As the title suggests, this post is highly personal (to me).
I have only made itpublicso that the people in my life
can be aware of my goals so they don't get "annoyed"
with me when I skip dinner (because I prefer to not eat after 18:00)
or refuse a sugary "food" (junk) because I don't want to "relapse" into bad habits.
If you are cynical about people having life goals
or you feel that you have already achieved
(or are reaching) your potential without setting goals,
please don't waste your time reading any further!
Several studies have concluded that the single most important predictor for our own long-term success in life is setting personal goals. Only by having goals can we make the most of our lives and minimise our regrets from wasted time.
"Setting goals increases achievement. Hundreds of correlational and experimental studies show evidence that setting goals increase success rate in various settings." ~ Selen Turkay (2014). Setting Goals: Who, Why, How? (Harvard Initiative for Learning and Teaching)
Think of a time when you wished
you had started something sooner.
For example:
In most things in life,
starting earlier leads to "better" results,
and yet most people procrastinate
and blame their lack of progress on low "motivation".
Most (93% of) people don't realise
that setting goals creates the focus
which in turn drives motivation.
Without the clear goal,
motivation is virtually non-existent.
Once we have clearly defined goals, we need an effortless way of tracking if an activity is moving us towards (or away from) our specific goal(s); more about that later!
At the start of 2017 I shared my "Todo List":
https://github.com/dwyl/phase-two/issues/40 for the year.
While several things have been "checked off" on the list,
I have made almost zero progress on a number of them
which makes me sad ...
Rather than "giving up" on myself and watching cartoons on Netflix,
I'm attempting to re-focus on my goals by making them "SMART".
Note: while there is
someevidence that sharing goals inpublic
can lead to not achieving them (see: Derek Sivers TED Talk below),
I feel that if I don't make the effort to clearly communicate
my goals with the people in my life who can help me achieve them
(e.g: my wonderful wife and other close relatives who may be
expecting me to stay up late at "Dinner" or work colleagues
who may expect a reply to an email after 20:00 at night...)
I am unlikely to succeed.
In his 1943 paper "A Theory of Human Motivation", Maslow's "hierarchy of needs"
lists "Physiological", "Safety"
and "Love/Belonging" ("social belonging")
as the three most basic foundational "needs":
Note: If you are unfamiliar with Maslow's work, I highly recommend you take a quick detour to learn!
For many people these basic needs are not met
which is outrageous in a world with so much wealth!
On more than one occasion I have been both homeless and unemployed/"broke". I've had a a tiny taste of how soul-destroying it is to not have a place to call "home" and can empathise with how not having the "basics" makes achieving virtually any other goal impossible. When there's no food in your belly it's not easy to think about anything else.
For the 4 years I was at University Inês and I volunteered for Oxfam's trading division to help market FairTrade goods which we believe are part of the solution to empowering people to meet their own basic human needs. I still fully intend to resume the effort to help the most disadvantaged people in the world with self-empowerment, however, I intend to do my part, using technology; (see: section 4 below). Only by making everything we do 100% Open Source can we be a part of the solution.
This post is not the place to discuss "wealth re-distribution" through universal basic income, and how it will directly benefit the richest members of society just as much as the least blessed, however I/we do have an explicit (collective) goal of helping everyone achieve the most basic needs. see: github.com/dwyl/phase-two
Thankfully, today I have a home where I am "warm, dry and safe".
I am blessed to have access to fresh/clean water
and (no shortage) of food! (see "Nutrition" section below)
Therefore I consider the first three "levels" of Maslow's hierarchy of needs to be "achieved" for me personally. For that "solid base" I am constantly and eternally grateful.
With the love (of my loved ones) everything is possible.
"Health" is #1 because without health
everything else is either impossible
or takes much more time!
The reason my personal health is before any of my other goals
is both "enlightened self-interest" and "good leadership".
SMART Goal(s):
Obligatory cat picture. (sorry if it makes you feel sleepy...!)
Sleep is essential for achieving anything in life!
see:
http://www.npr.org/2015/04/17/399800134/why-do-we-need-sleep
Tiredness inhibits all other progress towards any (of my) goals!
I need to get plenty of rest by getting an early night.
When I am tired I often loose sight of my goals
and default to negative behaviour
like eating sugary/processed foods to prop up my energy levels.
