weight over a short period of time. When I first sit down with a client who is wishing to lose weight, I will ask them if there is an event or a set date in which they’d like to achieve this goal. If the answer is something along the lines of losing 10 kilos in 8 weeks, in my opinion, it is not going to be possible because it doesn’t meet all of the 5 SMART rules. I’m not saying that it can’t be done, however I would thoroughly advise against it. The same goes for muscle bulk, athletic achievement, strength, jump height, it doesn’t matter. If it’s too soon, it’s more than likely not going to happen. In order to achieve a goal you have set, I’d advise that you take a step back from the bigger picture, and start looking at smaller milestones.
A better approach to the big picture:
-Set goals for today.
-Set goals for the end of the week.
-Set goals for the end of the month.
-Set goals for the end of the quarter.
-Set goals for 1 year from now.
A great piece of advice I was given by a friend recently was this: “How do you turn 21? – you have to turn 20 first. And how did you turn 20? – you turned 19 first”
If you think about that, what is it telling you? To take things step by step. The bigger picture can only take place once the smaller pieces of the puzzle have been fit. I reflected upon his statements and really got something out of it because I am within an industry which really does try to push the end product upon you, without doing the basics first and getting the foundations set. This is a reminder to set goals that might seem out of reach for now, but can have logical steps taken towards reaching them eventually. A lot of the time I hear people say that they want to quit their job, and make their hobby a full time gig. Again, great in theory, but what about the bills you have at the moment, the amount of time that it will take to achieve and the external factors like friends and family, pets, whatever it might be. For those people I say well done, but I also urge you to plan things long term. Do what needs to be done every day, in small amounts, to make this happen. If you are unsure of who to turn to for inspiration on something like this, Youtube Casey Willax. Casey worked 14 hour days for 2 years within the construction industry before quitting his job with enough savings to buy a van, start a Youtube channel and then work at it every day for 5 years. That’s 7 years of ups and downs, focusing on the bigger picture and taking every day as it comes.
Managing expectations:
Running side by side with solid goal setting, is understanding your own expectations and being able to deal with setbacks, criticism and things not going to plan. I encourage you to set the bar high, but also not to get your hopes too high if things don’t always go to plan. There should always be back up plans and you should enjoy celebrating the small wins, even if they are less than you’d originally hoped for. Rome wasn’t built in a day yet it is one of the most famous cities in the world, therefore your mindset should reflect the possibility of things taking longer than you’d like or end up taking a different direction than you’d first anticipated. I like to think that if you aim a little lower than you’d like, if you end up achieving more, you’ll be even more grateful than if you shot for the stars and ended up caught up in a tree somewhere. Whilst quite broad advice, look at it this way. Losing 5 kilos 4 times is easier than losing 20 kilos once. Lifting 180 kilos once is easier than lifting it 5 times. Working 1 hour a day for yourself is easier than working 8 hours for yourself on the weekend. Going to bed an extra 15 minutes early each night is better for you than sleeping in by 2 hours on the weekend. Whatever your intentions might be, your aspirations, your dreams, take them slow and do a little bit each day in order to be better than you were tomorrow. Don’t try and do it all at once and don’t think that you need to be where you want to be as soon as possible. Life is a journey full of ups and downs, don’t rush it.
Goal achieving hacks:
1) Get a mentor you can learn from and look up to.
2) Set small goals to create a bigger picture.
3) Build a routine and make time for your goals.
4) Have a solid support network and try not to shut anybody out, unless they are hindering you.
5) Stay positive, even through setbacks. Turning your back is not an option.