We all have ideas of what we want our life to look like. It could be something like weight loss, improving speed on the bike or running, or even cooking more at home.  When you set those goals, how do you go about doing it? Have you set goals and ultimately lost motivation or simply got out of the habit?

With the impending New Year, many of us like to think about what we want to accomplish. In fact, fresh starts are a great time for habit change. (link). I'm here to help you set goals for the new year or any time that will actually keep you on track.

In this guide, you'll learn:

• The mistakes people make with setting goals
• how to set a process or behavior focused goals (instead of outcome goals)
• how big of a goal is too big
• strategies to avoid the self-sabotage of all-or-none thinking
• SMART Goals: the actual elements of setting an achievable goal
• some ways to track your goals
• how to stay motivated with your goals ove rtime
• define what success looks like

The Mistakes People Make with Setting Goals

It's normal to look at what we want to achieve with a goal.

I want to lose 10 lbs. I want to finish top 10 in my race. I want to run a certain 10k or marathon time. I want to make a certain amount of money. These are all outcome-based goals.

Outcome goals are focused on the product of your work. The problem with outcome-based goals? A lot of the time, they are out of our control You cannot control a race result. In some ways, you cannot control an exact dollar amount you want to make. And even if they are within our control, outcome-based goals can be demotivating. You hear of people who train to run a marathon, do the race, and never run again.

Ultimately, we are trying to grow as a person or slightly change our identity. The goal of someone who wants to run a marathon is really that they want to become a runner, but if they miss this bit point, they may just run the marathon and quit running.

I'm sure you have heard about process-oriented goals. In coaching, we call this behavior-oriented goals. What behaviors can you consistently commit to that will move you toward the outcome you want? The behaviors, the process, the work- that is what gets you to your goal and that is what is within your control.

It's okay to have an outcome in mind, but set that goalpost and then forget about it.

Ultimately, we set goals because we want to feel proud. At the end of the day, it's the consistent work we put in that makes us feel proud, even if the outcome isn't exactly what we wanted. I've felt really proud of race results that didn't even land me of the podium because I know what I did to get to that point and I was proud of my performance.

As Atomic Habits author and podcast guest James Clear says, "Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you want to become." Focus on your daily actions, vote to be the thing you want to achieve. The goal isn't to run a marathon, the goal is to become a runner. The goal isn't to write a book, the goal is to become a writer. The goal isn't to lose weight, the goal is to be someone who eats healthy. What are the actions of someone who already has that identity and how can you replicate them and feel

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The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.