Be honest. Do you struggle to reach your goals?
Or, despite having the best intentions, you just can’t seem to make the progress you’re hoping for?
Wondering what gives?
Are you just destined to be exactly where you’re at and nothing more?
As the title of this guide suggests, it all comes down to your mindset.
The right mindset can help you wake up each day and tackle your goals without giving into excuses.
It also helps you make consistent progress and smash through any obstacles you’re faced with.
On the other hand, the wrong mindset convinces you that you can’t do something and that you should quit before you even get started.
It also makes you believe that thinking you could achieve your goals was a big mistake.
This mindset clearly leads to unhappiness and zero progress towards your end goals.
To change that, today’s guide is here to help.
It covers how you’re preventing yourself from making a bigger impact in your life and what it takes to change things.
*Hint* it’s not as hard as you think.
Before you can fix this though, you should understand:
How You’re Self-Sabotaging Your Goals
When it comes to working out, eating healthy, or any other goal you have in life, your mindset can either make or break you.
If you’ve ever heard of this quote before than you know exactly what I’m referring to:
Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you are right.
A lot of times we’re the biggest problem getting in our own way.
More specifically, our thoughts convince us that we can’t do something.
Sure, there are also external factors that can get in the way — a friend, spouse, or family member telling you you couldn’t do something — but many times it’s in our own head.
But, as many experts have shown me, your beliefs create your thoughts. Those thoughts create action, which then gets you results, both good and bad.
Essentially, you become what you believe, as another famous quote suggests.
So if you don’t change the internal script that you can’t do something, you’re just going to prove yourself right, which most of us do.
And then we never reach our goals because we didn’t have the courage to get started or keep going.
In a previous guide, I talked about how to shift your mentality from “can’t” to “I got this.”
Today’s guide builds on that by specifically highlighting:
4 Mindset Shifts to Master for Better Health and Success in Life
I can’t take credit for these four mindset shifts; I learned them from Jonathan Milligan’s book on blogging (not an affiliate link) and couldn’t wait to share them with you.
While these mindset principles weren’t geared towards better health, they’re so powerful that they could be used in so many areas of life, including that one.
And that’s why I knew I had to pass them along.
Master these and you’ll have no trouble reaching your goals because you’ll finally understand what it takes to do so.
Enough chatting, let’s get started.
#1: Consistency
If you’re tempted to say this one is obvious and you want to skip ahead, I’d caution you not to do so because this one will be eye-opening.
See, consistency is not just about showing up each day.
Yes, that’s a big part of it.
But the real challenge with consistency is showing up without knowing how your hard work is going to turn out.
It’s a blind faith really.
And the problem is, as Milligan mentions, it’s hard for people to envision a better future, especially if you’re struggling in the present moment.
This makes it easy to feel like no amount of work is going to fix the situation so why bother?
And that’s exactly what happens.
Another problem here is that many people want to (wrongfully) rely on inspiration to create consistency.
Once I feel like working out I will.
If I feel up to it, I’ll work out later on.
We both know this never happens.
Instead, the hecticness of the day takes over and we feel too exhausted to work on our goals by the end of it all.
Then we repeat this cycle over and over again and make no progress.
A better approach is to build the consistency first, which will then create the momentum you need to keep going.
So how do you do that?
Jonathan’s approach is key:
#1: Work On Yourself First
The best example to use here is when flying — the safety instructions always tell you to put on your oxygen mask before helping those near you.
This is exactly what you need to do to reach your goals.
Before your busy day starts, take the time to work on your goals, in the rare, quiet morning hours.
Whether this is meditating, working out, or preparing healthy meals, the early morning is the best time to get sh!t done.
Not only are there less distractions, as Jonathan pointed out, but your willpower is also at its peak earlier in the day.
But, as the day wears on and stressful events hit you, your willpower diminishes.
So by the time you get home, you’re maxed out and just want to give into whatever is easiest, which usually means the opposite of what you need.
Tackling your goals first thing in the morning also sets the tone for the rest of your day; it’s always a good day when you can accomplish something early on.
This ends up snowballing and giving you the momentum to tackle as much as you can on your to-do list.
Since this point is so important, I’m going to expand on it like Jonathan did.
#2: How You Start Your Day Determines How The Rest of It Goes
Be honest. Does your early morning routine involve checking email or social media first thing?
These apps were designed to suck your attention for as long as possible and this is one area where it’s too easy to let that happen.
I understand this too since it’s a bad habit I have to force myself not to make.
