Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3.12-14)
I originally wrote this as part of a training manual for how to integrate physical training with the rest of our lives. But I realized this section deals with ideas and practices that will help us attain excellence in any part of our lives. Because most of us want to be the best version of ourselves. But we often lack the tools to develop goals and plans to help us get there. And "failing to plan is planning to fail". To attain our best self, our strongest self, and our wisest self, we have to intend to become this, imagine what it might look like to be this, and plan the best way to get from where we are, to where we want to be. The material found here is helpful for this. And although most of the examples used here come from physical training, the underlying substance applies to becoming great in any endeavor.
Our physical strength and wellbeing is a big part of a total whole of who we are. It is very important to realize that we are physical beings, but it is also important to realize that we are spiritual beings, and social beings, and intellectual beings, and emotional beings, and that we have a purpose and a vocation for our life. We are made in God's image, as God's children, and this means that each of us matters. Each human life is of cosmic importance, even though we are incredibly small when compared with the cosmos. Through us, the cosmos has become aware of itself, and in us God has placed infinite value. So, when thinking through our training and diet goals, we must place them in the context of all of our goals for the various facets of life. And these goals come from a sense of meaning and purpose and the "Big Vision" we have for our lives.
A helpful way to think about our life goals are the categories of "vocation" and "recreation". The word "vocation" means "calling", and it most often refers to God calling us to do something or become someone. Thus, our vocation is who we are called to work toward becoming. Our vocation gives us a sense of purpose and mission, and a set of tasks to orient all of our skills and abilities around, so that we can become a blessing to others, and use our gifts and talents to benefit the world. Another term for "vocation" is the Japanese word "ikigai", or "reason for being". Both vocation and ikigai refer to our core identity happening at the overlap point of what we love to do, what we are good at doing, what the world needs, and what we can make a living from. Our life purpose comes when our passions intersect the world's needs.
Separate from vocation is "recreation". It is what we enjoy doing, and what we are passionate about. We may enjoy painting or dancing, even if we are not particularly good at it. We may be passionate about our hometown soccer team or baseball team, even if we do not play the sport. We may love reading, even if we do not write. However, on the other hand, we may deeply enjoy something we are very good at. In this case, our recreation and vocation may overlap. This is often the case for professional athletes and performers: Their vocation and recreation have merged. And this situation brings up challenges of its own, as we try to not turn our passion into merely our job.
To get back to physical training: For most of us, training is part of our recreation, not our vocation. And we need to set goals accordingly. We want to set our physical goals for diet and training so that they benefit (and do not detract) from our vocation in our work life and home life and community life. It is great to want to set a goal for a 600 lbs bench press, or to enter a bodybuilding show. But if the training for this stops us from being a good spouse, parent, professional, or spiritual person, then perhaps our goals are mis-aligned. So, we need to rank-order our roles and goals for who we want to be, and what we want to do, so that we can align them in the order that works best for us. Here is one way to think about our goals:
VOCATION: Who we are and what we want to accomplish:
In Spirituality and Ethics
In Family and Friendships
In Work and Community
In Managing your house, finances, and resources
RECREATION: What we enjoy and want to accomplish:
In Physical diet and training
In Intellectual and Literary engagement
In Media and Cultural experience
In Creative and Artistic endeavors
Of course, how these roles and goals are ordered will vary greatly depending on our life circumstances. A professional athlete would rank Physical diet and training as part of "Vocation", while a professional scientist or academic would place Intellectual pursuits as part of "Vocation". But no matter who we are, it helps us to map out a comprehensive vision for who we are and what we want to become, and then find out where all the different dimensions of our life fit into that vision. And then we want to revisit that vision frequently to evaluate how we are progressing, and whether we need to change our goals.
Process and Product Goals: Another note on goals, which is especially important for physical goals. We can think of goals in two different ways: As products or as processes. Product goals imagine what the end accomplishment is that we want to achieve. Process goals are practices that we do on a regular basis, which are good for us regardless of what "product" we achieve. These are very different ways of thinking of life goals, and greatly influence whether we experience success in our life goals. Here are some examples:
PRODUCT goals:
I want to have a certain Grade Point Average, or get such-and-such college degree.
I want to be Vice President by such-and-such date, or earn X amount of money per year.
I want to bench press X amount, or squat Y amount, or deadlift Z amount, by such-and-such date.
