As a coach, I get asked this question (or one similar to it) very often…..
People want to know what types of goals are best. They ask which are most appropriate. I’m asked about ratio of short-term, intermediate and long-term goals.
Coaching clients ask me about S.M.A.R.T. goals. These goals are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.
Even though these are valid and important questions, there is something far more important….
This is where I get blunt, direct, and to the point. In case you are new to my blog, this is the method of communication I prefer. I’d rather be honest and helpful, rather than fake/kind and fluffy any day. Truth is truth, and results speak for themselves. I’m not the coach who tells you “good job” or “way to go” if what you are doing is wrong and not helpful to you. That just doesn’t help anyone. Rah-rah and happy-clappy coaches can be found everywhere (except with the most successful business people, athletes and experts).
I digress…. let’s move on….
To the point: None of your goals are worth a crap. They really don’t matter. It’s all just a story you tell yourself – unless……
Unless your daily habits are 100% congruent with any of your goals (immediate, short-term, intermediate and long-term).
Here’s what I mean:
Let’s say you have a goal of running a marathon in 6 months. Great goal. Lofty. Note worthy.
Your daily habit and rituals are as follows: 5 hours of sleep, run no more than 7 miles, and poor eating habits.
Results: Failure or serious injury trying to finish the marathon.
So, what did it matter what your goal was if your daily habits didn’t match?
What if your goal is to increase your monthly income by $2000? That’s $24k/yr.
Nice chunk of change.
What are you doing differently EACH DAY to make that a reality? First, have you changed your mindset about money? Do you have ANY limited beliefs about money such as “rich people are greedy” or “it takes money to earn money” or “they had advantages I don’t have” or any other BS like that? If you are offended AT ALL by any of those quotes, YOU DO have a mental block about earning more money. So, you need to start there or nothing positive will happen.
So, if your goal is to increase your income by $2k/month, what are you doing TODAY and each following day to make that money? If you spent 3 hours watching reality TV, you won’t make it. If you whine and complain AT ALL about not having the money; you’ll never get it. You must do this: BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. What skills are you lacking? Who has the skills to help you? Where have you made mistakes in the past? How and why do you now know how to avoid them going forward? Where is there waste? Where are you getting distracted? What can be eliminated? EACH DAY, you need to assess, reassess, modify and fine tune what is working, and what is not working to get closer to your goal of increasing your income by $2k/month.
If you are not taking DAILY action towards this goal, your goal really means NOTHING AT ALL. You will never reach it.
Harsh? Yes.
Truth? Yes!
Let’s use another example:
Your goal is to have more free time to travel, spend quality time with your family, and further automate your business.
If you continue to see client after client after client after client after client and do not change your focus, intent, training and research, you will be on the endless “trading money for time” treadmill. It is noble to want to help as many people as possible. That’s why we got into the industry. However, when done correctly, you can easily work less, help more people, travel more, spend more time with your family and build your business.
It’s strange…. I’ve been teaching this for 20 years and the above topic gets the most push back. Until….. people listen, apply and benefit. They they cannot imagine going back to doing things THE OLD WAY of trading time for money.
In short, if your goal is to work less and earn more, you cannot trade time for money.
Be honest with yourself. How are you leveraging time? What daily habits and rituals do you have that allow you make more, help more people while having more fun?
Have you moved from one-on-one training or coaching to small group programs?
If not, you do not have daily leverage. 10 people paying you $30 is far better than 1 person paying you $60.
Each day, are you using technology to help you reach more people, in less time, with less effort? If not, you are falling behind everyone who uses these skills.
Each day, are you continuing your education (formal or informal) to learn better ways to streamline your business, become highly efficient and automate processes.
Think about some of your clients. They come to you and say something such as, “I want to drop 10 pounds of fat, firm up and feel better about myself.”
And then their DAILY HABITS quickly become obvious. They “lie” to you and themselves about total calories consumed, the intensity of the workouts they do on their own, and even the “one glass of wine” they have each night.
It’s simple. Their goals and their daily habits and rituals do not match. And, because of that, results will fall short.
I could go on and on and show thousands of examples. You get the point.
I think this is where you need to start: BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF. Do not tell yourself a story that makes you feel good. That’s BS. Why would you ever lie to yourself? How does that serve you?
A simple example is when people “run late.” They will fool themselves (ha ha) and set their clock 10 minutes fast so they “won’t be late”. What a joke. Who are you kidding? This is simple example of how people create stories for themselves, rather than being honest and doing what is right EACH DAY to get what they want and deserve in life.
BE HONEST about what you know and don’t know.
The 4 worst words you can ever say are “I already know that.”
The world’s dumbest people “already know that.”
EACH DAY, be a sponge and soak up knowledge about what you don’t know, but you must know to make your goals a reality.
EACH DAY, be efficient and effective. There is a big difference between being busy and being effective. Busy people are not always effective and efficient.
People often ask me how I focus, reach my goals and “do so much.”
This is how I do it:
1. I am honest with myself. If I suck at doing something. I have two choices. I learn how to do it, or outsource it to someone who is more talented than I am.
2. I leverage everything. If I do something once, I figure out how to help more people, make a bigger impact, have a long-lasting result, and benefit in as many ways as possible.
3. I have coaches. Even after 4 college degrees, 20 certifications and 20+ years of experience, I have many coaches. I have 2 life coaches (Al and Marilyn Sargent), I have my accountant who is also a certified financial planner who coaches me on money management, as well as short-term and long-term investment goals. My attorney coaches me on all legal matters. I have 2 mentors/coaches who guide me on bigger business decisions. I have 5 martial arts coaches (one in each style I do). I’m even hiring a strength and conditioning coach next month. I have coaches because I don’t say “I already know that.” I know… I don’t know.
If you are saying “I cannot afford coaches” – I say you cannot afford not to have coaching. We all need coaching.
4. EACH DAY, I ask myself the following questions: Am I being efficient? Am I working in the best way possible to reach my goals? Am I being honest with myself, or am I telling myself something that just makes me feel good? Is this wasting my time, or can this be leveraged many times for long-term success and fulfillment? How can “this” be improved? Who is really good at “this” who can teach me?
5. When I learn I’m doing something wrong, I stop and fix it quickly. Continuing to do the wrong thing with the hope that it will improve is just foolish. Fix it, dump it, tweak it or blow it up and move on!
It’s now your turn.
EACH DAY, do what is needed to make your goals a reality.
Always happy to help you.
JSE
Casey Thompson says
Great honest approach. Love it! Thank you!
Philip says
Well said, John. Very inspirational!
Philip
Robert says
Inspiring and motivating as well as to the point. Thank you, John.