Instead of waking up and mindlessly scrolling to get your body and mind ready for the day, think about the one thing you could do that would make this day a win.
As soon as you come up with that, get to work on it right away, not later on in your day.
Brian Tracy calls this “Eating the Frog”, which I’ve talked about before.
By doing your hardest, most important task first, you’ll feel better about yourself and you’ll be motivated to accomplish anything else on your plate, especially since your other tasks should be easier than your first one.
Then, once you’ve completed that task, you can bring on the reward of social media, checking email, or watching TV.
A big problem is that many of us treat ourselves first and before doing the hard work.
So, once we get our reward, there’s no reason to work for one.
Don’t make this easy mistake. Put the work in first and then treat yourself, not the other way around.
There’s one more tip to take into consideration with consistency:
#3: You Need to Adopt a Brick-By-Brick Approach
Jonathan was also right when he dubbed this as a brick-by-brick approach.
Consistency, as he put it, is built from the little things you do each day.
Not the five hour power session you do once a month and never repeat again until a few weeks or months later (I’m so guilty of this with this site, sadly).
You’re better off with ten minutes a day or an hour a day than that one power session.
This is also where we run into trouble though.
Tiny steps and going one step at a time are slow and boring.
You don’t get instant results with this route and that can be unmotivating.
That’s where your faith needs to come in and it’s also where many people give up.
I can’t see the future me so why bother fixing the present one?
As Jonathan mentions, “people who reach their goals are different; they live in the present moment.”
So they focus on what needs to get done today, not how far away they are in reaching their goals.
This is the mindset you’ll need to adopt if you truly want to reach your goals.
But it’s not the only one.
You especially need this next one for success too:
#2: Patience
On top of showing up each day and making progress, you need to practice patience.
Jonathan mentions that the way to do this is to, “value the long term over the short term.”
Anything worth doing is going to take longer than you think, as he perfectly puts it.
So while we all want to lose 10lbs overnight by eating one salad and skipping the booze, it’s completely unlikely.
Don’t kid yourself with how much work actually needs to be put in to achieve your end result. Don’t let that deter you either.
That’s where the brick-by-brick philosophy comes in, along with having patience.
Instead, give yourself a realistic timeframe and be okay with it.
It’s probably going to take me three years to alter my body composition the way I want, but the good news is that I’ll have a better foundation for the rest of my life.
Another great point Jonathan makes here is that you can’t have what he calls “Instant Success Syndrome”.
Instant success rarely happens.
And while it may seem like someone may have achieved this, there are plenty of ups and downs that you’re not seeing behind closed doors.
Those transformation photos that you’re seeing in commercials and on ads online are the result of years of consistent hard work.
“Success is a marathon, not a sprint,” and it’s time to start believing that.
After all, if it was easy, we’d all have six pack abs right?
To build your patience muscle, Jonathan recommends:
#1: Find Fulfillment in the Journey
Instead of dreading your workout and every second of, start enjoying little things about it (it gets you out of the house, you feel good once you do it, etc.).
It also helps to understand the gap. This is where you are vs where you want to be.
In this space, be okay with where you’re at and understand it is just one step in your journey.
Practicing gratitude is also essential.
Be grateful that you’re alive and well enough to even make progress towards your goals.
Many people don’t have this option.
So, even if it’s small, you should appreciate any move in the right direction, as Jonathan mentions.
Did you go for a walk once or twice a week? Great!
Did you workout even when you didn’t want to? Even better!
When it comes to your business, did you accomplish your top priorities this week? Awesome!
Don’t discount your hard work because it seems small or insignificant.
This is a brick-by-brick approach, remember?
Another point Jonathan made here that I loved is to “embrace new discoveries” that you learn along the way.
For so long I tried workouts that I didn’t enjoy because I thought that’s what it took to change my body composition.
Obv. I was dead wrong.
On whatever journey your goals take you on, you’re bound to run into obstacles that will teach you new things.
This is a good thing!
It ensures that you’re always using different neurological pathways — which keeps your brain healthy — and helps you use your problem solving skills, which humans were naturally designed to do for survival.
I consider myself a lifelong learner and I hope you do too or that you’re willing to become one. It will help you tremendously on your journey!
Plus, you’re already doing that by reading this article 🙂
#2: The End Destination Won’t Make You Happy
The last point to understand when practicing patience is that your final destination is not going to magically make you happier.
So thinking, if only my stomach was flatter, I would feel better, won’t happen.
Skinny people are unhappy with their bodies all the time while others can easily accept it at any size.
