How many times have you reached the end of the year only to have no recollection what goals you set twelve months prior?
Or maybe you’re struggling to remember them even now, three months in!
If you tend to have a ‘set it and forget it’ relationship with your goals, or if you find your motivation waning over time, consider what I refer to as a goal immersion.
For example, let’s say you set a goal to run a half-marathon. You craft your training plan and start the year strong, but your drive begins to fade a few weeks later.
First and foremost, I recommend reconnecting with your WHY. What’s the purpose behind your goal? What prompted you to set it in the first place?
If you still consider it a purposeful goal worthy of continuing, consider how you might surround yourself in motivation. In this example, you could:
* Subscribe to a running magazine and have a visual prompt every month. (Or make a monthly date with your local library for the same purpose.)
* Follow a running-focused podcast.
* Set motivating milestones and rewards, such as obtaining new running shorts when you complete a certain number of miles without stopping.
* Join a nearby running club.
* Incorporate a running check-in into your Weekly R+P.
* Periodically watch an interview with a runner on YouTube.
* Hang a few running-related photos around your home, office, or exercise equipment.
When I set a goal like this in the past, I also found it motivating to listen to related audiobooks while out on the trails. Kelly McGonigal’s The Joy of Movement and Deena Kastor’s Let Your Mind Run are two such books that come to mind!
You can implement this strategy on more loosely-defined goals, too. Want to engage in a more positive mindset, for instance? How might you begin fueling yourself with positivity?
Immersing yourself in the goal in a variety of ways can help keep it present, interesting, and varied. Consider all five senses as you ponder different ways to take in your goal.
One caveat here: Goal immersion doesn’t mean ‘all goal, all the time.’ You don’t want to overwhelm or overload yourself, nor will it benefit you to put on blinders to anything but your goal. You’re simply aiming to keep your goal present and inspired so you can maintain your progress.
How might you experiment with a bit of goal immersion this month?