The power of writing down goals

You may notice I often talk about Chalene Johnson’s book PUSH. That’s because it has changed my life. It’s more than just the health & fitness book I originally thought it was when I picked it up at the book store. Chalene goes into life goals as well as fitness goals and how the two go hand in hand. She talks about living a positive life surrounded by positive people, the importance of good to-do lists, and setting goals every single week. This is going to be a powerful post because I’m going to explain how I achieved many of my goals simply by writing them down and thinking about them often. Listen up, THIS is how to get what you want out of life!

So the whole idea behind the weekly goal setting is to make a quick list of 10 things that would just be super awesome to see happen in the next year or so. It could be anything! One of mine is to buy my dream house. That would be totally freakin sweet! You write them down (I do mine on Tuesday’s for some reason) and you make a new list the following week without looking at the previous list. Your list may change. You may alter your goals and some of your original goals may not even be on the list anymore. The ones that stay on the list week after week are the ones that are most important to you.

You’re not just writing a list though. It’s much more involved than that. You’re writing as if you already achieved the goal. So for example, instead of writing “I’m going to take a vacation” I write “I’m on a long vacation with Justin somewhere far away having the time of my life”. This gets me pumped. It makes me think “Wow, I’m so excited to take that vacation!” I have it in my mind that no matter what I’ll be on that vacation in the not-so-distant future.

You really have to think about your top ten list for the week. Because of course whatever you write down WILL happen in your life, right? Make it good! Make it crazy but something that you can believe in. If you put down that you’ll win the lottery but deep down don’t really believe you will, what’s the point? Take this seriously! You are literally writing out your life. Of course not everything will just be handed to you. You will have to work hard but sometimes it just feels like things fall into place.

Here are some things that have already happened in my life after I wrote them down as goals. Keep in mind I really haven’t even been doing this for long (a month or two?) and I’m already seeing a change.

I wanted a mini office to work on my future Beachbody coaching business. I basically just wanted a desk andcomputer to work at since working strictly from a phone is a pain. Once our tax money came in, Justin went out and bought me a desk and computer!

I also had on my list (and this one may sound strange to some) that I wanted to communicate with other Beachbody coaches online so I could learn from them. I wanted to be able to openly communicate with others online. I started my Twitter page and found a few Beachbody coaches to chat with. I got involved with online message boards and have been communicating with people trying to lose weight on a daily basis. I’m currently growing my Facebook page and there are actually people engaged with the content I’m posting. I’ve also received more views on my blog.

Since we only have one car, I also had on my list that I would be driving a brand new car off the lot. My husband has been talking about getting a used car for awhile but I figured why not go big with my goals and go for a new car? He’s now talking about test driving a new Subaru and purchasing it when my car is paid off.

This goal writing thing isn’t just ramblings that fill up your journal! Write them down and think about them constantly. More than anything believe in yourself. You can do ANYTHING you put your mind to. And I really mean that. My goals listed above didn’t take much effort to achieve. I just knew I would be able to actually do it. Never give up hope. Things will get difficult and it may look like a huge goal you have written down will never be achieved. Don’t let that stop you. Keep your head up and keep pushing forward!

I am DYING to know which of your goals you have accomplished using this method. Please let me know your progress. Comment below!

How to overcome food peer pressure

 

I don’t know about you but I have a huge problem saying no to just about anything. If a friend asked me to help her move to Japan with one day’s notice I’d probably wind up doing it. Sometimes it feels impossible to say no. Plus I’m terrible with coming up with excuses on the spot. Sound like you? One thing I’ve learned (from Chalene Johnson’s book PUSH) is to say “Thank you for thinking of me. Let me check my schedule and get back to you”. I’m still working on it…

Anyway, why do so many of us find it hard to say one of the simplest words in our vocabulary? We should be out there doing things that make us feel happy not agreeing to something that causes stress and anxiety! This whole situation is worse when it affects your goals. You cannot let this happen. You’re goals are the most important things in your life and nothng should come between you achieving them.

I’m gonna throw some examples out there so you can see where I’m coming from and when starting a healthy lifestyle, you’ll probably run into these situations as well.

