By Kevin Seaman

What pushes you to achieve greatness? What creates that drive you need in order push forward, regardless of obstacles, to accomplish the goals you hold in your heart? What is the motivation? The word motivation comes from the Latin phrase “to move forward” or reason to move forward. So, what is it that motivates you, moves you forward? As we have hit  2018 and begin a new year, we should think about our GOALS and what we will accomplish as we move forward in the future as an athlete, a coach, and in every area of our life!

In this months Blog, I would like to discuss the approach to goal attainment that has worked for me.  Take 5 minutes to read this and take the action in your life and you will never, ever be the same.

In The Cross Hairs
What is a Goal? A goal is like a target really. If you currently have clear, written goals to lead you forward, you are part of a very unique and elite group. You are aiming at the center of the bull’s eye of your target. You are in the top 3% of people who have high aspirations about their personal achievement.
It’s true, according to the experts less than 3% of North Americans have written, specific, detailed goals. Not only that, about 10% have goals committed to memory. This would be like aiming at the outside rim of your target. Committing goals to memory is not an adequate way to clearly focus on your objective. What about the remaining 87%? Well, they have no goals at all. But, why are goals so important in the first place?

My all time favorite coach Brian Tracy once told me, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there!”  Most people don’t really know which road to take, simply because they don’t have a clear picture of their destination. Without a destination, it’s so easy for us to fall into the trap of complacency.  To be content, just getting by day to day, without pushing to achieve the things we really want to change in our lives or succeed at.  We may rationalize why we can’t succeed by using negative self-communication, telling ourselves we don’t have the skills, resources, knowledge, and education or time it takes to achieve what we want.

First, it’s not knowledge and education that makes people succeed.  The world is full of skilled, educated, knowledgeable failures.  People who succeed at anything have some very specific methods they utilize to accomplish their objective.  But, first and foremost, you must know your objective or goal.  People who succeed are those who…

1) Know specifically what they want!  They have a specific goal or set of goals they want to achieve.  So, write your goals down and be specific; the more detailed, the better. Something truly amazing happens when you write down your goals. It’s as if they are beginning to actually process in your mind the moment your pen hits the page. Designate a target date or time period to accomplish those goals; place your written goals where you can see them daily.

2) Have developed the ability to take consistent action.  In other words, they will consistently do what it takes to succeed.  Self-discipline, attitude, personal beliefs and values all play a major role in motivating us to take action toward our achievements. It is not your intentions, but rather it is your actions that will allow you to succeed. To quote a famous slogan, Just Do It!

3) Have persistence. They don’t give up!  Every person you see who has achieved greatness has failed over and over to finally succeed.  There are few unrealistic goals, only unrealistic time frames to accomplish them. Losers quit when they’re tired; winners quit when they’ve succeeded.

4) Learn from the end-results.  If the approach they took didn’t work, they adjust their approach again and again until they get the results they want.  Let me use an analogy to expand this idea. When I lived near the ocean, I used to sail whenever I had the opportunity. When a sailboat leaves a harbor in pursuit of a destination, it sets its compass in the direction of its objective. But, as the boat is challenged by the currents, the wind, and the weather the captain will need to change the boat’s direction and adjust the approach in order to succeed and reach his destination. Be flexible in your approach. You are the captain of your destination.

The law of harvest is to reap more than you sow. Sow an act, and you reap a habit. Sow a habit and you reap a character. Sow a character and you reap a destiny.
– James Allen

Develop The Muscle
One of the best ways to begin with goal setting as a habit is to work from a list on a daily basis. Here are a few tips on using a list to increase your productivity and develop your goal setting muscles.

1) Work from a list every day. Update your list for the next day the night before or first thing in the morning. Write it down! Something amazing will happen when you materialize your thoughts on to paper.

2) Hold fast to your “standard procedure” of working from your list, refusing to do anything that is not on the list. This is accomplished by updating your list as you work through your day.

3) Evaluate tasks by deadline. Whenever possible work on your largest or most difficult, least favorite task first. This will ensure it gets done, not ending up on the next day’s list. If you insist on completing the smaller tasks first you will make little headway. Small tasks will continue to appear as your day unfolds.

4) Evaluate your tasks for value and return. Which task will bring you the most return on your effort? One whale is worth a thousand buckets of minnows!

5) By working from a list everyday you will accomplish more in a week than most people do in months or even years.

6) Remember there is no such thing as unreasonable goals, just unreasonable time frames.

I just want to be known as the best ever, is that too much to ask?
– BJ Penn