How to Make Goal Achievement 100x Easier

Hey Glen, you make a great point.

Look after the minutes and the hours will take care of themselves.

It’s about squeezing, juicing, crushing the most you can out of the seconds, minutes and hours right now. Focus every single brain cell on the right here, right now. Laser-like focus and massive action.

Re: getting ‘big and muscly’, remind me to share with you a super-efficient 5mins per day push-up routine that will have you ripped in weeks not months! My two brothers and I all use them, and the results are impressive.

Good luck with the protein shakes!

Best, Robin

Very true belief is the cornerstone of success as they say. Achieving anything pretty much comes down to the level of belief that you have that you will actually achieve it

Great article Glen.

It’s easier to break long term goals by focusing on doing something every day. Of course we have to remember to do it every day.

P.S. Take it easy with those proteins and vitamins.

Glen!

This is such an awesome post, Short and sweet and right to the spot!

I read a little Zen story the other day:

“A samurai warrior was captured by his enemey and while locked in his prison cell , he could not sleep because he was worried how he will be tortured and probably killed the next day. Then he remembered the words of his Zen master “Tomorow is not real, it is an illusion, the only real is NOW”. The samurai warrior relaxed and found peace and managed to sleep like a baby”

It’s great to have the end result in mind but to focus on right now, and be content with the moment and where you are, knowing that you are making progress towards your final goal.

I personally believe training and getting ripped is a lifelong process, of which it will take 2-3 years to get the body you are happy with.

Keep working at it and I’ll help you out with Dutch in Amsterdam

Keep it real!

Robin, I’m interested to hear about that push-up technique as I’m going to be travelling soon and would like to find some form of exercise I can do anywhere. Is it the Hindu style push-up?

Glen, I had a similar idea to you a while ago. I decided that I wasn’t very good at long term planning (5 year goals etc), but that I was good at quitting things. So I quit, visiting various web-sites every day, quit watching TV etc. Then I was left with more time for the activities that are important to me. I imagined an ‘ideal’ day in which I engaged in every one of my activities at least once.

I do know that one of my faults is that the time I do spend on various activities is not always optimal. For example I play guitar every day but that doesn’t necessarily mean I practice every day (actively push myself, specific exercises)

This whole area is also related to being present in the moment as you point out. This is something I really have to work on as I used to be a bit of a worry-wart and was everywhere else but in the present moment.

One of the things I’m going to do is set much smaller goals for myself and build up from there. In stead of telling myself to practice a certain scale for 15 minutes, which is entirely feasible, I’m only going to aim for 1 play through of a scale. You read that right just once. Then the next day, I’ll do it twice and slowly build it up from there.

Great article – challenging yourself is a discipline in and of itself.

I just launched a goal of mine even. Your article has reminded myself that I’ll need to spread the word now so that I can hope to achieve even the 1st person.

Thank’s for the motivation and importance of breaking down the goals. We tend to think this stuff is rocket science but in reality it’s just slowly chipping away and the masterpiece is revealed.

Glen,

So true! I love the focus on the present moment, where we actually can get things done. Even if a goal we want to reach is very difficult and really challenges us, if we think we have to do something different “just for today” that makes it bearable. When we think of ALL we have to do to really reach our destination, we get too overwhelmed.

The most powerful changes I’ve made in my life were accomplished by staying in the day, and keeping my eyes OFF the final goal and ON what I need to do right now. Thinking of the future can be the biggest de-motivator of all!!

That is one of the best pieces of advice you`ve given Glen, after all, we don`t even know if there will be a tomorrow, right? All we have is today, so why bother thinking about the future? And today`s goals are always possible, they`re like, right there

Thanks Glen. Nice advice. Being able to focus on finishing your tasks in the moment, in one day. Looking forward to the future may cause someone to become discouraged and not even want to try. Also, your mindset will be on the results, rather than the process of getting to your results. This is where most people get trapped in.

Fantastic post Glen! You hit on a huge fundamental for goal achievement…focus on the NOW. When we stay in the moment, we can focus all our energy on the task or goal at hand, and we are more likely to achieve it because we are present.

I like to think like this…

NOW = No Other Worries

Thanks again!

Dayne
TheHappySelf.com

I feel so inspired right now!! Great advice for goal achievement!

Great post, Glenn – I love the focus on giving it my best TODAY. Awesome advice.

Hi again Glen! I can see that you didn’t really need all the advice you got in the comments to the last post! Your approach to learning a language is already an excellent one that took the likes of me years to realize As you hint to, this same efficient and optimistic approach can be applied to your career, your health or to any goal really.
I also don’t look to the future when speaking an entire language seems like a monster task and can seem discouraging; instead I break it up into mini-goals of things to work towards (learning all the vocabulary related to one topic in particular or preparing for an upcoming date with a cute local etc.)
By the way, I find your posts very informative, but definitely not too bulky. I’m new in the blogging world, and doing well enough considering the short time, but still end up writing too much in each post. Any tips to try to say all that I want in more compressed form?
Cheers!

