I’m not a control freak but you’re doing it wrong*.

I’m doing a major project with another person. When the project matters it’s important to set goals. However, goals are just a measuring device.

I have several clients that share the same basic goals. In fact, last year I had two female clients that were the same age and had exactly the same goal. One nailed it, the other did not. Clearly, the goal is not the difference.

If the Goal is not the difference between success and failure then what is?

Processes and Tasks.

When I train visiting powerlifters I put a giant sticky note on the wall. It’s two feet wide by 3 feet tall. I write notes on it as we proceed through the workout. The lifter takes the note home when we are finished. Giant sticky notes are very handy things. I stole a couple of sheets for the project mentioned above. I asked my project partner to list the necessary tasks on the sheet. When she completed it I saw a list of our goals. A goal is only a measurement! If you set a goal of, for example, adding five pounds to your deadlift you only know where you are going, not how to get there!

Let’s look at an example. You want to lose ten pounds of fat by 9/1/2021 and today is 6/15/2021. Ten pounds of fat is equivalent to 35,000 Calories, so we need to reduce our Caloric intake and increase our activity level by a combined total of a bit less than 500 Calories every day. So task #1 is to walk an additional 10,000 steps daily (~300 Calories) and task #2 is to reduce daily carbohydrate intake by 50 grams (200 Calories). These 2 tasks are not enough, the third task is to measure progress and adjust #1 and #2.

This looks like this:

Goal: Lose 10 pounds by 9/1/2021

  1. Get at least 10,000 steps in every day by 8:00 pm
  2. Reduce daily carb intake by 50 grams by eliminating:
    • Reduce toast at breakfast from 2 slices to 0 slices
    • Record all food intake before every meal
    • Adjust the last meal of the day to ensure that the carb level is not exceeded
  3. Weigh in every Friday before breakfast.
  4. Adjust macro-nutrient targets based on the new data.

While we agree that the math presented here is far too simple, the example works. Setting goals is great but it is merely the way you determine that you have accomplished the task. The real magic happens when you break down the processes needed to accomplish it.

Need help setting goals and creating processes. I’m here to help. Call me.

Bill

  • I may just be a control freak, but only in the good way.