3522: [Part 2] How to Rock at Goal Setting by Roger Lawson of RogLaw Fitness on Smart Training

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[00:01:00] This is Optimal Health Daily. How to Rock at Goal Setting, Part 2, by Roger Lawson of rogelawfitness.com. And I'm Dr. Neal Malik, your narrator of blogs covering health and fitness. I read to you from some of the most popular blogs out there, with permission from the authors, of course. Today's post is a continuation from yesterday. So if you're new here, definitely check out yesterday's episode first. And in fact, let's begin today with a little bit of inspiration. Quote,

[00:01:30] The best performers are not consistently great, but they are great at being consistent. They show up every day and they do the work. Brad Stuhlberg and Steve Magnus, authors of Peak Performance. And so we left off talking about setting smaller goals, how to motivate yourself to continue to get to those larger ones, the value of setting very specific small goals, and specific larger goals, and staying consistent.

[00:01:56] So let's hear what else Roger has to say about this topic as we get right to Part 2 and continue optimizing your life. How to Rock at Goal Setting, Part 2, by Roger Lawson of rogelawfitness.com. Religious studies instructor and strength coach, Dan John, came up with a brilliantly effective and simple way for anyone to assess one's commitment.

[00:02:22] Simply look at your goals, then look at your behavior, and ask yourself one question. Do your behaviors match your goals? It's very easy to say that you want to have an eye-turning physique. But if you're a 120-pound person who spends all his nights partying and subsists on energy drinks and graham crackers, then it's time to change either your behaviors or your goals. Principle number four, feedback.

[00:02:47] Just imagine how many satellite launch failures would have occurred if it weren't for the self-regulating inertial guidance system installed within the rocket. This system is responsible for making on-the-fly adjustments mid-flight to ensure that the satellite is placed in the exact orbit necessary for it not to come crashing back to Earth or flying off into space. We as humans have this same system inside of us, but the problem is that we rarely use it. Successful people do not just create a plan and follow it blindly.

[00:03:16] They're consistently re-evaluating it based on their results. If the plan they've come up with is taking them in the direction that they want to go in, then they just keep on chugging along. In the event that they do come across a snag in the road, they simply make the minor adjustments necessary to keep moving forward. Sadly, we've all seen examples of the person who completely demolishes their plan at the smallest sign of stagnation, or even when it hasn't occurred at all.

[00:03:43] One week, they're doing total body training, and then the next week, they've moved on to HIIT, and before 30 days have passed, they've booked a flight to Russia in order to train with self-proclaimed kettlebell masters. All the while, not getting an inch closer to their original goal. Don't be that person. If you came across a roadblock while on a trip across country, would you turn around, drive all the way home, and then pick a different route? No. A complete overhaul is rarely necessary,

[00:04:10] so get in the habit of making small adjustments by using outcome-based decision-making, and you will be in a much better position to achieve what you desire. Principle number five. Task complexity. As an elite mountaineer with the accomplishments of reaching the summit of all 14 of the world's 8,000ers, mountains more than 8,000 feet above sea level under his belt, Ed Viesturs knows a little something about goal achievement. While reading his book No Shortcuts to the Top,

[00:04:39] I couldn't help but take note of his most repeated mantra. Quote, Getting to the top is optional, but getting down is mandatory. End quote. Some become so fixated on reaching the summit that in their mind the battle is won once they make it to the top, when in fact, it has just begun. It is of paramount importance to make sure that you know what you're up against when you decide to tackle a difficult task. While this isn't always possible, the more informed you are, the better decisions you can make.

[00:05:07] The point of having a plan is to make sure that you manage your resources appropriately in order to reach your destination, not to go out in a blaze of glory before you even get there. Mount Everest is the burial ground of many people who push to the top despite the fact that they lack the necessary mental and physical resources. Let us not make the same mistake. The greatest variable in achieving our goals is time. While taking our sweet time has its own consequences, going too fast or giving up too soon

[00:05:37] because we don't have a realistic grasp on how long it will take us is a much larger hazard. If you develop a plan that fails to acknowledge passion, planning, sacrifice, struggle, commitment, and consistency as an integral part of the process, then it's time to hit the drawing board again. There is an entry fee for anything worth achieving in life. And as the great blues guitarist B.B. King once said, quote, you have to pay the cost to be the boss, end quote.

[00:06:06] By applying Locke's principles of goal setting to your own endeavors, success will not be a matter of if, but when. You just listened to part two of the post titled, How to Rock at Goal Setting, by Roger Lawson of rogelawfitness.com. And I'll be right back with my commentary. Now, it's just me and a small team behind this show. So I get how much the right hire matters. When you need the right person, this is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs.

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[00:08:27] Dr. Neil here for my commentary. It's a little bit more. Or eating more healthfully. But if we think about it in terms of just can we be consistent? If we focus on that instead of the outcome, the outcome will eventually follow. But again, you have to give yourself time to get there. You have to give your body and your mind time to adapt. And I love that Roger introduced the idea of feedback. How do you know whether you're really on track? How do you know whether you're really on track to reach the goals you've set?

[00:08:56] It's very possible that as you're on your journey, a new goal will pop up, or maybe you'll modify your original one, and that's perfectly fine. In fact, that's great. But we do wanna make sure that we are sort of still making progress. And that's where the advantage of having smaller goals will kind of act like those bumpers at the bowling alley. If you've ever gone bowling with your kids, you'll notice that they have this option at bowling alleys where you can put bumpers up in the gutters so that really you end up with no gutter balls whatsoever.

[00:09:26] Small goals are kind of like those bumpers. If your ultimate goal is to land that strike in bowling, but as you began your journey and you maybe made a slight misstep, you'll end up hitting some of those bumpers. And then those bumpers will get you back on track. Think of small goals like that. They'll help you determine whether you're going straight right along the center of that lane, or whether you need to adjust slightly to get back to center. And to stick with this bowling analogy, let's say your first goal was to get a strike.

[00:09:54] But after you hit that first bumper and then got back right on track, maybe now your goal is to, well, let me just at least knock down five pins. I may not get that strike, but hopefully I can hit at least five pins. So you've just adjusted your goal accordingly. And that's okay, that happens. That's where feedback and those small goals can be so helpful. You'll pick up the spare on the next round. That's it for today. I hope you're having a great week so far. Thank you as always for listening. I'll be back here tomorrow

[00:10:23] where your optimal life awaits. Let's see you next time. Thank you.