I'm generally a "worse person" when I'm tired: I get impatient, irritable/"snappy" and far less productive.
I need to follow these rules:
Clearly communicate my desired/target bed (fall asleep) with all relevant people.
I want to be asleep by 22:00 each night. "Early Night" needs to become the "norm", not the (delightful) exception!
This is the only sustainable way of waking up at 05:00 which is when my morning routine must start.
TODO:wean myself off listening to the Radio to fall asleep.
The second most important step in achieving any of my goals, is to ensure that my body has good "fuel".
Rules for Successful Nutrition:
(Aim to) Drink 1 Litre of Water 4 times each day. I typically drink "cold-brewed" Green Tea or Lemon Water.
TODO:Insert link to research/advice on recommended amounts of water people should drink for optimal health.
SMART Goal(s):
- don't buy any packaged foods (they all contain sugar!!)
- don't make any foods with refined sugar (sorry, no more sugar-based brownies...)
- politely refuse when people offer sweets.
I cannot think of a healthy food that contains refined sugar. Can you?
Thankfully, several people have studied the effects of sugar
on the brain and overall health and the evidence is conclusive:
Sugar is "as addictive" as cocaine:
Therefore I must conclude that it has no place in my healthy life.
Does that mean I cannot eat a slice of "wedding cake"?
No, it just means I don't buy any products with refined sugar.
i.e. I don't spend my own money on damaging my own health.
And if the people in
Cakes are healthy too, you just eat a small slice." ~ Mary BerrySMART Goal(s):
- Spend at least 5 minutes per day doing strength (body weight) exercises.
My objective with exercise is to minimise inertia (reasons for not doing it) by ensuring the exercises can be done anywhere:
20 sec of exercise (as many "good reps" as possible) followed by 10 seconds of rest. 5 mins = 600 seconds;
00:00 - 00:20 Push-ups
00:20 - 00:30 Rest
00:30 - 00:50 Sit-ups
00:50 - 01:00 Rest
01:00 - 01:20 Plank
01:20 - 01:30 Rest
01:30 - 01:50 Left Leg Abductors
01:50 - 02:00 Rest
02:00 - 02:20 Right Leg Abductors
02:20 - 02:30 Rest
02:30 - 02:50 Squats
02:50 - 03:00 Rest
03:00 - 03:20 Lunges
03:20 - 03:30 Rest
03:30 - 03:50 Push-ups 2
03:50 - 04:00 Rest
04:00 - 04:20 Sit-ups 2
04:20 - 04:30 Rest
04:30 - 05:00 Plank 2
After a few months of doing my morning bodyweight exercise routine I defined (above), I can easily do the two sets of push-ups and plank; which I consider the most "taxing" exercises. I feel that I should be doing more with legs because legs are "half my body", and (according to my "DEXA" scan) where roughly 40% of my "fat" is. So I need to turn up the "heat" and get the blood pumping to my legs!
I have thought about (and researched!) the effectiveness of "Leg Abductors", and concluded that they aren't effective for my current goals: fat burning. So I've decided to replace them.
My "revised routine" is both simplified and slightly extended.
Rather than doing 5 minutes (which I now find quite "easy")
I'm calculating how long I need to exercise for based on how many "sets"
I want to do of each exercise.
Whereas before I was doing 6 different exercises,
now I will be doing 5:
In the original routine, there was a rest period after each exercise.
From experience,
I don't need a "rest period" between certain exercises
e.g: between pushups and plank and squats to lunges.
So I'm cutting certain "rests" to increase intensity!
Instead I am placing the rest time where I need it,
which is mostly during "transitions" from floor-based exercises
to standing ones e.g: from a "Bridge" to "Squats".
There are still 8 rest periods in my routine, these are realistic and allow me to catch my breath.
Write a "mini-app" that:
https://www.doyouyoga.com/the-10-most-important-yoga-poses-for-beginners-25270/
TODO: learn the essentials of Mediation & Mindfulness.
SMART Goal(s):
- Get annual eye test at "FamOptica"1 in Braga (beginning of "dwyl summer")
- Take regular breaks while working at my computer. Note: I tie these "eye breaks" into my "water/bathroom" breaks.
Hopefully this one is self-explanatory. But in case it isn't, go get your eyes tested and rest regularly.
