It’s a new year and you will no doubt be thinking of fresh goals and intentions. For the you, this will mean a new ‘season,’ goals and personal challenges.
The problem with goals they focus on one single output not on the process and journey—and these are actually essential in defining success factors. In Carrie Cheadle’s book On Top of Your Game, she writes that “goals focus your energy and efforts in the direction you want to move…it’s not just the goal or destination that’s important, but choosing a destination and moving towards it.”
Consider the following three-step process to help you see the big picture.
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FUTURE STATE VISIONING
Create the big-picture view of your year. When you imagine your upcoming season all the way through to the end (including feeling satisfied and successful) what does that look like? Have you completed a cycling challenge or taken part in a race? What is the big picture? Do you see yourself at the finish and experience the satisfied feeling knowing you’ve given it your best shot?
What does it mean for you to feel successful? Sometimes the successful self in your mind has had enough sleep, eats well and feels day-to-day satisfaction from sport and socialising. Maybe success for you means you’re happy with your body, pursuing passions and having enough time to spend with family and friends. Everyone is different here, but it’s essential to visualise who you are when you feel successful so that you understand your ideal ‘destination’ before you develop your goal and forge a path towards it.
SET YOUR GOALS
Professional runner Kara Goucher writes in her book, Strong, that good goals should consider attainability (challenge but don’t overwhelm), time (set reasonable deadlines and allow for process), flexibility (have a range of goals), inspiration (how do you want to feel) and process-focus (be mindful of the steps along the way). You can break your goals into two basic categories, quantifiable, specific, measurable goals; and non-specific, emotional, subjective process or global goals.
Specific goals could include race or event completion, race finish times, bike power numbers, pace, speed, weight and general workout consistency. Non-specific goals might include happiness with yourself, confidence, resilience, stress-management, contentment and general well-being. When you write your goals down, it can help to divide them into these two categories.
MAP YOUR ROUTE
After spending time breaking down your seasonal goals, it’s time to map your journey. An easy route is to anchor your season around races and events. Choose your events in advance and enter them into an annual training plan or calendar.
Non-specific goals can be recorded in a document stored for easy access. Remember, the brain favours routine. In order to turn a goal into a habit you need to be consistent. It’s ok to share your goals with others if it motivates you. Your route should be fun! Sport is much more than a one-and-done activity—it’s a way of existing.
Remember, this is your journey. Define it, and then stand by it. Embrace the entire journey, celebrate success along the way, and you’ll most likely find yourself achieving goals, accepting challenges and occasional failures and feeling positive throughout.
Start 2023 right by visualising your own personal success, setting reasonable attainable specific and non-specific goals, and mapping a route that will wind you through some exciting, fun terrain on your journey to success! Have a great year!