I’ve written somewhat frequently about the process of implementing habits and achieving goals. If you’re new to Trainer Tips Tuesday or need some refreshers, see the tips on:
- SMART PACTs
- Bare-ass minimums
- Making achieving goals easier
- Motivation vs. environment
- Addition > subtraction
- Falling short isn’t failure
- Circle of Champions
- Updated thoughts on SMART PACTS
At first glance, learning how to become better at setting goals and changing habits (especially health & fitness related ones) may seem less important than reading actual nutrition or training tips. But as Kelly McGonigal, PhD, points out in the section of her book, The Joy of Movement, that discusses overcoming obstacles, “Modern psychologists have come to a similar conclusion: Humans crave concrete goals and thrive when pursuing specific aims.”
While she continues on to discuss the science of hope and how the physiological changes and conceptual lessons learned from making movement a part of our lives helps us overcome other of life’s challenges, that simple statement stuck into the middle of the chapter hit me like a ton of bricks.
Notice that she didn’t say “humans ‘need’ goals and are ‘happier’ when they ‘try’ to achieve them”. She used significantly more impactful terms instead. To summarize: “Humans crave goals that are concrete and thrive while pursuing their objectives”.
In other words, choosing goals that mean something to us is as important as taking the actions that turn our desires into reality.
I’ve obviously understood this to some degree for a long time. It’s why I’ve learned and written about habits and goals. It’s also why I put thinking before nutrition or training in the TNT tagline. (It’s Thinking, Nutrition, & Training for better living, if you weren’t aware.) The nutrition and training parts of the equation will naturally be less effective (and enjoyable) if we don’t first get our thinking pointed in the right direction regarding what’s important to us and why.
That said, I’m honestly not sure that I truly understood the significance of all this until recently, even though I’ve pursued and achieved a variety of my own goals. Numerous events, experiences, and personal & business pursuits built the foundation, and Kelly’s unassuming statement was the spark that caused the epiphany.
If you’ve been a TNT member, we’ve certainly discussed your goals and worked toward them. But it’s been a rather informal process which made getting sidetracked easier and reduced urgency. So, we’re going to make the process a bit more visible with a new addition.
The Wall of Goals
Plenty of other tips for setting and achieving goals exist than what I’ve written so far. Perhaps two of the most important which I’ve hinted at but not specifically mentioned in the tips linked above are:
- Writing down your goals.
- Putting them in a spot where you can’t help but review them regularly.
Those actions aren’t exactly magical in and of themselves. Their primary benefit is keeping your attention focused (see the point about recommitting in the “updated thoughts” tip linked above). And that along with consistency of action are the primary drivers for achieving anything.
To that end, the gym now has a Wall of Goals where you can post the most important process goal that will move you in the direction of achieving your primary outcome goal (see links above on SMART PACTs).
I’ve planned a few more details around the process, but for now:
Putting it into practice
If you’re not currently a TNT member, you don’t need to become one to implement your own Wall of Goals at home. (Although you’re certainly invited to check us out or come back in for the added perks of well-designed training programs, personalized nutrition coaching, saunas, jiu jitsu, accountability, and a motivated, uplifting, and thriving community!)
First review the two SMART PACT tips linked above. Then write one outcome goal on a notecard and one process goal related to your outcome goal on the notecard’s second side.
Tape the notecard to your bathroom mirror (or some other place where you’ll see it often) with the process goal facing out, and let it serve as a daily reminder of and primer to do what you’ve committed to doing in order to achieve what you’ve decided is important to you (the outcome goal on the opposite side).
Finally, make sure to flip over the notecard and display your outcome goal for at least a few weeks after you’ve achieved it. Celebrate your accomplishment in a way that seems appropriate to you, and repeat the process.
If you are currently a TNT member, the process will be similar at the gym, and we’ll chat about details when you’re in next. We’ll have cooler notecards though. 😉
