PREFACE

People who set goals are one-third more likely to achieve them than those who don't, according to studies by psychologists and cited in the bestseller "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People."

 In this article we will go over:

 - My College Experience Setting Goals

- The Thought Process behind setting goals

- How setting goals changed my life

- The Goal Setting Journey

- What's your why? 

My Experience Setting Goals

At Montclair State University, I had taken a yoga course taught by the brilliant Dr. Robert Gilbert. Feel free to check out his rate my professor and how they talk about how good of a man he is.

I took a yoga class that he taught my sophomore year. We did not do one yoga pose the whole semester yet to this day it was one of the best classes I ever took in my life. He is a man that gives advice that you can take with you for the rest of your life while showing up as a genuine human being.

One day he comes into class and hands us a business card. I look at it and it has three questions on it. Dr. Gilbert proceeds to preface this activity as one to take seriously for ourselves and to keep this card on us in our wallets. The three questions were: 

1.   Do you have your goals?

2.   Have you written down your goals?

3.   Do you have written-down goals with you right now?

On the other side of the business card, there were three lines to write down three goals. I thought it was a cool activity to do and by this point of the semester, I have tons of respect for the man and I do just as he says.

I filled it out and below you can see the image of my response.

 I definitely have chicken scratch handwriting so for anyone that can't read what I wrote, check out my goals below. 

1.   To better myself every day

2.   Don't lose track of what's really important

3.   Work with clients and teams

Yes, I still have this in my wallet and it has allowed me to stay connected to my core values, my personal goals, and doing exactly what feels like the right decision based on my long-term goals and values.

My goal setting thought process

Start Broad

When setting the goals on the card, I kept them broad. Luckily, I had the foresight that my life will always keep changing and evolving. I never wanted to settle, ever. All three goals are centered around me. Knowing that if my focus is on bettering myself and not losing track of what's really important in life, I know that I can impact the people around me.  

Working with clients and teams can be very broad. I knew I was on the path to be a strength and conditioning coach, but being a visionary, I myself have goals beyond the fitness industry. Keep the goals on this card broad will allow you to evolve and keep your ethics in the middle of everything that you do.

What's beautiful about this goal-setting process is that I won't know the final outcomes of my goals until I start looking back at all that I did in my life and it's exciting to have the opportunity to work actively towards achieving goals to help those around me. The same applies to you.

To this day, I still carry that card in my wallet.

My Personal Goals

Now to share some of my personal goals, I've been blessed to train many athletes, entrepreneurs, and executives. I've lead group workouts for employees from KPMG and JPMorgan to being a part of a global marketing campaign for Equinox (PRESS) to starting my own fitness accessory business (velaproject.com). Throughout those moments, I've put an emphasis on bettering myself daily, made sure to stay connected to the truth and what's really important in life, and worked with various clients and teams. The exposure to a variety of activities and clients allowed me to grow and impact the lives I worked with. I attribute this to my three goals. These goals focused on my why.

The Goal Setting Journey

What's your Why?

Simon Sinek the author of the book "Find your why" came up with the golden circle.(Simon Sinek | Start with WHY to inspire action (Super Quick Version) - YouTube)

 Simon is expressing that people buy from other people and organizations because of the reason WHY they do what they do. After we resonate and connect with our why (mission), then we move on to the HOW. The how is what makes someone or an organization special and is set apart from the competition. The WHAT is what the person or organization sells or offers.

 With so many products and services, people put their money into who and what they believe in. The why will have you feeling content and fulfilled in your day-to-day grind. We all have our struggles so knowing our purpose (the why), will keep us on the path of our goal achievement.

I want to take this ideology and bring it over to your fitness and nutrition goals.

Achieving Goals

I believe there are levels to goal achievement. Staying connected to your why will have you getting clear on all of your goals and all that you do in life. You have a 10,000-foot view (Big Picture) and you can go deeper into your personal fitness and nutrition goals. Once you have that, we can go into your SMART goals.

SMART Goals? What is that

Smart goals come into play after you have your WHY and while you are coming up with your personal goals. Smart goals help with setting goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant & Time-oriented. You can learn more about the SMART goal achievement process in the fitness starter kit by clicking the link below to download.

Your Goal Setting Process

My why has been about helping people. The best way I know how is by bettering myself every day which will allow me to be better for those around me in whatever we are doing, not losing track of what's really important, and working with clients and teams. I want to help you in your goal-setting process, gaining clarity, and living a healthy lifestyle.

Goal Planning Steps

When you get into the nitty-gritty of goal setting, follow the steps below.

1.     Write out your 10,000-foot view  goals (Your WHY)

2.     Personal goals (Fitness & Nutrition Goals)

3.     SMART goals for the 10,000 ft view & personal goals 

My Gift to you

I have a gift for you, below you can download your own three questions card. I've placed it in my fitness starter kit. Whether you're looking to get into fitness, want to lose some weight, looking to change your routine, looking to prioritize your health and wellness, the fitness starter kit is for you.

The Fitness kit includes:

·      2-week fitness program (PDF)

·      Meal Plan (E-book)

·      Three Questions downloadable (PDF)

·      3 simple factors affecting your workouts (EBOOK & Infographic)

·      10 tips to get in the best shape of your life (EBOOK & Infographic)

 You can download it below.

I also offer 6-week training programs with access to:

·      Fitness Assessment

·      Personalized Program

·      Integrated fitness and nutrition apps (integration with myfitness pal, apple health, iwatch, withing & fitbit)

·      Meal plan with a shopping list

·      Weekly Accountability calls

If you are interested in this, you can learn more here: 6wt.raphaelvelazquez.com.