Habits are the small steps that we take or action steps towards our goals.
Habits should be manageable and something that we can complete with 100% compliance over a two week period before adding a new habit. Being successfully and reaching your goals can be achieved through determination and staying consistent with your habits.
Many times we try and take on too much and then when we fall short, feel discouraged and that our goals cannot be reached. Most of the time when we fall short of our goals it is because either our goals were not realistic, we did not take enough action or our plan was not sound. Sometimes it is a combination of some or all of those.
People set goals that are not realistic. “I am going to lose 57 pounds in 2 weeks!” Maybe that’s an exaggeration but you get the idea. Our goal has to be something that we can actually complish in a reasonable time frame. So it is not unrealistic for someone to set a goal to lose 50+ pounds, but to do it in 2 weeks is another story. Many times our goals are not specific enough. “I want to lose weight” or one of my favorites (guys are guilty of this one) “I want to get cut/lean”, what does that even mean? How do you measure that? Now if the goal was something like, “I will lose 5 pounds this month” that’s a great short term goal. So, now that goal repeated over 10 months is 50 pounds of weight loss. Notice that I also changed the language I used. “I want” to “I will”, that’s a powerful shift in thinking. We can want all we want but we have to take action to make it happen.
Ok, so we know what we are going to do but know we need to know how we are going to do it. This is key, you must have a plan. You will not get there by winging it. Even people who appear to be winging it are not. “I am going to start working out”, that’s not a plan. So if I do 1 workout in 2 months, I started, right? That action needs to become something like, “I will workout 3 days per week, every week this month”, now that’s a good plan. “I will have a lean source of protein with every meal this month”, now we are on the right track. My goal is to lose weight, then my actions need to work towards that goal.
So your first action step before diving into habits is to decide want you want, how you are going to get it and then take action. So grab a pen and paper and sit down. Right down what you want/ your goal. Right down when you will complish your goal. Then, think of 2-3 things that you can do to work towards that goal. Now take action.
Not sure where to start? Just ask, let's schedule a time for figure out what's next.