The problem with Product goals is twofold: First, they tend to lead toward all-or-nothing thinking. Either you achieve the goal, or you are a failure. Either you can be proud or be ashamed. Second, they often tell us very little about how to get from where we are to where we want to be. Product goals CAN be helpful, as long as they are scaffolded by process goals. For instance:
PROCESS goals:
I will study each subject for X amount of time per night, and contact my teachers for feedback once a week.
I will seek mentoring for my job on such-and-such basis, go to professional development classes on such-and-such basis, and volunteer for extra duties at work at least X times over such-and-such time period.
I will work out at least X times per week, focusing on Y exercises, while consuming Z amount of protein per day.
It is possible to have process goals without specifying an end product. For instance, you can set a goal to read 30 minutes per day without specifying how many books you will read per year. You can decide to workout at least three times per week without specifying how much you want to bench press. When you focus on your process goals, you can feel a sense of accomplishment you may not feel from focusing on product goals. For instance, if your goal is to squat 400 lbs, you are either 0% or 100% of that goal every time you test it: You either get it or you don't. But if your process goal is to work squats twice a week, you can look back at the last 6 months and say you achieved this goal 50% or 75% or 90% or 100% of the time. This sense of partial fulfillment from process goals can be very helpful to maintaining motivation and a sense of accomplishment, in a way that is more difficult with product goals.
Realistic Goals and S.M.A.R.T. Objectives: Here is a final note that applies to goals around vocation and recreation, products and processes. Ideally, in order for goals to be meaningful and actionable, our goals need to be segmented into objectives which we can measure, which are quantified in smart ways. Think of it this way: Goals are often aspirational, usually more general, and deal with our overall vision and inspiration to become someone or do something. Objectives are actionable, specific, and deal with the behaviors, actions, and outcomes that come from pursuing the goal. Objectives ask: What will it look like specifically to be this way, or to do this thing?
For instance, to use an easy example, you could say your goal is to become a powerlifter. In terms of process, you might say: I will workout X times per week; I will eat Y amount of protein per day; I will test my maximum lifts Z times every 6 months. In terms of product, of course you might specify the exact amount you want to lift on bench and squat and deadlift. Or you might look at a much more complex and difficult goal: Becoming a good parent to your kids. And then we ask, what processes and products go into that? In terms of process, you might say: I will spend X amount of recreation time per week with my child; I will pray with them and read them a bedtime story Y times per week; I will check in with their teachers at school at least Z times per semester; etc. In terms of product you might say: My children will graduate high school, or college, or vocational school; My children will be self supporting by X age; etc.
Thus, the key to accomplishing goals is to have solid objectives. And the key to having solid objectives is formulating them in a smart way. I mean smart here in two senses. In a general sense, they should be smart by being formulated in mindful ways, with thought and preparation and wisdom. In a specific sense, S.M.A.R.T. is an acronym to help us create well formulated objectives. However, there is a twist. SMART was originally developed for large corporations and government agencies, so I slightly re-define SMART in a way that is more applicable to personal goals and objectives. As I use them in my life, here are the SMART factors that help us develop process and product objectives:
SPECIFIC: A smart objective is something that is specific to the goal you are envisioning, specific to your vocation and/or recreation, and which can be specified and defined in clear and concise ways. It is not just saying "I want to be great at X!" It is saying "Becoming X means accomplishing objective tasks and/or products of A, B, and C".
MEASURABLE: Once you have identified which specific objectives you want to accomplish, then ask: How will you measure them? By what criteria will you judge to say "I did it", or "I didn't do it", or "I did X% of it"?
ASSISTED: Now that you are thinking about objectives that are specific and measurable, the next question is: How do you need help, and from whom? You may need a coach or teacher for part of your journey. You may need a workout partner, or an accountability group, or a community workout environment (such as Crossfit) to accomplish your objectives and goals. Even for highly individual goals, you will still need support and encouragement from those who are near to you, as well as them allowing you the time, space, and place to accomplish your goals.
RESOURCED: What non-personal resources do you need to accomplish your goals and objectives? In terms of any kind of goal, what means do you need to do what you want to do? I have often thought of these means using the acronym M.E.A.N.S.: Money, equipment, accommodations (space and place), networks of support, and schedule. All of these are necessary to accomplish ANY kind of goal. Specifically, in terms of training: What kinds of weight training equipment and gym environment do you need, and how much will it cost to get a membership or buy the equipment you need? Are there gyms that are at your school, or work, or paid for by your tax dollars, that you already have access to for low/no cost?