Your goal should be the latter — be grateful for where you’re at.
You’ve gone on an incredible journey so far and it’s not stopping anytime soon. Appreciate that!
Another point Jonathan said that I loved is that, “We often beat ourselves up for doing the wrong thing for a long time.”
This causes us to be too scared to take any action, according to Milligan.
His solution: fail forward.
Instead of failing by not even starting, fail by trying something new and learn from it.
It’s inevitable that you’re not going to get something right the first time.
Understanding that gives you a pass not to be perfect and just to give it your best each time.
These moments are teaching you something each time. Sit back and let the lesson unfold.
Speaking of letting it go and perfection, this next mindset shift can also help nudge you in the right direction.
#3: Resistance
“Perfectionism is resistance in disguise,” according to Jonathan.
Are you too worried about being rejected?
I know I was with this blog and it’s something I still work on.
Just like me, and as Milligan mentions, you have to be honest with yourself.
No one likes to be rejected. It stings a bit and it’s never fun.
But, despite what you’ve convinced yourself (I did too), your comfort zone isn’t as fun as you’ve been led to believe.
In that zone, perfectionism leaves you paralized and too scared to make a move.
So you don’t, and never make progress towards reaching your goals.
Another great quote of Jonathan’s is, “Resistance wants you to believe your life is better stationary.”
He compares this to stagnant water – what happens when water sits?
It doesn’t stay crystal clear and pretty — it gets gross and slimy.
Just like with water, you need to keep your brain and your body moving, especially towards your goals.
Here’s another set of mistakes I was and sometimes still am guilty of making:
Do you learn more than you take action?
Does fear of not being good enough cause you to not take action?
Are you more interested than committed?
This, as Jonathan points out, is analysis paralysis.
You’ve researched a ton of information about your goal but now it’s time to actually put it to work.
Here are a few tips from Jonathan that can help you do that and become more resilient:
#1: Go for Simple Solutions
Remember that “Instant Success Syndrome” I mentioned earlier?
This has a bad habit of rearing its ugly head around when it comes to working out.
People go from 0 to 60 (couch potato to bootcamps and marathons) and end up overdoing it right away.
This leads to feeling tired, injuries, and extreme soreness, all things that will make you less likely to stick with it.
Instead of going all out, start small until you build your momentum.
So you should begin with walking before you decide to try out an extreme workout.
On top of that:
#2: Focus on Speed of Implementation
Don’t let tomorrow logic — I’ll do this tomorrow — stop you from getting started.
Rather, put your focus on taking that first step and just do it.
Don’t think about any criticism or what could happen if you do.
Just get. It. done.
My favorite way to do that is to start a timer and get going.
Jonathan also recommends doing 90-day sprints, which I’ve personally done, but I prefer shorter, 30-day ones instead.
At any rate, you should stop giving into those pesky excuses of yours and come up with reasons why you should do something.
The last piece of the puzzle is having this next mindset.
#4: Confidence
Before you start implementing any of those mindset shifts, you have to actually believe you can do this.
You need confidence in yourself.
And I believe, from experience too, this is where many struggle the most.
Do you really think you can do this?
If the answer is no, it’s no wonder you’re too scared to make progress.
You’ve convinced yourself you have no business getting started and now you believe it.
As mentioned earlier, your beliefs create your thoughts which create your actions. And those actions get you results, both good and bad.
If you believe you can’t do it, you’ll prove yourself right every time.
A better approach is to know that you can do this.
And, if at any point, you stumble upon the inevitable roadblock, you’re smart enough to figure it out and get past it.
That doesn’t mean you have all the answers you need.
It’s just means you’re willing to figure it out and that you can.
You and I were designed to survive and problem solve.
This means your natural instinct is to figure things out.
So have the confidence that you can do this, whatever it is!
I want you to believe in yourself because I already do!
You just spent five minutes or so taking the time to read this, which means I know you want to change.
To do that, consider working on these four mindset shifts right away.
How to Tackle These 4 Mindsets Today
If you’re a regular reader on this blog, you know my approach is always to start with one tip from this guide and work on that until you master it.
This ensures that you don’t overwhelm yourself and that you can build some momentum.
So, this guide is no different.
Choose the one mindset that you think will make the biggest difference in your life and run with that first.
The tips underneath that section should be enough to help you get started right away, not tomorrow.
So do that and don’t make excuses.
You got this!
And if you need my help, you know I’m just an email away, devan@behappynothangry.com.
To changing your mindset today,
Devan