Ep 111: Creating Systems to Support Your Goals
As we close out another year, many of you are probably starting to map out your goals and ambitions for the year ahead. If you’ve listened to Episode 110, I hope you have gotten a head start on your goals and aren’t waiting until January 1 to think about what you want to accomplish in the coming year.
The first step is to get a broad plan in mind. Then, consider:
Is this plan realistic with the amount of time I have to dedicate toward this goal?
We all run into the same challenges when it comes to goal setting. We want to strive for big goals, but at the same time, we have to be realistic with what we can accomplish. When we set goals, it's easy for these goals to become overwhelming. Why does this happen? I believe it's because we make a commitment to the end result, but we tend to fall short in our commitments to the small, incremental actions we have to take to get to that end goal.
We can’t create more hours in the day, but we can create systems that help us use these hours more efficiently.
One book that I lean on when it comes to creating goal-oriented systems is Atomic Habits by James Clear.
The reason I love this book is because it talks about the benefits of incremental changes over time and how they accumulate to big results. Essentially, this book breaks down the science behind the 1% rule.
When you start mapping out a system to achieve your goals, you need to accept the fact that the plan you lay out is probably going to change at some point. That’s life. Things don’t always go exactly according to plan. So, when creating these systems, it’s important to create habits within these systems. And, the first habit I want you to create is the habit of getting started.
Just like we create triggers with our horses, we need to create triggers within ourselves. We need to establish small actions that propel us toward high-performing habits. For example, if part of your system is to complete a daily workout, your trigger to workout could be waking up, drinking a glass of water, and putting on some good music.
For me, it all comes down to being organized and following a system that will be used to implement the plan to reach your goals. Be committed to that system. And, be committed to the habits that support the daily steps in that system.
Habits create consistency. Consistency creates confidence. If you perfect the art of creating habits in your own life, this will carry over into your training, your career, and anything else you want to pursue.
Remember: the results you see today have nothing to do with today. These results have everything to do with the days leading up to today.
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