TIMED: Finally, after you have thought through specific and measurable objectives, and the assistance and resources you need to accomplish them, it is time to think about a time limit for them. By what time will you accomplish these products and processes? When will you measure them? Weekly, monthly, or yearly?
Tracking your progress: Now that you have thought through your goals, it is time to think of how you will get to them. We must take our knowledge and build a sustainable program to attain goals, and then track our journey from our starting point to our goals. The truth is, as many have noted before, that “failing to plan is planning to fail”. So, ideas and ideals are great. But without a plan, we will never reach them.
This is why it is important to create a diet and training program which is oriented toward your goals, and then to regularly log how you are progressing to get there. For instance, I see many people who want to lift X on deadlifts and Y on bench, but they regularly go to the gym without a plan about what exercises they want to do and when. They just kind of wander around and make it up as they go along. Similarly, I know many people— including myself at times— who have goals for weight loss or bodyfat percentage, but then they eat whatever they feel like without tracking it, or having any idea of how many calories they are eating each day.
So, how can we log and track our progress? Fortunately, there are more resources in our world for this than we have ever had in the history of humanity. Here are some ideas for tracking your goals:
An old-school notebook: Go get a spiral notebook, or a writing journal, or even a binder. Organize it, divide it, write your goals and plans in it, and then keep track of your workouts and diet and progress. It is a time-tested method for hundreds of years, and it can feel really good to fill up an entire journal with records of your hard work. I still have notebooks of workouts from high school and college I can look back on! However, I have fallen in love with digital information and the ease of my smartphone. So...
Use your smartphone as a workout log: On most smartphones, you have an App for taking notes (and options for getting many more apps). Use one of them. I personally use Google Keep so I can access my training log across all of my digital devices. I keep my workout goals and a log of workouts in the same note. When that note gets too big, I cut and paste it into a larger Google Doc which has records of my workouts for the last decade. I can go back and track progress (and setbacks) for that entire time period. I also keep records of how I was feeling, if I was injured or overtrained, and if there were life stressors impacting my workout.
If you are even more organized and competitive, you can log your information into spreadsheets or customized fitness apps which allow you to track trends and generate graphs of your performance over time. To be honest, this has always been a bit much for me and my goals. But these products do exist, and they help many people attain their goals.
If weight management and food intake are key goals for you, you also can make use of many weight loss apps (as well as programs that go with them). I have had great success with MyFitnessPal and LoseIt, and I know others who have done very well with Weight Watchers. All of these can help you keep track of your daily calorie intake, as well as "macronutrient" intake (protein, fat, carbs).
While these examples come primarily from the realm of physical training and diet, they really apply to any endeavor in life. Whether you want to become a saint, or an entrepreneur, or a leader, or an athlete, or an artist, or an academic, or attain excellence in ANYTHING in life, you need to set goals, make a plan to get there, and track your progress. And the same tools apply, whether you track your goals on your wall with a vision board, or put them on a dry-erase board, of write them in a journal, or type them into a document, or track them with a spreadsheet. Find a goal setting and tracking method that works for you, and just do it!
So, using design thinking, you "begin with the end in mind". Think about the goals you want to achieve, then design your program to accomplish those goals. The only limitation to your goals and planning are your creativity and your time and resources. So, the only thing left to do is for you to create something that works for you: Imagine what you want to be. Plan how to get there. Experiment with it in your life. Evaluate how it works. If it doesn't quite work for you, then imagine and plan and experiment some more. When you find a new idea or practice you like, put it into your plan, and see how it works. Don't be afraid to find out what works for you. Becoming your best self, in all areas of life, is all about the process: Imagine. Plan. Experiment. Evaluate. Repeat.
After we develop realistic goals and smart objectives, we will have gone a long way toward creating the plan and program we want to get us there. Because if we have done a good job of layering processes into our objectives, and making them measurable, resourced, and timed, we will know exactly what kind of training we want to do to get from where we are at, to where we want to be. But having no goals and no plan to get there is sure to result in going nowhere. So, rank your roles. Set your goals. Develop processes. And work your program. At the end of each year, you will be amazed at what God will be able to accomplish through you!
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