This week, we have the opportunity to learn from life and business coach, Lemonade Dave Justus. Dave and I met in a BNI group, and he has become a great friend. And the lesson in his guest post this week resonates directly with the focus and theme of this blog.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did…

 

For as long as I can remember, society has been pushing people to lose weight. There have been, and still are, a variety of diet programs and exercise plans advertised on TV, all with a promised outcome to lose a certain number of lbs. or inches. “Meet Jane,” they say, “she lost 30 lbs. using our miracle diet,” as if this might be a good reason for you to call and order – and it must be a good reason because people do call!

Maybe you know someone like Jane? They lost 30 lbs. on a miracle diet, but when you see them six months later, they gained back 45. This repeated loss and regain of weight is commonly referred to as “Yo-yo Dieting,” a term coined by Kelly D. Brownell of Yale University. So why does it happen?

Yes, the need to lose weight might be a good reason to go on a diet, but it is not a good form of motivation for changing your life. Think about it, people who need to lose weight are not jumping out of bed in the morning saying, “I can’t wait to drink chalky-tasting shakes and to go to work out near a bunch of sweaty gym rats.” Well that might work for a few days, but then the covers seem just a little heavier, putting on running shoes at six in the morning becomes an agonizing chore, and eating another protein bar seems about as much fun as having a bite of chocolate-covered cardboard.

Here is the problem with setting a goal to lose 30 lbs.—it is only an objective of what should be a bigger goal. Let me explain: Once I reach a goal, such as losing 30 lbs., my brain begins to say, “Now what?” and it reverts back to my old habits. Thus, the yo-yo effect. However, what if you wanted to live an extraordinary life and set an EXTRAORDINARY LIFE GOAL^TM that reflects why you want to lose weight, such as “to live a life of health and wellness so I can enjoy time with my family”? Then, losing 30 lbs. only becomes one objective of your bigger life-goal.

As a life coach, I work with a variety people on living an Extraordinary Life by setting both personal and professional goals. We follow what I call the 7 STEPS FOR LIVING AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE^TM.

Although there are more details to the seven steps when I help a client, the basic steps are:

• Set a stretch goal that will change their life and at the same time allow them to grow;
• Create reasonable objectives and identify available resources;
• Develop a plan with actions steps;
• Track their outputs and achieved outcomes;
• Work on ways to improve.

In the previous example of the Extraordinary Life Goal – To live a life of health and wellness so I can enjoy quality time with my family, the purpose is to create a life-changing desire that you can constantly pursue and work towards.  When you set such a big goal, your motivation becomes the pursuit of the larger purpose, or in this case, “quality time with your family.” Thus, every time you see your family, you want to live healthier so that you can experience more quality time together.

Therefore, the following is how the rest of the formula might look:

• The OBJECTIVES in getting there could be: 1) lose 2 lbs. a week for 15 weeks or 5 ounces a day for 100 days; 2) lower my blood pressure; 3) get my blood sugar levels under control.
• The RESOURCES are what you need to support your objectives. Examples are gym membership, specific diet, support group, treadmill, and running shoes.
• The ACTIONS STEPS become: 1) eat four fruits and vegetables a day; 2) exercise for 30 minutes three times a week; 3) watch my calorie intake (specific goal); 4) only have one sugary item a day.

Next you track your OUTPUTS and OUTCOMES for the week. The OUTPUTS are how you did on your actions related to your objective.  For example, maybe your plan was to exercise for 30 minutes three times a week, and you went to the gym twice and only managed 10 minutes of walking on the treadmill. I say that effort is a success! You started and now you can improve on the outputs the following week.

The OUTCOMES, which is where the real motivation happens, are the benefits you receive as you reach for your goal! Going to the gym three times or losing two lbs. that week are great but that is not necessarily a motivating factor. However, the ability to take a walk with your daughter and not needing to stop every five minutes to rest, that is a positive outcome.  Even better, hearing from your daughter about how school was, becomes your motivation to keep going!

Here is a quick review of the “7 Steps for Living an Extraordinary Life”:

1. Set an Extraordinary Life Goal, which is big enough that as you pursue it, it will cause you to stretch and grow, thus having a positive impact on your life.
2. Create three to five Objectives that will help you get closer to your extraordinary life.
3. Identify what Resources you have at your disposal or what you will need.
4. Develop a plan with specific Action Steps you can take and get started right away.
5. Track your Outputs, the number of actions you took as way to measure your progress.
6. Focus on the Outcomes related to your extraordinary-life goal.
7. Try each week to improve as best you can.

In closing, I hope you find this information helpful, and in turn, discover a way to live your Extraordinary Life. If you would like a PDF of the Extraordinary Goal Worksheet^©, or to reach me with further questions, please email me at davidj@northcoastuniversity.com.

“Lemonade Dave” is a life coach, motivational speaker and Guinness World Record Holder.  A source of motivation and inspiration, he gives you the guidance you need to reach your full potential. He is a remarkable strategist that will help you reach your goals in an effective and meaningful way. For more information, visit www.LemonadeDave.com.

Thank you for sharing your time with me. I hope you found value.

Now it’s time for YOU to take action…

What’s your Win to be Thin? Leave a comment below.

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