1http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Eyehealth/Pages/Lookingafteryoureyes.aspx
e.g: my last pair of glasses there were €45 with "anti-reflex lens coating!_
SMART Goal(s):
- Brush and Floss teeth immediately (or as soon as possible) after eating to minimise plaque build-up and decay.
- Carr a toothbrush + toothpaste in my "day bag" (when out of the house) so that if I eat something outside (e.g. at a client office) I can follow the same routine and not break my good habit.
this guy gets it:
Image credit: http://www.teethfaq.com/celebrity-teeth-before-after-best/
Most people don't realise how important having good oral hygiene is. There is conclusive evidence of the link between oral health and overall body health.
There is "a strong link between the effects of chronic oral inflammation and general health. The mouth is the visible gateway to the rest of the body and reflects what is happening deep inside. Over 100 systemic diseases that have oral manifestations, such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, respiratory infections, pancreatic cancer, diabetes, and nutritional problems."
The Importance of Oral Health in Long-Term Care ~ Mary S.Haumschild 2009
SMART Goal(s):
while donating in current visit.
Giving blood is one of the best things you can do for several reasons:
SMART Goal(s):
See: https://www.organdonor.gov/statistics-stories/statistics.html
I am guilty of pouring way too much of my time into my computer, and not anywhere near as much in my relationships. Trust me, I would much rather win the lottery, never have to work again and spend all my time with family! (more on that in section 4 below.)
The reason family is second after health
SMART Goal(s):
- Invest (at least) one "pomodoro" writing
eachmorning.
One of the areas of my life
where I am especially "underachieving" is communication.
At least once per day hour I feel frustrated because
I feel someone has misunderstood what I have said or written,
or because someone has not given sufficient instruction/clarity
in a request that they have made.
Poor communication is the single biggest time-waster in an organisation and the biggest cause of relationship breakdown in families.
Most of my goals in the first 3 sections are achievable with minimal income. However, in order to "unlock" the "Top Level" of Maslow's Hierarchy, I'm going to need very specific amounts of cashflow.
Returning to the nomenclature derived by Maslow (see: "0" section above)
The reason coding is first is because I firmly believe software is the best way way to "leverage" my time to the benefit of most people.
make useful things that solve real human problems.
I will be building the following projects in the order they are required:
http://youtu.be/Cpc-t-Uwv1I?t=25s (ignore the Lance Armstrong part half-way in...)
https://youtu.be/p8eghGDZFUM (surprisingly insightful even though it has v. few "views")
"We have a choice: either to be angry for what we don't have, or be thankful for what we do have."
If you're having a "bad day" or feeling at all "down", watch this:
Chances are you've got a lot going for you.
"Many of you are taking anything, cause you don't know what you want!"
"And then once you find out what you want,
spend the rest of your natural life waking up and going after it."
"You better stop making excuses and find a way to win."
"You need to tell you: no more TV, no more snacks, no more deserts, no more,
we're working out now."
"You need to tell you that you owe you something."
"Cause I owe it to myself, and can't nobody stop me but me."
This is more of a "motivational speech" than a "goal setting" guide.
If you don't feel "fired up" after watching "ET", maybe his delivery is too "passionate"... Personally his message resonates with me. However, I acknowledge that it's "not for everyone".
Find what fires you up and use it!
This is more of a "motivational speech" by Eric Thomas,
who is one of the best "life coaches".
But it's included here because it clearly illustrates
the value of / reason for setting goals.
http://youtu.be/lsSC2vx7zFQ?t=5s
"
Most of you say you want to be successful,
but you don't want it bad, you just kinda want it
you don't want it badder than you wanna party,
you don't want it as much as you want to be cool,
Most of you don't want success as much as you want to sleep!
Some of you want sleep more than you want success.
I'm here to tell you again, if you're going to be successful,
you gotta be willing to give up sleep ...
If you really want to be successful, some days,
you're going to have to stay up three days in a row.
because if you go to sleep,
you might miss the opportunity to be successful.
That's how bad you gotta want it.
Listen to me, you gotta want to be successful,
so bad that you forget to eat.
Beyonce said once she was on the set, doing her thing,
three days had gone by, she forgot, she didn't eat.
cause she was engaged.
I never forget: when 50cent was doing his movie, I did a little research on 50
and 50 said when he wasn't doing the movie he was doing the soundtrack.
and they said: 'when do you sleep 50...?'
