Tag: plan

Do you want to be an amateur or a professional?

Amateurs do what they want. They do what feels good or right at that particular moment in time. Amateurs don’t get paid. Professionals have a plan and follow it. They practice daily and they get compensated as a result.

Professionals are experts. They know what works and they put the majority of their efforts in the tried and true. Once they’ve mastered that, they’re willing to take calculated risks by branching out to try other ideas. But they don’t do this as it comes to them. Even when they are thinking outside the box, they plan and calculate before taking action. And all the while, they are still repeating the process that helped them become experts in the first place.

So next time you get bored or tired of doing what you know produces results, do it anyways. Follow a plan (or formulate one based on facts if you must) and stick to it. You’ll never gain traction if you keep switching from one idea to the next without rhyme or reason. Don’t be an amateur. Be a professional. Be an expert.

How to think about goals…

For any goal you have, you need to think of four things. They are as follows:

1. What is the main goal you have in mind? (What is the end result you are looking to achieve?) Start off thinking big, then we can break this down into more manageable goals later.

2. What obstacle is in the way – what is preventing you from achieving that goal? (Hint: There is always a barrier to something you want, otherwise you/others would already have it. If you don’t know what it is yet, guess…can you anticipate what may get in your way?)

3. What is your plan to overcome the obstacle? What do you need – time, money, experience, help from someone else, etc.? How do you go about getting those things? What actions do you need to take to set you up for immediate success vs long-term success?

4. What will the result be by you taking/not taking specific action? Will you reach your goals or fall short? If you fall short, that’s ok. Just realize that you either didn’t take the right actions (you need to change your strategy) OR you didn’t take enough action (try doubling your efforts if you believe you were on the right track).

What is the next step?

The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today. Set yourself up for future success by taking action on the most meaningful next steps as frequently as possible. Figure out what it is you’re trying to achieve then reverse engineer how to get there.

This seems simple enough, and the concept really is, but it’s not easy. We get distracted by trivial tasks on our To Do list that don’t push us forward, by other people’s goals that don’t relate to our own, to life’s obstacles, and to extraneous information that may help us in the future, but not right now. But what we need to keep going back to, what we need to keep refocusing on, is what is the next most important action we need to take and then go do that.

Making better decisions

Each day is full of making decisions. The majority of them are easy and don’t even register with you when you’re making them. But some are monumental and can impact your future. So how do you consistently make the best decisions? Below are three ways I try to keep in mind to make the best decisions possible…

1. Always think of the long-term ramifications of your decisions. A good way to do this is to take emotions out of your decision-making process. Emotions are powerful, and if you only focus on what makes you feels good now, you may be hindering your future self. Sleeping in, not working out, not eating right, spending too much money on something you don’t need…these usually feel good at the time you’re making the decision, but if you take the easy or “feel good” option often enough, your long-term health will suffer.

2. Remove temptations. If you know that your self-control is weak when it comes to making certain decisions, try to stay away from having to decide. For example, if you have a huge sweet tooth, but want to lose weight, don’t keep sweets in the house. If you make unhealthy things inconvenient (or remove temptations), you will be less likely to do them. This is the opposite of number 3 (automation)…

3. Automate repetitive tasks. Do you have a hard time saving/investing money? Have it automatically withdraw from your bank account on the 1st and 15th of every month. Now you don’t have to remember to do something. Another way of thinking about this is to set up rules for yourself. By setting up rules, you don’t have to think about whether you should or shouldn’t do something. Some examples might be: not eating after 8 p.m. or before 6 a.m., wearing brown dress shoes with blue slacks, drinking 20 ounces of water as soon as you wake up, etc.

These are just a few ideas of how you can set yourself up to make better decisions on a regular basis. Do you have any tips that weren’t mentioned above? Feel free to share in the comments section below!

Changing your mindset

Ask yourself, “what’s the worst that can happen?” Often, our decisions don’t boil down to life or death, so don’t make them out to be more than they are.

Default to saying, “why not?” Instead of being pessimistic and thinking, “why should I do X?” You should say, “why not?” If you default to yes and then look for a reason why you shouldn’t (primarily looking at health and safety), you open yourself up to the possibility of experiencing new things. But if you never try anything new, your life will become boring and stagnant.

Instead of saying, “I can’t” ask yourself “how can I?” Think outside of the box. If someone else has done something, you can too. But what will it take for you to get there? How can you achieve a specific goal?

Changing your mindset – being optimistic and believing in yourself – is the best path to unlocking your potential. There’s always bumps in the road. Things won’t go as planned. But as long as you know this going into your next endeavor, plan for the worst, and hope for the best, you’ll be alright. Just keep moving forward.