Losing weight, saving money and starting an exercise routine are all great aspirations. But if you took a moment to examine your thoughts, feelings and emotions, what’s the real purpose behind your dream goal?
Finding this out before you start will be key to your success. This journey is going to be challenging and knowing why you’re doing something is massively important when it comes to pushing through those tough times ahead. But how do you go about uncovering your real ‘reason why’? Follow my five purpose-finding tips to help get your transformation up and running.
Invest in a notebook
Grab yourself a new notebook and pick up a pen because it’s really important that you write everything down. At the top of the page, note your main goal - what is it that you want to achieve? What’s really going on for you at the moment that’s made you want to lose weight, get fitter, start a new business, or whatever it is you want to do?
Question yourself
Once you’ve written your goal it’s time to start moving yourself towards the big reason why. With my clients I do this by asking them the same question until we get right to the crux of the matter. For example if they tell me they want to lose weight, I’ll ask “and why’s that important to you?”. Then they might say, “so I can fit into my jeans”. So I ask, “and why’s that important to you?”
Going through that questioning process yourself can be so helpful. But don’t let yourself off the hook. Really push yourself to find out what it is that’s driving you and write the answers down. We’ll be referring to them as we get further along in the journey.
Make it emotional
You can set all the goals in the world, but if they fail to touch you on an emotional level, you won’t have the passion to stick with them when the going gets tough. That’s why, once you’ve answered all the questions and discovered the real purpose behind your goal, it’s important to phrase it in words that hold an emotional relevance for you, even if those words don’t mean anything to anyone else.
Perhaps you want to save money so you can pay the deposit on a house, but through the deeper questioning process you’ve discovered your true purpose is to keep your family secure. Put that in a phrase that means something to you, such as “I want to give my family the stability I didn’t have growing up”. How’s that for an emotive driver to keep your habit going strong!?
Start straight away
Once you’ve found your reason why and have put it into emotive language, you need to start straight away. So whatever the circumstances, whatever the restrictions, do whatever you can now to put that wheel in motion, even if that’s only by doing something small. For example if you’re giving up alcohol, now’s the perfect time to blitz the house for any half-opened bottles that may be lying around.
The golden two-minute rule
My golden rule for lasting change is to do something that moves you towards your goal in the first two minutes of the morning. So if your goals are to move more, just move more as soon as you get up. That kind of morning positivity has an uncanny knack of cascading throughout the entire day.
Leon Taylor competed for Great Britain in three Olympic Games and was the first British diver in over 44 years to win a silver medal. A BBC sports commentator and mentor to diving sensation Tom Daley, Leon is now a performance and wellness coach.
