Develop a plan to meet your goal – then do it

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. James E. Brown IV
  • 71st Medical Operations Squadron
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  On Sept. 20, Tech. Sgt. Dean Eyster with the 71st Security Forces Squadron here attempted to break the Guinness World Record for the number of pull-ups completed in one minute - 36 -- and for the one-mile fireman's carry -- 15 minutes, 11 seconds.

To break these records Eyster had to decide on a specific date for his goal and the process to reach it.

Each day of the week had a specific workout assigned to it, focused on preparation for breaking the pull-up and fireman carry world record.

Monday was bench press, pull-ups, bicep curls and dead lifts. Tuesday followed with squats, snatches and hack squats. Wednesday encompassed weighted-barbell runs alongside pull-ups.

Thursday and Friday were a repeat of Monday and Tuesday. And finally, Saturday was full of barbell runs, squats, dead lifts and bench press.

Although Eyster's attempts did not qualify for the Guinness record book, he met his personal goals because he had a plan for every step along the way.

(Editor's note: Although Eyster completed 41 pull-ups in one minute, the Guinness judges did not accept the attempt for technical reasons. Eyster completed the fireman's carry in 14 minutes, 43 seconds. However, a Belgian entry completed the run in less than 12 minutes in April, but the paperwork was not processed before Eyster's attempt.)

One approach is to set SMART goals. SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely.

This is a great way to set any goal whether it is for weight loss, muscle gain, grades or anything else. I believe most people get hung up on the time component.

Many people have big dreams of where they see themselves weeks, months and years down the road. But time comes and goes and the target date becomes "someday."

Chris Gullibreu, a business owner, once gave a speech to a group of young entrepreneurs. He said, "If you set goals always for 'someday' you will never obtain them - someday isn't a day of the week."

You will never reach your goals unless you have a date or timeframe to serve as the foundation for the goal. A calendar is a great way to track dates associated with your goals.

For example, say you want to lose 16 pounds of body fat. It is healthy to lose one or two pounds per week, so that will take anywhere from eight to 16 weeks. You now have the time component associated with that goal.

I always recommend setting short, medium and long term goals. Short terms goals can be accomplished within a few months, medium goals within a year and long term goals are years out.

The weight-loss goal would be a short-term goal. Getting all A's for your freshman year would be a medium term goal and graduating in four years with a 4.0 GPA would be a long term goal.

Write down the things you need to do in order to accomplish your goals. If your goal is to get all A's for your fall semester, break down the goal into smaller components with action steps.

You could write, "One hour of study everyday at 8 p.m." If you simply say, "study," you might push it off until the last minute, or worse, never do it. You have to be specific, and hold yourself accountable.

Don't just say, "Today I will exercise, sometime." Say, "I will exercise at 5 p.m. today, on the dot."

I personally find it extremely helpful to break the hours of the day into segments with assigned tasks. For example, 7 to 5 p.m. might be work; 5 to 6 p.m., dinner; 6 to 8 p.m., grad school work; 8 to 9 p.m., shower/get uniform ready; 9 to 10 p.m., read my book; 10 p.m., go to bed.

I find that if I do not break the hours of my day into segments I get behind because there is always something to watch on TV, something to look up on the computer, email to check, phone calls to make and friends to hang out with that will distract me from my tasks or goals.

This also helps with prioritization. You only have so much willpower each day to get things done. Personally I have the most energy and concentration power in the morning. As the day goes on, especially once it gets past 4 p.m., my energy levels and willpower drop drastically.

The first hour of work you do each day should be the task you most dislike. You can always find things to distract you from doing it - tidying up the desk, talking with co-workers and checking email for the 100th time.

Make the first hour of work your proactive hour - when you actively complete tasks that need to be done. The proactive component is essential. Notice I did not say "reactive." Being reactive is responding to others' emails, voicemails and messages left on your desk.

If you've needed to do inventory for a while and have been dreading it, use that proactive hour for the task.

A great book on productivity is "Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity," by David Allen.