Dominic Keohane, NLP Trainer and high performance coach, explains the SMARTER training system.
Forget about an integrated life, forget about balance in all things. True commitment is about singular vision, it's about being able to shut out everything else and truly focus on this moment, this action and this goal.
MACKENZIE, B. (1997) Psychology has the following to say about commitment;
"Sports performance depends on the athlete being fully committed to numerous goals over many years. In competition with these goals the athlete will have many aspects of daily life to manage. The many competing interests and commitments include work, studies, family/partner, friends, social life and other hobbies/sports.
Within the athlete's sport, commitment can be undermined by:
Setting goals with the athlete will raise their feelings of value, give them joint ownership of the goals and therefore become more committed to achieving them. All goals should be SMARTER.
Many people (coach, medical support team, manager, friends, etc) can contribute to an athlete's levels of commitment with appropriate levels of support and positive feedback, especially during times of injury, illness and poor performance."
Goals & Goal Setting
Goals are often confused with outcomes. Using the formula above it becomes clear that the goal is an action undertaken, it is SMARTER, and the outcome is what results from this.
For example a poor goal would be "I will win on Sunday"; winning on Sunday is a desired outcome. The reason for this is because that it may not be realistic; it depends on the performance (to some degree) of other competitors.
A goal is a route to an outcome, to take each stage of the race as your point of measure and set goals SMARTER goals around these stages would mean you now have well set goals, which will ensure you can celebrate success regardless of your final position.
Sure you want to win and you may well do so, however, setting goals against a specific position in a field is dangerous. Failure or a perception of failure can often be a strong de-motivator. Setting goals as suggested above will mean you learn and grow from a positive platform. If you wish to place higher up the field next time, you set your training goals to improve each stage of the race.
There are many ways to write down and share a goal, the one outlined above is the one that has delivered more success more often in my work with athletes.
Having a well formed set of goals is only a small part of committing and achieving them. The bigger part is how you take people with you, or in other words; how you share your goals.
Sharing your goals in such a way that the audience can realise a benefit will enable their support efficiently. It will mean that your sport is generating win - wins for all whom you communicate with.
Life Pressure
There are pressures upon you from all directions in life and it can sometimes seem overwhelming and complex. To simplify this I have split your life into 4 systems:
This simple yet effective way of communicating is illustrated for you in the diagram below. This method of communicating your goal will enable you to consider impacts in each system and the benefits to those that share the system with you.
It is not enough to set goals for yourself, you must learn to communicate them in such a way that they are brought to life, in order to motivate support. Communicate in a way that creates a shared journey.
Many of us set a goal using any number of methodologies and yet we fail to follow through. I would hazard a guess that this is more likely to be because our goals lack support from some key people in our lives.
Believe it or not, that is down to you and not them. It's not up to them to simply support you because you feel you have some 'right' to it. It's up to you to learn and understand the impacts of your actions on others and ensure you do all you can to align with the systems you are communicating within.
That said, it will not mean you giving up on a goal, it will mean you communicate it differently in order to gain the support. To create change you first must change.
Easy steps to communicating and motivating support:
Write your goal using the model described for each of the systems, you can have as many as you like. You might have the same goal e.g. 2 hours on my bike 5 times a week in each system and yet explore different Impact 3 statements. The template below might help: Home Work Social Health
Goal Imp 1Imp 2Imp 3There is a very good reason for using the route as your goal; you are going to share it with those around you. By sharing the route you are enabling those other agents to better support you, as they will know what you are going to do. It's physically measurable and timely. You then go on and share the impacts. By doing so you are motivating them to support you. They will understand the impact on you and them, and therefore the system. If they share your desired outcome for their system, then they will quickly choose to support and motivate you.
All of the above is designed to support you in achieving heightened commitment and support from those around you. These tasks are much easier when supported by an expert coach. If you would appreciate this level of support call Care For Health in Godalming and book a High Performance Coaching session.
Not designing and communicating your goals effectively is like competing in a fur coat.
Think Elite, Be Elite.
Dominic regularly hosts clinics in Godalming, Weybridge and Bracknell. To find out more about him visit his website www.dominickeohane.com
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