I read something somewhere that says basically “we choose an addiction to anxiety in lieu of action – we prefer low grade pain to drudgery of daily, small simple steps.”

We’d rather complain than feel the pain…

Great post, Glen, as always.

Enjoyed this post, thanks.

You are suggesting letting go of mind chatter about the future – worrying about things other than what you are doing right now. This is very wise advice. Suffering and confusion come from mind activity about the past or future. When we stay focused in the present, we work more efficiently – and we are much happier!

awwwwsomelyness

really cool insight.

remixing the focus.

like old times this fri ftv. it’s only like a 16hour flight right? we’re meeting at 7 at rishan’s place. and i’m usually late so 7:30. that’s ample time to get your ass over here

What a great post! Shortening your time frame is a great way to get things done faster. Your mind is then pressured to get things done faster and better. I have been using a time frame for 2 days now, and my mind has never been more focused. Thanks a lot for the great post!

Great ideas and good to hear how you deal with your goals too Glen, really inspiring. I noticed on one of your tweets you said that you stick to your goals. I noticed as it’s not something I could say about myself..something to work on but as you say its step by step.
Cheers Glen

It seems it all comes back to focusing on the day at hand. Life’s much simpler when you decrease your circle of concern by letting go of everything that isn’t in your circle of influence.

I’m on a similar mission, except I’m burning off some weight as I tone the muscles (already have the build). Good luck with it buddy!

Glen,

the big secret of getting muscles is called ‘progressive overload.’ Here is an article I wrote about it ==> http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/progressive-overload-how-to-give-your-body-an-extreme-makeover/

To get decent muscles, you need to move decent weights. Imagine if getting a muscular body was like reaching a destination. Well, to get the body, you need to walk all those steps. But instead of steps, in the gym we are talking about increments in weight.

This is THE number one secret of getting muscles. But so many people miss this point thinking that supplements or the mere action of going to the gym will make a difference.

The difference is in taking the steps.

Good luck,

Yavor

Glen –

You are right on about focusing on what you do today – not tomorrow, not one month from now, TODAY. The only way to reach your goals is by adding up each of the mini-victories and small successes that you achieve daily. Over time, these mini-victories culminate in achieving your goal.

I throw one more twist in my days – I turn the process into a game and have fun with it. I make sure each of my tasks are aligned with my main goal and then I purposely pump myself up and get excited whenever I score one of those mini-victories. I admit it sounds a little lame but since I have adopted this mindset of tracking, evaluating, and getting excited over the small successes, I have experienced greater productivity, have had more fun, and have achieved A LOT more – the small successes seem to be adding up much quicker. Thanks for the post…

Paul

When I read this post, Glen, it reminded me of the notion of “next actions” from David Allen’s Getting Things Done (GTD) system. The idea is that the big goal or project seems overwhelming when looked at as a whole, but the one specific thing you need to do next (i.e., the “next action”)is manageable. Accomplishing that one thing definitely moves you forward towards the big goal, but by comparison it’s a relatively simple thing to do, and finishing it gives you that satisfaction of accomplishment. Your concept of shortening the timeframe of the goal is another way of creating that change of mindset.

Good luck with all those goals, big and small, short-term and long-term!

Doug

@Robin I’m also interested in the “super-efficient 5mins per day push-up routine”

Glen maybe it’s worth an article “Efficient Training besides the gym”. Are you doing any workouts besides the gym?

I highly suggest you check out the book ‘Body by Science’ if you are serious about your training.

It knocks down all the myths that have been brought to the training community due to people trying to sell creatine and other bullshit and make loads of money.

This is also the most time effective and scientifically proven method for working out.

Sincerely,
Jonas

Great blog post DJ, if only everyone could think like that.
Your mension of WALKING WORLD RECORD just took me back a few weeks to your Twitter quiz of what your dad has a world record in. Someone would have guessed it but I never found out.. It’s a punt but I think an Allsopp has a world record in walking from the Melbourne Olympics way back in the day. Could be totally off the mark.

Good post. While “100x easier” might be slightly overstating it (then again, it’s not like I can measure it), I do find that the principle holds true for myself. When it comes to working out, I concentrate on today’s workout, this exercise, just this repetition I’m doing right now.
This post reminded me that I should apply the same kind of mindset to other areas of my life as well.

Isn’t it strange how working out is hard, but it’s an easy kind of hard? At least for me, it’s a lot easier to find the discipline for training than for business related stuff. But maybe that’s just habit.

Good post.

