Paul, on the other hand, is a nice guy, but when I sit down with him, his life seems somewhat tragic. He has a reasonably good job, but he is caught up in a cycle of negativity. Things are always going bad on the job. Life’s not fair. It’s always someone else’s fault. Yet as rotten as things are, he doesn’t really want to change. Month after month things stay the same. I’ve often wondered why he doesn’t change jobs, but he continues slogging through his daily routine, frustrated with the status quo.

It doesn’t take a crystal ball to figure out where these guys will be a year or two from now.

It really comes down to a simple fact…

Jeff has set some goals in writing, and is actively pursuing them.

Paul has no concrete goals and is somehow hoping that life will get better.

It’s really easy to see what the future holds…

It really comes down to the pictures below…

Jeff has created a succession of attainable goals, year after year, with ladder rungs spaced so he is able to climb them. Paul’s ladder has a broken rung. It’s not his fault, and certainly not fair, but he is stuck. He can’t go up, so he stays where he is, instead of fixing things or finding another ladder.

I’ve been on a ladder like Paul’s many times in my life. The broken rung is certainly an obstacle. Many times I’ve stayed way too long on a rung unable to climb further, because of pride or anger. It’s only when I’ve repaired the rung, or found a different ladder altogether that I’ve been able to move forward.

A dictionary definition of Success is listed as completing a worthwhile plan or goal.

While setting goals is the first step towards success, it’s not always clear sailing. To create a legacy of success, it’s helpful to look at some of the common pitfalls.

The Ladder to Success

 1. Multiple Goals: As we can see from the ladder on the left above, having multiple goals in the same area of life, at the same time, can quickly derail us. We can make initial progress, but soon competing demands will break the ladder apart. It’s best to say no to one and focus on the other. Greg McKeown’s book, Essentialism, is a helpful guide on the subject.

2. Gap In Knowledge or Skills: Looking at the ladder on the right above, we can see a major goal that has gaps. These are usually spaces in our knowledge or skills and require that we learn something new or bring someone else in with the experience and knowledge that we need. The solution is to spend time and money on a solution or find a different ladder. Goals with huge gaps that are unattainable often lead to frustration and ultimately… failure.

3. Enjoy the Journey: While setting goals is a major key to success, it’s easy to get burnt or stressed out if we constantly focus on the top step all the time. The secret to goal setting, is to realize it is a journey and focus on one rung at a time. Breaking a large goal up into action steps and then focusing on that single step will free us to concentrate on a single task, and be able to successfully complete smaller milestones along the way.

Goal Setting Solutions

To set goals for yourself, you might find my goal setting toolkit to be helpful. You can easily plan out short and long term goals and keep them top of mind.

If you really want to create a legacy of success, I recommend Michael Hyatt’s extensive Best Year Ever Course. It might be easier than you think to turn things around. Especially after you watch his video outlining the 5 characteristics of those who get what they want.

Overall: Don’t let a broken rung, negative attitude or wobbly ladder stop you on your journey to success.

Check out Jeff’s website for some of his positive insights.

Over time, the clutter innocently piles up and the dust collects. That gleaming clean island in my kitchen slowly takes on a life of its own. It’s like a micro clan of perps have taken up residence. Day after day, these miniature castaways setup lodging, reorganize and add things, and make sure anything important gets lost… all without my intervention. I’ve actually never seen one of them, but I know they are there. I imagine that one of them is probably named Gilligan, another might be the Skipper.

Once these perps have taken hold, it’s really hard to get control. You move something around, it magically comes back to the exact same spot that is was before. You throw something away, and it reappears days later. Meanwhile, the U.S. Postal service is feeding this island of misfits with a daily surge of fresh junk mail. The island residents make these into shelters, and high rises. Soon there are pathways between items, as the perps form a semi organized city. As the weeks go on, this city suddenly expands with new growth, as suburbs spring up in different directions. Soon the whole island is covered with urban junk mail sprawl.

I’d love to say I have this under control, but this micro Gilligan is ruthless. If I just move things around or take a piecemeal approach, my efforts are fruitless. Gilligan and his merry band of clutter marauders will just setup a redevelopment project and move the sprawl around. I’ve tried different tacts, but this micro menace always wins out. He obviously has reinforcements. At times, I have put my ear close to the surface, and I can hear them laughing at me.

Looking at my calendar the other day, I realized it was Holiday Party Time, and we were hosting. Horror and grief overcame me. These little bastards were ruining my life. I needed a plan and a way to overcome this horde of invaders. I needed to retake the island.

At first I tried a few mini salvos; I picked up a few items and threw them away. But within a few hours the island was back to normal. As the mailman drove away and the bags from the most recent grocery shopping trip were folded away, new items had taken the place of the old ones. It was now worse than ever!

I needed a nuclear option. I had to wipe out the whole Island at once.

Unfortunately, my wife has a soft heart and the thought of nuking the island was more than she could take. I’d mention it too her, but she just couldn’t bring herself to wipe out the shelters that these miniature inhabitants had so diligently built. I needed to get her out of the house and far away.

I set up a plan to have her go shopping, but after she left, I was hounded by my Cocker Spaniel, who seemed to be in cahoots with the island residents. Looking at the island, there were a number of dog toys and treats in different parts of the place. Sure enough, collusion with the enemy. Lulu would have to go away too, if I was to have success.

The next day, I set a plan in motion. My wife would take the dog to the dog park for a couple of hours. She knew I was planning something, but after some reassurance and promises that nothing would be missing, she hesitantly put the dog in the car and drove away.

