Constantly Consume Personal Development Content? Apply It Today!
Personal growth, self improvement, and habits are some of the hottest topics in all the interwebs.
You can’t get past a website, blog, or publication without one of the leading articles being about one of those three topics. We are all so interested in ourselves and how to become a better version of us.
I am a personal development junkie just as much as the next person. I devour pages of content and hours of podcasts a week based on how to increase my skills. The problem is that it is so hard to tell if we are actually making progress with these lessons. Are we just consuming tons of content for entertainment purposes?
One way to implement these thoughts and strategies is to create a key metric and track it. One area of our lives where there are tons of metrics for us to always work on is our health. Whether your goal is weight loss, fat loss, muscle gain, or any array of markers and tests; your health can be a testing ground to utilize the lessons you’ve learned through personal growth.
Some areas to focus on:
Self Awareness
We need to be self-aware in our lives. What are we good at? What can we work on to get a little bit better? Where is our time best spent? The questions could go on and on. That is part of the problem, there are so many areas that deserve our attention.
Narrowing your focus to your health allows you to answer the questions in a much easier fashion. Where am I with my health right now? How is my energy? Do I like the way I feel and look? Answer and then move to creating a goal for yourself.
Planning
“The thing about goals is that living without them is a lot more fun, in the short run. It seems to me, though, that the people who get things done, who lead, who grow and who make an impact… those people have goals.” — Seth Godin
If you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail. The sayings go on and on. Plan with your target goal in mind and work backwards to your current day. Is it a SMART goal? Specific, measurable, achievable, results focused, and time bound? Set your goal and plan backwards from your desired state.
Creating a Conducive Environment
“If we do not create and control our environment, our environment creates and controls us.” — Dr. Marshall Goldsmith
All of those roadblocks that get in the way of your healthiest self? Get those out of the house, apartment, or switch up your routine. Set yourself up for success by first creating an environment that sets the stage.
Discipline
When you start a living in a way that is different than you’ve previously been accustomed to, it can be a grind. That’s why for the first two weeks or so of your new healthy journey you must be disciplined in all of your efforts. This is where most people get frustrated, get angry, and give up. We must acknowledge that this phase doesn’t last for long and on the other side of this battle is a land where you enjoy eating healthy and love going to the gym.
Tracking
Measurement equals motivation.
When we set a plan for the goal we wanted to reach and planned backwards from it, we should have a good awareness of what metrics are important to us and what we should track on a daily basis. Is your goal to eat healthier and lose weight? Well, we should be tracking every meal and our weight daily. Is your goal to lose fat? Maybe, we take weekly pictures and measurements to help keep us on track.
[If you want a guide that is dedicated to helping you track your health, check out this guide]
Accountability
“People who can’t be questioned often end up doing questionable things.”― Jon Acuff
Whether your accountability is to your journal where you do your tracking, to a partner that is on the journey with you, or a coach who is leading you to victory; having a sense of accountability and a necessity is required for us all to reach new heights. How can you create this leverage in your healthy habits?
Do more of what works
When something works, do more of it. -Noah Kagan
If you are kicking butt with your meals and enjoying the process, keep it up. Don’t feel that you should give in to a cheat meal because it’s planned. If you loved that fitness class you went to yesterday and it’s the happiest you’ve been at the gym, go again today. Do more of what works.
Champions Adjust
This is a mindset I learned while coaching college athletics. It’s usually the teams that make the first big (right) adjustment that take home the trophy or get the W. You WILL make a mistake on your journey, the key is to not let it totally derail you. Take note, be self aware, and adjust. Do something different and experiment.
Patience and Consistency
If you want to be successful, be consistent.
If I could put a temporary tattoo on anyone who wanted to change their life in some way, they would get PATIENCE on one arm and CONSISTENCY on the other. One day at a time adds up in the long run. We have been conditioned to crave instant gratification. That is fleeting. Real change and improvement that matters happens in the span of months and years, not days and weeks.
Trust, faith, and belief that you WILL reach your goals
“As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Confidence is a habit that can be developed by acting as if you already had the confidence you desire to have.” — Brian Tracy
Through this process of changing your health, you can prove to yourself that you can change your entire life. What an empowering experience! The truth is we have tons of time to make money, tons of time to go to events, but we only have one body. We must believe and act to create a healthy lifestyle so that we can make our other life experiences that much deeper and more full.
Wayne Dyer said, “Change your thoughts, change your life!” I will also tack on: change your health, change your life.
Use the techniques we read about daily and put them to action with your health. Here’s to closing the year stronger than ever!
CALL TO ACTION
Want THE TEMPLATE I used to narrow my focus and lose over 30lbs? It became one of my key systems that made the process that much easier. Let it be a guide as you end your year healthier than ever. Get it here today!