Often, if not always… It is not the sittuation itself but the resistance by way of thoughts and feelings that we attach to the sittiation. In other words, the doing is not not the hard part, the resistance to the doing is…

I dunno, I am a quick fix kind of guy Like everyone… I want results now. I want the perfect body now. I want to be amazing with women now. But… if that did happen… If I could just wave a magic wand and having everything right now… would it be enough??
And, more importantly what kind of person would I be?
The thing is: the process itself is what makes you great… the knowing that you are giving it your all, is what makes you great. The results of that are cool, too … But they are superficial. Ultimately you can mesure your success ONLY by how happy you feel, not by how big your biceps are…

Btw, My guns are huge.

Uncoverthejourney,

Mike

Glen, to achieve goals, you need to be independently motivated in yourself and if you are not, you won’t do today’s things today.

So, I just started practicing something cool. I wrote down my goal (I really want to achieve it) and read it every morning after bath and thank for achieving it. After 2 days, I was motivated automatically to start working.

For some people, it may take some time. But, it’s possible and it works! Try it!

Hi Glen,

I am currently reading a book titled Excuses Begone! by Dr Wayne Dyer and he had mentioned something about staying in the present can help us to get more things done. I totally agree with what you had said and it does demoralize us when we think about the grueling journey that we had to take in order to achieve the results. As the saying goes, a thousand miles journey begins with a single step. One step at a time.

Cheers,
Vincent

Awesome points you make here, and they can definitely apply to any goals. For example, those who want to quit their day job to work solely online… focus on doing what you need to today, instead of focusing on how much you need to make to quit your job, and how long it’s going to take you to get there.

I guess it goes without saying, that you need to take a good look at the big picture once and then make a good plan as to what exactly needs to be done everyday (or things that need to be done on a weekly or monthly basis), and then take it daily from there.

Thanks again–great article.

Hows it going buddy. Good post as usual. Is there any chance you can share your training regime with us.
Out of the subject. Can you recommend me a good web host for a small business i plan to set up soon.

Ure a genius Glen.

Great post.

When we were trekking the Himalayas, it was all about focusing on the next, slow step. One foot in front of the other. If you stop and look up for too long, it’ll kill your motivation.

On the other hand if you stop and look down, it could be pretty mind blowing.

Beste Glen,

Leuk dat je Nederlands aan het leren bent! Lukt het een beetje?

Wat is trouwens de reden dat je Nederlands studeert? Ben je van plan om hierheen te komen? Mocht je een trip naar Nederland maken, kom dan zeker naar Utrecht. Laat het even weten, dan zal ik je een rondleiding geven!

Tot ziens!

Met hartelijke groet,
Marco Reeuwijk

P.S. If you don’t understand this yet, read it again in a few months…

Hi Glen,

Love this post! When you want to make money online, you gotta focus first on the getting that first dollar. After that you can set milestones which will lead you to your ultimate goal. Truly motivational post. Thanks

Great article, Glen.

Whenever I think about losing 10kg (or any fat chunk of fat) I feel disheartened and stop going to the gym. But when I focus on the amount of calories I burn each day and how good I will feel after that, going to the gym doesn’t even feel like a commitment, but a natural routine in my life!

You are absolutely right! Once you set a goal just focus on today and do catch-ups from time to time. I had a similar situation with an e-commerce project. When I didn’t feel motivated enough to do it, because I could not see the end result I just focused on today and treated it as a step towards my goal. Simple as that.

Thanks for reminding, Glen.

Really great article Glen. Your thoughts on keeping focused on staying focused on the immediate actions of the day are right on target for me. I do wonder how it relates to setting long term goals though. I guess you have to map out the steps and then at some point forget what you’re going to be doing a month or even a week down the line.

Very well said Glen.

I keep my focus on the end result and don’t get discouraged with the hard work it takes. I like the feeling of accomplishment and that’s what I keep in my mind at all times. I do like to plan ahead though. I plan my days weeks at a time and focusing on the results gets me to stay on track with the work.

Thanks

A great motivating post! Thanks, Glen. Perfect for me today, as I struggle with the day to day time squeeze, and could use a better plan. Thank goodness I already speak Dutch!:)

I love the idea of shortening your time frame. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed when looking at things long-term. For many people, it brings way too much anxiety and leads to complete discouragement. Your tip for concentrating on what you can do today was perfect. One of my favorite books is The Power of Now and you summed up the basic premise of that book in a few paragraphs.

This is completely true, but there is a potential danger in it too.

When you think of what to do TODAY, and you don’t feel like it, you will be easier to skip it. At that point, you should think again about the ultimate goal, so you need to skip all those months and think of the outcome.

But what you’ve said works most of the times great Glen, you only need to focus on today. Don’t get distracted and eventually demotivated, by tomorrow!