Think about the journey
“Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.” – Arthur Ashe
I always find the word ‘goal’ interesting…not because I don’t like to strategise or work towards something…BUT I do think sometimes we get too focused by trying to reach the goal, that sometimes we forget the journey. After meeting the goal, where are we in terms of motivation?
Typically, when we achieve our desired goal, we slowly stop performing the behaviours that got us there in the first place so we can turn our attentions to other goals. Research highlights that disengaging from these behaviours can actually have a detrimental impact in the long term. More than often we put our entire focus in getting to the destination and then thinking “now what” rather than celebrating each step along the way.
I could easily tell you how to set goals and stick to them but I am more about spreading energy, changing the behaviours, understanding and creating new habits, and having balance long term. Peak performance should not always be about ‘reaching a peak’, it is about how we sustain a behaviour change longterm. What are the systems that we learnt along the way to get to where we want to be? Let’s look at how we focus on the journey or developing a system to then leverage from:
WAYS TO START FOCUSING ON THE JOURNEY and THE SYSTEM
From a large long term plan, set smaller, shorter-term goal: we all love short term wins. For example, you decide you want to read more…start small. Every time you have a cup of tea (if you drink tea), read a page. This anchors it to something you already do as a habit.
Find joy in simple pleasures: Research suggests that if we become present in everyday tasks, we find more satisfaction. You all know that if we are brushing our teeth, we are thinking about something else. This sounds strange but start thinking about brushing your teeth…same goes with other tasks like washing dishes, driving a car etc. If you are training for a large adventure race, think about even finding joy in putting your shoes on, or giving your bike a wash. This makes the every day ‘have to’ more pleasurable.
Regularly reflect on progress: I love reflection and I don’t think we do it enough. Reflection links to gratitude also. What is working well? What do I need to change? What am I grateful for this week? What triggers me? When you reflect, you are thinking about the journey for what it is. It can keep your focus and energy where you want it.
Processes to improve systems: Have you got a timeline? Is it achievable? Is it specific? Is it attainable? Systems are scalable and repeatable. While setting goals is important, if you aren't creating a process to continuously achieve them, you will fail more often.
Keep a journal: This is a reflective process. Put your phone down, turn it off, just write. It generally helps us prioritise problems, fears, and concerns. Writing a daily, weekly or monthly journal is a simple practice to improve mental clarity, offer the ability to see the big picture of our lives, and serve as a catalogue of successes. They also help you connect to what is really important to you. In terms of working towards a goal, it is a way to process, plan, track development, deconstruct, reconstruct and keep pushing you forward.
Habits: What you repeatedly do (i.e. what you spend time thinking about and doing each day) ultimately forms the person you are, the things you believe, and the personality that you portray. While goals rely on extrinsic motivation, habits, once formed, are automatic. They rewire our brains. When seeking to attain success in our lives, rather than concentrating on a specific goal, we are better to invest our time in forming positive habits. Two Gurus around forming habits are James Clear or BJ Fogg. Shout out if you want some book or podcast ideas.
Figure out why you are procrastinating: We all procrastinate at times. One of the biggest factors contributing to procrastination is the notion that we have to feel inspired or motivated to work on a task at a particular moment. Planning, task management, daily chunking and routine help with avoiding procrastination. Fear of not reaching a goal also results in procrastination. Work out why you are lacking motivation.
I guess what I’m really saying is “fall in love with the system and the journey” so it isn’t short lived. You shouldn’t always be looking for the next best thing or thinking / saying ‘when this happens, then things will be different or ok’. If we start living for each day (improving in small increments) rather than waiting for a final result, life will be more purposeful!