Stick to the Plan
How to Reach Your Objectives Step-by-Step
Climbing the Highest Mountain
Most of us tend to set very high objectives and quit after a few days or weeks. “That’s too hard, I will never make it”, “This is not for me, this is not what I want, I’d rather do that new thing” are common excuses we easily say to ourselves. Whether the objective was about finance, health, relationship, fixing the house, whatever it is, quitting before is such a common bias. But a few weeks ago, you really thought it was THE thing you wanted and committed to doing this. Why that?
Blurry Objectives
Note: For the sake of clarity, I will give the example of losing weight, which is a very common objective, but this could apply to all sorts of objectives.
We use to say that an objective must be SMART, all 5 letters standing for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Specific and Relevant are kind of obvious, you have to know what you want. Achievable and Time-bound, work together. If you can’t remember the last time you ran and suddenly decide to cross the finish line of an iron man triathlon (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and 26.2-mile run), that sounds like an unachievable goal. But if you give yourself 5 years to reach the goal, then it turns into a possible though very difficult thing. To me the main one is Measurable. You have to find out some measures that you can track to figure out your progress. When it comes to finance or weight, measures are dollars or pounds, obviously. When it comes to improving some relational behaviors or getting rid of bad habits, it might be a bit more tricky, but you have to find it out. Maybe it’s counting the number of “misbehaviors” and seeing the number fall to zero. Whatever it is, you have to figure out a “metric” and see it evolve to the goal you decided.
A Path to the Objective
Another major reason why people don’t reach their objectives is their lack of plan. If you weigh 230 pounds and decide to go to 180, this won’t happen overnight! But splitting the 50 pounds to lose into small parts is the best way to keep going and not quit. Imagine you think you want to lose those 50 pounds in 5 months, then it is only 10 pounds a month, so 2.5 per week. Losing 50 pounds is a big thing, losing 2.5 seems not that hard. Focus on losing 2.5 per week, write down where you are right now, and remove 2.5 each week. Write this down on a paper sheet that you display on your fridge, in a handbook that’s always in your pocket, or on a spreadsheet on your computer, they are all ok. But write each figure and track your progress on a weekly basis. Get on the scale once per week and check out where you are. If you are late on target, change your behavior to get closer to the target the week after by burning 3 pounds or more. It’s way easier to lose 3 pounds in a week to stick back to the goal than drift away from the line and think you will fill the gap later on. Try to keep the pace as much as possible, but don’t be too harsh on yourself, it is important to attain the goal of 180 pounds, even if it is in 5 months and 2 weeks instead of 5 months.
Know How You Will Make It
Splitting the goal metric into small bits that can easily be reached is an important thing, but knowing how you will make those tiny steps is also crucial. If we keep on with the weight loss example, we now know that we have to lose 2.5 pounds per week. Not that hard if you commit to doing the right things. It depends on everyone, but what I do to lose weight is stop sugar, drink a lot of water, and practice exercise. So no more “obvious” sugar (there is hidden sugar everywhere so zero sugar is quite impossible to achieve): No more sweet beverages, no jam, jelly, peanut butter, cakes, biscuits, cookies, and so on. I just write down every time I miss my goal in my handbook and count the number of times I misbehave. I drink half a gallon of natural water (not sparkling) at least and 2 cups of coffee per day. And I run 3 times a week. Well, the first week I run once, the second week twice, and then three times a week, on Monday, Thursday, and Saturday. Monday and Thursday, I run about 45 minutes before going to work, and Saturday, as I am not working, I run for one hour or more. That is my plan. I am not a doctor or a sports coach, this is just what I am doing and it works for me. The point is having a way to reach those intermediate goals. If you don’t like jogging, you may like going to the gym and burning calories lifting weights, or riding your bike … all exercises are good. Do what you like, but know what you have to do to reach your small step for the week.
And Stick to the Plan
Once you have put your objective on paper, splitted it into small bits that are easy to achieve, once you know how you will make it on a regular basis, then you just have to do it! Measure and track your progress, and try to stick to the plan to keep being motivated or adjust the goal (give yourself some more time according to your actual pace). Achieving the tiny steps will keep you motivated. Sometimes you will think it’s hard. Sometimes it will be cold and rainy outside when you have to get out training. Put your rain jacket on and go for it! For the first few minutes, you will be asking yourself why you are here, insist, keep up! And when your body gets warmer, you will feel the pleasure of doing something that is really important to you. When you eventually get back home after the run, you will feel like you are a stronger person. I once read a book about Navy Seal training. Those guys are lightyears stronger, tougher, and braver than I will ever be, but when I am out at night running under the rain just thinking I am sticking to the plan because it’s important to me, then I feel like I am a Navy Seal.
Know why and where you go, keep up and stick to the plan.
