Goal Setting: Setting a New Goal You’ll Actually Follow-Through On

Setting a new goal is sometimes like going to the grocery store - sometimes the you doing the grocery shopping is much more disciplined than the you who's looking for a snack at 8pm. If you’ve ever set a goal that sounds great on paper, but isn’t executed for longer than a few days, this is for you. 

1. Know Your Motivation

We’ll save the topic of having a strong why for another post entirely, but for now know that setting goals that don’t have any intrinsic value are typically the first to fly out the window when things get tough. Your goals need to have motivation, and your motivation needs to have substance. Moreover, that substance had better be strong enough to fight off your innate human desire for instant gratification.

There are two clarifying questions to ask yourself to test whether your goals will stand the test of time: 1) why is this goal important? And 2) will that why be strong enough to change your behavior in the moment? Here’s a hint - if your why isn't urgent enough and can be put off “until tomorrow,” it’s not strong enough to continue to motivate you even when things get tough. 

2. Be Specific - Set a SMART goal, then go deeper:

This will not be an entire blog post devoted to SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-based), but it is a good place to start. If you set a new goal to workout more, chances are the follow-through might be minimal since there’s little direction outlining where, when, and for how long you’ll work out. Alternatively, if you’ve never worked out before and you set a goal to workout 6 days per week, the chances of “failing”  before the end of the week are high since the goal isn’t that realistic. The point? Set a realistic and detailed goal. 

When you think about setting a goal, you want to think about creating the goal like you were submitting it to your picky manager for review. When will this goal take place? How often? What supplies, reminders, or systems do you need to complete this goal? Are you typically tired on Wednesdays every week? Take that into consideration. Here’s an example of a goal that probably won’t work: “To save money, I’m going to start packing my lunch everyday.” But what happens when you oversleep or forget to buy lunch ingredients? Here’s how we can turn that same goal into a detailed system: 

“To save money, I’m going to start packing my lunch everyday. In order to do this I’m going to find 1 new recipe on Friday night so I can add all the ingredients needed to my shopping list for Saturday’s grocery order. I’m also going to buy a pack of meal prep containers so I can prepare and pack everything on Sunday night. I typically go out to lunch on Thursday’s with my co-workers, so that will be my free day. In case something comes up, I’ll have one frozen meal in the freezer ready to grab & go so I can maintain my progress.” Do we see the difference? 

3. Fail, fail, and fail again

Setting and executing on a new goal can be frustrating, but it’s important to remember that this is normal. Behavior change is one of the most difficult things to implement because of our brain's innate desire to take the path of least resistance (even if that path is not working out & ordering takeout every night). You might encounter a lot of repeated failures when attempting your new goal and that’s okay. When this happens, use the below tactics to re-group and get back on track:

Figure out what went wrong: did you not accomplish your new goal because of a systems issue (didn’t have meal prep containers to pack your lunch in) or because of a habitual issue (decided to go out for dinner instead of cooking for the week)? Determining what exactly went wrong is the first step to re-grouping and taking another stab at your goal.

Get determined: fail, fail, and fail again! After accounting and correcting for any systems issues, drop the perfectionist attitude and take as many attempts as needed at this goal until it’s accomplished. This is tenacity at its finest and the ability to focus - there’s no shame in failing, only giving up entirely. For added accountability, phone a friend or family member to check in on you weekly. 

Easy decisions, harder life: It bears repeating: behavior change is hard! There is a reason why most people do not reach their goals or are seemingly always trying to accomplish the same goals with little progress. By nature, we are engineered to please our desires for instant gratification, but if we always choose the easier decision (i.e takeout instead of cooking) we could end up with a harder life (i.e declining health status, etc.). Start reprogramming your brain to choose the decision or behavior that will benefit your long-term you instead of your immediate you. Making this a goal or habit in itself will help you reach and execute more goals than ever before. 

Disclaimer: The information provided in this post is for informational purposes only. Any changes to your nutrition & health should be supervised by a registered dietitian or physician.