BHAG…big hairy audacious goals. These are the goals we set for ourselves that will take a long time to achieve. They are just far enough out of reach to create motivation, but not so far out there that it causes you to quit before ever starting. Maybe it’s to run your first marathon, to hit the Boston qualifier, or to run a 5k non-stop. But whatever it is, achieving your BHAG goal takes focus.
Every now and then, focus slips. You forget about your form on reps during a workout as your mind wanders to the work you need to get done, the dishes that need to be washed, or the kid’s schedule. You get mindless about what you are doing. You find yourself going through the motions in the workout. You have gotten so programmed to do a certain thing or act a certain way, that you lose focus on what exactly it is you are doing.
So how do you keep focus?
Once you have your long-term goal set, you can start planning short-term goals to hit along the way as a map to cut out your path to success. There will be bumps along the way and forks in the road, but the small goals will be your guide to where you want to be.
Finding ways to constantly remind yourself of your goals will help you to stay centered on what you want to achieve. As a kid, I used to write my goals on a paper and tape it to my ceiling. My goals were the first thing I saw in the morning and the last thing I saw at night. It was a constant reminder of where I saw myself in the future.
You can adapt this to today’s technology by making screen backgrounds, passwords, pin numbers, etc something that is related to your goal. This way, when you are out grocery shopping, you can be reminded of your goal and think “by putting this in my body, is it going to help me reach my goals?” Or before you do a workout, reminding yourself of the purpose behind the workout so that you are willing to push yourself that extra little bit.
And lastly, celebrate the victories along the way to your goal. After all, the journey to get there and everything you learn along the way is the ultimate reward.
About the author: Rosie is the Store Manager of AppRunCo – Camp Hill. When she’s not at the store, you can spot her running hundreds of miles around Central PA as she trains for marathons with a goal of hitting the Olympic trials qualifying standard (2:37.00 or 5:59/mile) for the 2024 trials, coaching multiple online clients to reach their best, and hiking with her fiancé and 2 pups!
