5:00 AM: Up And At ‘Em (How Incremental Change Made It Happen)

Justin — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 11:00:12 +0000

In 2011, I came face to face with a reality that all hard charging achievers encounter: there are only 24 hours in each day. Like many of you, I struggled to find an answer to the question, “How can I fit my ambitious expectations into those 24 hours?” The task seemed impossible. It was then that I decided the only solution was to get up earlier and rethink my morning routine in order to focus on key priority areas (thanks to Michael Hyatt and others). The next step was to figure out how to make that possible.

In my last post, we dove into three compelling reasons why we should harness the power of incremental change to make great strides toward our goals and developing effective habits. Hopefully, you even identified an area in your life where incremental change could make a significant difference. However, you may have been left wondering how to get started.

Here are 4 steps that helped me get the ball rolling:

Step #1 Identify your goal: What is it you want to, accomplish, master, develop, achieve, finish?

One of my goals was to develop the routine of getting up at 5:00 AM. Reading the entire Bible is another goal that I am applying the power of incremental change to. The point is to be crystal clear about what it is you want to accomplish. Other examples may be to pay off all credit card debt, lose 15 pounds or improve your golf handicap by 2 shots.

Step #2 Identify your strategy of incremental change: What actions will you take on a regular basis?
Use the acronym S.M.A.R.T. to help set yourself up for success. It stands for Specific, Measurable, Action-Focused, Realistic and Time-Bound. For instance, if my goal is to run a half marathon, then my strategy of “run 5 days per week” could be changed to be more effective. If I decided to “run a total of 60 miles in 5 days each week, averaging 8:30 minute miles,” that is more S.M.A.R.T. Ultimately, the more clear I can be with the practices I need to execute to meet my goal, the more likely I will actually take those steps. Maybe its just me, but if I leave any wiggle room, I tend to procrastinate. So, having the strategy to complete 5 days of my one-year Bible reading plan per week keeps things simple and straight forward.

Step #3 Identify your tracking mechanism: Map out a tracking system for yourself to help you monitor your progress and see your transformation over time.
You may have heard the adage that you can’t expect to manage what you don’t measure. In my experience, this is huge for building momentum and setting yourself up for success. You’ve got to find a way to track progress. The good news is, this has never been easier. There are hundreds of tools to help you track goals, habits and the like. Two Apps I use are Way of Life and Endomono, which both help me to be disciplined and to track my progress in building new habits. Alternatively, a simple chart or calendar where you mark off whether or not you completed the necessary action for that day works just fine.

Step #4 Identify your checkpoints: Select short-term goals that serve as checkpoints along the way.

These help you stay the course, evaluate your progress and celebrate successes en route to something bigger. For example, as I work my way through reading the Bible, I have checkpoints each week and each month along the way. These help keep me focused. Without them, it would be easy to let a couple of days slip through the cracks here and there without realizing it and before I know it, I might be a month or two behind on my reading plan. When I hit my checkpoints on schedule, that boosts my confidence and energizes me to hit the next one.

This is the time of year when many of you have focused your efforts toward those easily derailed resolutions. We all start down that road with the best of intentions. However, if you’re after lasting change in 2014, changes that can pay huge dividends down the road, might I suggest recruiting the power of incremental change? To get your 2014 moving in the direction of big goals and lasting change, complete the 4 steps above and see where you end up before the ball drops again in Times Square.

Links: (posts, books, links, etc.)

• Podcast: Become More Productive by Reengineering Your Morning Ritual

• App: Way of Life App

• App: Endomondo

Question: What is your greatest hurdle to creating lasting change and achieving more in 2014? Please join the conversation in the comments below.

The post 5:00 AM: Up And At ‘Em (How Incremental Change Made It Happen) first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

What I Learned About Change From A Walk On The Moon

Justin — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 10:00:50 +0000

To begin our adventures in 2013, my wife, Laura, and I took a walk on the moon. Okay, well, not quite. Actually, we visited White Sands National Monument in New Mexico. Prior to our exploration of what seemed like another world, we surveyed the exhibits and learned about what makes White Sands so special. We learned that these beautiful gypsum dunes are constantly moving and changing. While some dunes move only a few feet per year, others are making strides of up to 30 feet per year. That just blew me away. The dunes that move the furthest are changing the most and do so as they gain and lose tiny particles of the gypsum every day. It happens little by little.

Like the dunes, we can leverage the process of taking small steps daily to achieve bigger results in our lives. This is the power of incremental change. Over the past year, I’ve been building the momentum of incremental change in a few key areas of my own life: (1) Getting out of bed early, (2) Daily Bible reading and (3) Exercising. It has been a struggle, but one that has been completely worth it.

For example, I used to get out of bed leaving myself just enough time to do the absolute essentials and make it to work on time. Believe me, I value my sleep. Using the power of incremental change, I slowly moved back the time I wake up (with some adjustment to bedtime too). Now, I am up at 5:00 AM each day and make progress on a few of my priorities before the busyness of the workday takes over.

Based on my experience, I highly recommend you build momentum through incremental change for 4 major reasons.

Makes Molehills Out of Mountains. Taking this approach will give you a more manageable perspective on your overall goal by helping you focus on the little things. It keeps you from feeling overwhelmed by the overall project or change you are striving for. I can read a few chapters of the Bible each day, but planning to read the entire text in one year is a bit overwhelming.
Mobilizes Daily Discipline. In The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth, John C. Maxwell wrote, “You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” I have found this to be true in my own life. When you focus your efforts on daily discipline, you are creating the momentum you need for greater success, one day at a time.
Maximizes Motivation. We are all motivated by progress, learning, change and growth. In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Dan Pink cited the work of Harvard’s Teresa Amabile who found in her research that the single greatest motivator is “making progress in one’s work.” “The days that people make progress are the days they feel most motivated and engaged,” writes Pink. By focusing on and tracking our daily or weekly progress, it provides us with the levels of motivation we need to continue the journey.
Multiplicity. No, I don’t mean the 1996 comedy, starring Michael Keaton and Andie MacDowell. I’m talking about a compounding effect. John Maxwell talks about how the things you do today, will pay off even bigger down the road. The sand dunes may change a few granules at a time, and by the next year or even 5 years, the entire landscape will have shifted. This compounding effect, small things today paying off significantly down the road, can change the trajectory of your growth, relationships, career and more.

When you build momentum through the power of incremental change, you’ll increase your focus on the process, build new routines, increase motivation and see greater results over time. Ultimately you’ll be on your way to pursuing your true potential.

Okay, so now that you are convinced to build momentum to achieve more, consider the areas of your life where you can take advantage of incremental change. I’ve gathered a short list to help start your brainstorm:

Weight Loss
Stop Smoking
Improved Attitude
Writing a Blog
Reading the Bible
Building Strength or Endurance
Getting Out of Debt
Starting a Business
Improving the Performance of Your Team

Got a few ideas? Great!

Next week, I’ll outline 4 essentials to identify that will increase your chances of following through on your goals and even your resolutions.

Links: (posts, books, links, etc.)

Question: What super-sized goal are you going to apply the power of incremental change to? Join the conversation by leaving a comment below.

The post What I Learned About Change From A Walk On The Moon first appeared on The Excelling Edge.

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5:00 AM: Up And At ‘Em (How Incremental Change Made It Happen)

What I Learned About Change From A Walk On The Moon