'sleep?' he says, 'sleep?!' ... "sleep is for those people who are broke, I don't sleep!"
"I got an opportunity to make a dream become a reality"
Don't try to quit, you're already in pain, get a reward from it!
Don't got to sleep until you succeed.
Listen to me, I'm here to tell you today, that you can come here
you can jump up, you can do flips, you can be excited when we give away money,
but listen to me, you will never be successful until,
I don't have to give you a dime to do what you do.
You won't be successful until you say: "I don't need that money".
Cause I got it in here ...
"
While I wholeheartedly agree with Eric Thomas' "gotta want it bad" speech and I've been there not sacrificing sleep for (short term) success, I think it's worth noting that he doesn't say you "must not sleep", rather he's saying you must be "willing to give up sleep", i.e. you must be willing to get up in the morning, even when you still feel tired and want to "snooze". I suspect that on stage when he's delivering a "motivational speech", he doesn't really have that much time to go into the "benefits of a sustainable routine" ... he's just trying to illustrate to people that those who are successful wanted what they got more than anything else. If you want to be successful long-term, i.e. without "burn out", trust, me you need sleep. But you must "sleep smart". Learn how to improve the quality of your sleep so you wake up refreshed and ready for another day of focus.
"Constantly think: If I had no limitations, what goals would I set for myself?"
If your life was perfect in the "four key areas" of life: Income, Family, Health & Net Worth ...
"The fear of not achieving your goal, what we call self-limiting beliefs, holds you back more than anything else."
Create a "five year fantasy". What is the first step you have to take right now to achieve this goal?
"What would have to happen today for me to create that perfect future and what would be the first step?"
https://www.slideshare.net/sanathdasanayaka73/12-step-goalsetting-processbrian-tracy
"The most important responsibility you have
is setting goals in the first place.
Goal achieving seems to be automatic,
it's the goal setting you are responsible for."
Aside: At the end of the video Brian Tracy gives a selling master-class: https://youtu.be/mRRkMOTzpXg?t=35m23s
- Price Build Up: "Live event attendees have paid $1997 for a single person to attend..." https://youtu.be/mRRkMOTzpXg?t=36m44s Creating time-pressure: "and the best part is: for a limited time you get both ... for the price of one" ... "but this offer won't be available for long so you have 3 options: one: you can do nothing and continue treading water, frustrated and not moving forward and not achieving your goals as fast as you want
number two: you can try to figure it out on your own, with no proven system or strategy to guide you which is the primary reason why people underachieve and fail or number three: you can put my 30 years of research knowledge and experience to use by implementing my proven model for achievement and success saving you thousands of dollars and countless hours of frustration. The choice is yours. Stop treading water and take action now; order my course ... today"
Derek Sivers shares the good theory "Social Reality" which states that if you communicate your goals with others, your mind lets you believe they have already been achieved and therefore you are less likely to make the effort required to actually achieve it.
Even though there is some scientific evidence to support the theory,
I don't agree with this at all.
If you don't share your goals with anyone
a) Nobody will understand why (or what)
you are trying to achieve/change/improve
b) You will have no help/support to keep you "on
track" towards your goal.
c) You will not find like-minded people to accelerate your goals!
Think about the WeightWatchers or Grameen Bank model of group-accountability: in both the weight loss and micro-loans everyone in the group knows each other's fitness and financial goals, respectively, and both are highly successful (and widely copied) models.
Another perfect/plentiful example of people sharing their goals is Kickstarter where people share their idea/goal - complete strangers fund them - and the whole thing works precisely because people follow through with their announced goals/plans (i.e. deliver what they promise).
You fail to achieve your goal, because you don't "want it bad"
Also, I know I'm not meant to "criticize" people for their appearance, but I find it difficult to trust someone talking about achieving goals who is overweight ... nobody has "belly fat" on their list of goals!"
Counter-argument:
https://lifehacker.com/the-best-way-to-reach-your-goals-may-be-publicly-record-1743126700
https://lifehacker.com/for-a-more-efficient-to-do-list-make-it-public-1785819031
"Keep Private": https://www.inc.com/danny-iny/the-problem-with-public-accountability-and-your-goals.html
This is an interesting video where Reggie Rivers re-iterates the point made earlier by Brian Tracy: don't focus on your goals. The downside of the video is that Rivers does not give any practical instruction on "how to set goals" in the first place.