• You get invited out to dinner at a greasy burger joint with absolutely nothing healthy on the menu. You agree to it simply because you don’t want to look like the lame health nerd. 
• Or you bring pretzels to the office party instead of cupcakes and every single person comments on the lack of cupcakes. It’s like you’ve let them down. 
• A friend tries out a new chocolate cake recipe and is begging you to give it a try. How do you say no to her?
• And the list goes on and on…

It’s one thing to tell yourself that you don’t “need” a particular food. That’s you being strong and you should be proud for doing so. But saying it to other people feels like you’re disappointing them. In the end you’re really only disappointing yourself. Here are 3 ways to get out of these sticky situations. It may take some practice but you’ll get it.

1. Remind yourself and others of your goals and why you’re doing them.
Thinking about your goals on a daily basis will keep you motivated to keep going. Keep your eyes on the prize and remember to not let anything hold you back!

Explaining to others your goals and the steps your taking to achieve them will help them understand that you’re serious about it and (hopefully) they respect your decision to make the change and become encouragers.

2.  Politely say no.

This is difficult in any situation but all it takes is a little practice. Next time you’re asked out on a lunch date, say something like “No thanks, I brought my lunch today but maybe next time we can grab a salad at so and so restaurant.” Try to twist it around so you’re in control of where you eat. You can even check out the menu ahead of time and choose a healthy option.

If they get upset, that’s their own problem. Keep doing your thing and don’t let it get to you.

3. Encourage others.

When others see how strong you’ve become by sticking to your goals, chances are they’ll want to do the same. It’s time for you to be an encourager! Make sure to let them know how amazing you feel by eating healthier and adding exercise to your routine. Get them on board with you. If you’ve always wanted some fit friends, here you go. Give them tips that you’ve learned along the way, plan gym dates, and share healthy recipes. There’s no better feeling than having a strong support team.

While I’m still not great at saying the dreaded little word, I have been working on turning down junk food. Not everyone understands it and it does become frustrating. I get the feeling people find that my personality is changing in a negative way. As if the only way to be happy is eating sweets. I am changing but I’m feeling amazing while doing so. You’ll discover different ways to go about this type of peer pressure but in the end the only thing that matters is that you’re happy. That’s always the number one goal.

Have some tips for me when saying no? Comment below! I’d love to hear your advice.

The Secret to Keeping your Goals

I haven’t mentioned it yet but a huge goal of mine is to become a Beachbody coach by the end of the year. I set up a separate account through my bank to take out $5 a week from my paycheck to cover the monthly fees of becoming a coach and figured I’d do a little more research on the products to prepare myself. That was my plan until…

I started reading PUSH by Chalene Johnson. I picked up her book at Books a Million thinking it was just a typical diet book. I absolutely LOVE Chalene (just finished PiYo for the 2nd time) so I just had to read her book.

To my surprise, it started off talking about goals not just in fitness but life in general. BONUS! This is exactly what I needed to reach my Beachbody coaching goal! From the book, I’ve learned to make my goal even BIGGER so I’m not just planning to become a so-so coach. I’m going to THRIVE and make enough money on the side to pay my rent . That’s an absolute huge goal but I know I can do it from this secret I’ve learned from Chalene herself.

It’s all about baby steps. If you expect to achieve a ginormous goal overnight you’re pretty much setting yourself up for failure. It simply can’t be done. But smaller goals along the way and small daily tasks? Much more attainable.

So you’ve got your main goal. The first thing you need to do is write it down and look at it every single day. Put it in your phone and save it as your wallpaper if you have to. Then create your master brainstorm. This is you dumping every single thing you can think of that needs to be done in order to achieve your goal. Many of this will probably be research. For example, in my case I have on my list to research how to become a successful coach, study what other coaches are doing, how much time goes into being a coach, and the list goes on…

Once you’ve “brain dumped”, it’s time to break your endless list into separate tasks. Your to-do list should have about 3 tasks related to reaching your goal every day. Some examples of my daily tasks:

Find a successful Beachbody coach blog to follow.

Figure out how many products I’d have to sell a month to pay my rent.

Learn more about Shakeology.

I can do these three things on the way to work, on my lunch break, commercial breaks, ect. There’s no excuses this time!

Don’t let a daunting goal hold you back. In fact the bigger the goal, the better. You got this! It may require you to work on it every day but I believe in you and hope you believe in yourself. You have what it takes to be successful and you deserve what you put into it.

Now back to Chalene Johnson’s PUSH book. What I mention in this blog is just a pinch of what she goes over in much more detail. If you’re serious about making a life change in both fitness and otherwise, I strongly encourage you to pick this book up. Each day (for 30 days) you’ll do a little activity that pushes you a step closer to your goals.

I shared mine, now it’s time for you to share yours! What’s your big goal of the year? Comment below!