Plan for success and avoid failure with these 3 game winning strategies

Traditional goal setting is broken. 

You know, that simplified model that just says; 

“Hey, just focus on something you want, and then start moving toward it as fast as you can”.

The truth is, this traditional Goal Setting process is really incomplete and it actually sets you up for a failure. 

You know what I am talking about….those linear goals where there is only a starting line and a finish line, without taking into consideration the mountains, rivers, and other obstacles along the way to success. 

We are from New England. And there's a saying that people use all the time that goes, 

“You can't get there from here”. 

How true is that? You can't get there from here. 

You can't start here and get straight to where you want to go if there are mountains, rivers, and all kinds of twists and turns along the way.

You know,... when you jump in with both feet and don't really think about the next steps or what you are getting into. 

I applaud you for your enthusiasm, but...

If you keep setting goals this way, you're going to get distracted. You are going to lose track of what you're doing. You will keep setting yourself up for unrealistic expectations, backslides, and discouragement.   And sadly,  you're not going to get what you want because you never really made a plan for success.

I know from over 20 years of coaching thousands of clients through proper goal setting, that this bad habit of oversimplifying goals pops up repeatedly, and it's frustrating for everyone involved. 

I understand that people want to just get started right away, and start sprinting towards whatever it is they want. But they need to take the time to really ask themselves;

“What is it that I actually want?”

“Why do I really want it?”

“Where am I now?”

“What is in my way”?

“What is the best route to take?”

I know when we started our fitness business, we jumped in just the same way…

We started sprinting into action, we were really helping clients, and we were extremely passionate about our mission.  

BUT…

Truth be told, we never actually planned on owning a fitness center.  What started off as a personal training studio just kept evolving into a whole new business.

 Sure, we were growing our client list and were very busy, but after a few years in we had to stop and ask ourselves,

“Wait a second, where is this even going? Is this what we want?”

We never took the time to build a proper plan for success, because we didn't really know where this “business thing” was going. 

We didn't have a clear goal, and thus we never created a game winning strategy.

We hadn't really thought about where we were to begin with.  We never chose a deliberate destination. And we didn’t define what obstacles would be in our way. 

Honestly, it was really frustrating for a long time. We found it difficult to stay motivated, find freedom, and develop any sustained success.

As a husband and wife team, we went through a lot of struggles, ups and downs, failed strategies, and more than one good old fashioned argument. 

Eventually we did create a plan for success, regained control, reduced stress, and had a mapped out a clear route to follow. 

We often think about how many of those mistakes, pitfalls, discouragements, and near failure points we could have avoided if we had started by creating a proper M.A.P. towards our goal? 

I know, It can be so hard to hold back from big action when you are fired up about something.  I want you to have that drive, and I love that passion! 

When you take the time to properly set a goal, is when you'll find sustainable success.

In Living a Champion Life, we have our guests create a M.A.P. and plan for success and avoid failure with these 3 game winning strategies;

• Meditate 

This is the process of actually stopping yourself, and establishing your starting point. 

What is your current location? What is most important to you? What resources are available?

 You know, when you jump into a car and you want to go somewhere, you don't just start driving.  You actually have to know where you are first, before you can even think about setting a destination. 

If you don’t take this step you are quite literally lost, and you may try to set a destination that is flat out impossible to reach.  That’s foolish.

• Aim

Aiming is about actually defining your destination, and is what most people think of when setting a goal. It’s deciding exactly what you want, or where you want to go.  

I'm talking about a very specific meaningful goal that you can define and measure, with a timeline on when you expect to achieve it. 

To put it very simply, if you don't Aim, you're literally going to find yourself wandering around aimlessly, accomplishing nothing. Like a ship without a rudder. 

• Plan 

To plan is to acknowledge the barriers that will likely be in your way, make a plan to overcome them, and actively choose the route to your destination. 

Do you want to take the careful route? The fast track? Maybe the scenic route? 

Bear in mind, this decision has consequences.  Each path will have obstacles that are unique.  Ultimately, you need to choose which route you will take, or other people and situations around you will choose that for you. 

Your pace does not need to be anyone else’s pace.

Without this step, you are likely to create false expectations on when you think you should achieve your goal.  

You’re also likely to hit unexpected obstacles that you didn't properly plan for.

These cause disappointment, frustration, disillusionment, and ultimately quitting!

These 3 key steps (Meditate, Aim, Plan) are all too frequently overlooked in proper Goal Setting, and are the biggest reasons why I see so many people get derailed.   

I hope you put this into practice yourself with the next big goal in your life. If you like this, you can get more by clicking on the link below and I’ll give you:

Our Champion Playbook “5 Biggest Reasons Why you Feel Stuck and Overwhelmed and Why You Can't Get What You Want Most Out of Life”. 

Champion yourself, your day, and your life!

-Coach Jesse