Now I was Free!

I needed a few things for my attack, which I quickly assembled.

The first was an empty trashcan. This would suffice for the initial incursion.

Next was an empty kitchen drawer. This would serve as a holding pen for prisoners and a collection area for enemy booty.

The next was the most important. I brought in the digital kitchen timer, set to 50 minutes. This would insure that my attack was sufficient enough to be successful.

I lined up the trashcan, opened the kitchen drawer, set the timer, and then did two more things…

I turned off all distractions… cell phone, iPad, and computer…

And then one last item… I clicked on a Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars video, entitled Uptown Funk…

As the loud notes hit my ears, the timer was started, the battle begun.

I flew over the island once, taking out large targets with a quick throw to the trash can. Bam, blop, banished. Then I came in with a reconnaissance team, picking up necessary and important enemy items and stored them out of site in the kitchen drawer. This was followed by smaller targets to the trash. Soon I could see the island again. Within minutes the island was cleared and I set off a cleaning bomb, covering the entire surface of the island with agent orange oil.

Now that I had success with the main island, I headed for the mainland. I took on the granite fields around the stove and moved over to sink lake. Prisoners from this area were stowed in the dishwasher for later washing. Soon cleaning bombs were going off, and the shine from the immaculate granite was hurting my eyes.

I turned away from this area, took a 10 minute break and then headed out to do the same with other horizontal surfaces throughout the house… kitchen table, coffee table, end tables and china cabinet. With a replay of Bruno Mars singing, the battle this time was easier. Dirt and grime were destroyed, while the lemon scent of Pledge wafted through the air. With a final vacuuming run, the whole house was clean and presentable.

When my wife came home a few minutes later, she couldn’t believe her eyes. The house and especially the island had been transformed. She hugged me and smiled as only she can. I knew I had done good. I had won the war.

Unfortunately… my wife and her big heart couldn’t leave well enough alone. She opened the prison camp drawer and pulled out an envelope and put it on the Island. I was sure that Gilligan himself was inside. In a moment of incredible fortitude, I did what I had to do. I swooped in, picked up the envelope, dropped it back in the drawer. I looked my wife in the eye and said, “I love you, but we aren’t going to give them a start again.” With that, I shut up, took her by the hand, and offered to take her to a restaurant for dinner.

She smiled and kissed me, “Thanks for cleaning the house,” she said softly. “Prime rib sounds wonderful…”

I had struggled with cleaning the house, but the nuclear option had cleared the island. Problem solved, battle won!

That’s why it is so hard for humans to modify our behavior. We can have the best of intentions, but our deeply instilled habits get in the way. And it’s not as easy as doing something different for 21 days, or using intense willpower. Many habits are distinct ruts in our lives. We can try and climb out, but these ruts are deep, steep and slippery. Most times we fall back in.

Habits consist of three components…

1. Cue or Trigger: The item that starts the habit cycle
2. Routine: The action steps we take
3. Reward: The reason we do the action

Researchers have found that it is easier to change an existing routine than to create a new habit. If this is the case, it makes sense to take a look at some of our common habits and see if we can make positive changes.

Let’s take a look at a common daily habit that many of us have, the Starbucks routine.

When driving or commuting to work, many of us stop off at a Starbucks or other coffee shop and pick up a beverage. Depending on what we order, this drink may have a lot of calories, causing weight gain over time.

So if we want to lose weight, we need to change or eliminate this habit. I’d like to introduce you to the concept of TRIM Goals, a quick way to change an existing habit with some cool perks. This simple goal setting technique consists of four parts…

• T = Trigger
• R= Routine
• I = Insert
• M = Mix

This is how it works. You simply take an existing trigger, change the routine associated with it, insert an additional action and mix everything together into a goal oriented habit.

Let’s look at how we might set this up. Our current habit consists of the following…

• Trigger: Driving by Starbucks (We see the sign, triggering us to go in)
• Routine: Order a high calorie latte (500 calories)
• Reward: We enjoy a hot, sweet beverage on our way to work

Let’s convert this to a TRIM Goal.

• Goal: Lose weight by reducing calories
• Insert Goal: Meet new people and create new clients

Let’s TRIM out the Goal.

• Trigger: Driving by Starbucks (We see the sign and go in)
• Routine (Modified): We order a zero calorie green tea (500 calorie reduction)
• Insert: While waiting in line we hand out small cards for a free eBook
• Mix: New routine will cut calories and build our business

Results: Now instead of our daily ritual adding to our waistline, it now provides a tasty hot beverage and allows us to promote our business by handing out small cards for a free eBook to those people in line around us.

Let’s do the math… 500 calorie reduction x 7 days /week = 3500 calorie reduction or one pound lost/week. We hand out cards for a free eBook with a link to our website. Most people will check out the offer. Average 5 cards per day x 30 days /month and we can see that we have the potential of giving away 150 books and adding many new people to our mailing list. A simple to accomplish win-win.

TRIM goals can have multiple inserts and can be used with all sorts of existing habits. Here are some additional TRIM Inserts that make sense…

• Trigger: Walk into your office. Insert: Do five push-ups
• Trigger: Walk into the bathroom. Insert: Floss five teeth
• Trigger: Open refrigerator. Insert: Do 25 jumping jacks

I think you get the idea. By taking an existing trigger, you can modify the existing routine, and then add another small action step for additional results. Mix well and reap the rewards.

Suggestions: Keep the inserts small and make them quick to do. Change bad habits into good ones.

Question: What kind of TRIM Goals make sense to you?