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Goal Setting: It's A Marathon!

Mar 24, 2024

"Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." - Carl Bard

Serious question…

How many of you have already lost sight of your New Year’s Resolutions? I ask this question, because we are closing out March this week, and right about now is that moment each year where a majority of the population throws in the towel on their resolutions they were so intentional about at the beginning of January. 

We all have great intentions on January 1 each year. As Katy Milkman’s research shows, January 1 is the perfect day to turn over a new leaf and become the “you” you always wanted to be. It’s the day we begin our new diet to lose weight, we begin training for a marathon, or we quit smoking, drinking or procrastinating.

These are all excellent resolutions, but let’s dig into the reason why a very small percentage of us can make it to the end of the year following through with our commitments.

Think about it this way…

If you do not put some good thought and strategy into your New Years Resolutions, the results can be equated to running an unsuccessful marathon. Here’s how it goes:

JANUARY - You are sitting on the start line of your first marathon and your adrenaline is going WILD. You are nervous, you are excited, you are anxious…you have all the feels. In fact, because of this adrenaline rush, the gun goes off at the start line, and you are feeling great! This is easy peasy. There are hundreds of other runners who are in the pack and ready to power through this big accomplishment right alongside you. You are in great company!

FEBRUARY – Man, the pack is getting smaller and lonelier. Where did all the people go? It's not quite as fun to do this solo. Your adrenaline is wearing off a bit, but you are determined to keep going. The first bit of fear starts to rear its ugly head and the negative talk begins. “What if you don’t make it? What if you have to quit? How will quitting make you feel?” You tell the annoying voice to go take a hike and keep pushing forward...with slight hesitation.

MARCH – Oh, ugh! This is way harder than you anticipated. You have missed a few of the splits/times you were planning on hitting along the way and you are on a much slower pace than you had anticipated. You are only on mile 6, and you feel like you’re on mile 26. You think Whataburger or In-N-Out sounds WAY BETTER than finishing this marathon. “It was a bad decision to begin with,” you tell yourself. You slow to a walk and contemplate how you might be able to get out of finishing this race without feeling like a failure or anyone noticing.

APRIL – That’s it. You’re done. You’re on your way to Whataburger or In-N-Out. You convince yourself that it’s ok, and you’ll try again next year. You feel like you let yourself, and maybe others, down. 

Does this sound like you? Well, I guess the good news is that you’re not alone - you’re actually in great company with the majority of the United States population. Wouldn’t it be way more fun and rewarding to be in the minority, though? If so, read on.

Let’s take a look at what happened in the above analogy…

You set what we call a BIG HAIRY AUDATIOUS GOAL (BHAG) for yourself, but you forgot to train for it. Unfortunately, in your case, training for your BHAG is the most important part of the goal setting process, so if you leave out the process, you are simply setting yourself up for failure.

No one likes to fail, right?

Here is a step-by-step way to set yourself up for success:

  1. Hire a performance/life coach - Even if it's not me, HIRE ONE! We all need someone to help us strategize and hold us accountable along the way to our goals, if they really matter to us. Regardless of your goal, a coach is your partner on the journey to success.

  2. Be committed - Set a goal that you feel you are ready to commit to and a timeline for accomplishment. For the purpose of this example, let's assume start date is January 1 and end date is December 31.

  3. Break it up - Break up your timeline into four quarters and work backwards based on where you want to be at the end of each quarter.

  4. Build a plan - Knowing where you want to be at the end of March, build a plan around what January through March looks like to start.

  5. Set micro-goals - Now, set micro-goals around what January looks like and ensure that these goals are easy and attainable to get you off to a positive start.

  6. Repeat - Repeat the process for February and March, and so on...

  7. Give yourself grace - Build some grace into your plan, because we NEVER know what could derail us from our intended goals – injury, major life event, etc. Example: In the case of anything that requires physical training, maybe put yourself on a 6-7 day training plan each week, but allow for 2 cheat days, in the event something unexpected happens. If you train 6-7 days, great. If you only get 5 days in, you're still on track.

  8. Reflect and reset - Take a few minutes at the beginning of each month and quarter to assess your progress. If you feel like you are falling off track, pivot and reset to get back on track, taking into account where you stand today and what your new timeline is to the finish line of your goal.

  9. Journal - Keep a journal of your progression and experience through your journey. This can be a helpful tool for many reasons, and you may start to identify patterns in your behavior and life.

  10. Stick to the plan - DO NOT ALLOW YOURSELF TO PROGRESS FASTER THAN YOUR CAREFULLY PLANNED STRATEGY. What do I mean by this? Example: My son LOVES to run. He always wants to run further or faster the next day, because he feels great and gets excited by his progression. I do not let him run further or faster than our plan, because I want him to stay motivated, and I want him to love running. Often times, progressing faster than we had anticipated can lead to burnout. Stick to the plan!

Well? Are you ready? If you feel like you’ve gotten off track, as I always say, the best time to start is NOW, not tomorrow. I am here for you and ready to help you turn your dreams and goals into a success.

LET'S DO THIS!

 

In pursuit of successful goal setting,
Erin

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