Great results don\u2019t just happen. You don\u2019t usually drift to a destination you would have chosen. Instead, you have to be intentional, force yourself to get clear on what you want and why it\u2019s important, and then pursue a plan of action that accomplishes your objective.<\/p>\n\n
Sometimes, this involves setting an achievement goal with a definable end point, such as finishing a book, running a marathon, or hitting a financial benchmark. But often, significant achievements are the result of ingrained habits<\/a> over time.<\/p>\n\n For example:<\/p>\n Bill and Nancy have an awesome marriage. It\u2019s not just that they were lucky and married the right person. It\u2019s that they have intentionally cultivated intimacy. As simple as it sounds, they have gone on a date night every week for more than two decades. This habit has provided a context in which they can have deep, meaningful conversations<\/a> about the things that matter most.<\/p>\n Spencer is in the best shape of his life. Whenever he goes in for his annual physical, his doctor is amazed. He has continued to improve for each of the last five years. The surprising thing is that Spencer just turned sixty last year. But his health is not an accident. It all began when he began to cultivate the habit of working out five days a week.<\/p>\n Or take Larissa. She has built a seven-figure business in just three years. You might be tempted to write off her success to the fact that she stumbled onto a great idea at exactly the right time. Certainly, that played a role. But if you asked her the secret to her success, she would chalk it up to her habit of making five sales calls every single week.<\/p>\n In all these cases, habits are the driving force.<\/p>\n If you have been through my course, 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever<\/a><\/em>, you know that to realize your dreams, you must reduce them to written goals that meet the SMARTER standard. By that I mean they are specific, measurable, actionable, risky, time-keyed, exciting, and relevant.<\/p>\n Usually, these are achievement goals like the book and marathon examples above. But we can also employ habits in making our dreams real, just like Spencer and Larissa. The trick is to know when and how to use them.<\/p>\n Habits are an effective way to achieve your dreams, but only if you know when and how to use them. There are two times when you can use a habit in goal-setting.<\/p>\n When you want to use a habit as a step\u2014perhaps the only step\u2014in completing an achievement goal. I call this a habit step<\/em>. For example, let\u2019s say:<\/p>\n You want to lose 30 pounds by September 30<\/em>. You could identify several next steps, or (again) you could focus on simply installing a habit. For example: \u201cWalk 30 minutes per day, five days a week at 6:00 a.m., beginning on January 1st, and do it for 66 days straight.\u201d Or: \u201cLog what I am eating in MyFitnessPal, every day, immediately after each meal or at the end of the day, beginning January 1, and do it for 70 days straight.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n State the habit\u2014whether it\u2019s a habit goal or a habit step\u2014using the SMARTER framework. This is very similar to how you would state an achievement goal with a few important changes. Take a closer look at the last example:<\/p>\n \n Log what I am eating in MyFitnessPal, every day, immediately after each meal or at the end of the day, beginning January 1, and do it for 70 days straight.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It\u2019s specific, measurable, and actionable. It\u2019s also risky. Not the goal itself. Usually, it is something that, on its own, is pretty easy. The risk is in being consistent over the prescribed period of time.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also time-keyed. But unlike an achievement goal where you merely have a deadline\u2014for instance, finish my book by March 1<\/em>\u2014your habit goals and steps need four time-keys:<\/p>\nWhen to Use a Habit<\/h3>\n
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How to Use a Habit<\/h3>\n
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