Predict Your Demise, Hedge

What if I told you that most people already know why they will fail in the future? Would you believe me? Sure, there are some random, unforeseen circumstances that can impede success on a particular pursuit, but as a coach I find that people are much more aware of their reasons for failure then we give credit.

Believe it or not, people are so much more aware of what will cause their eventual demise that we get people to tell us exactly what it will be before they join the gym.  This seems odd, because we want to believe that the things we really want to accomplish could never be derailed by something so clear in our vision. 

If you desperately want to lose thirty pounds, for example, it seems silly to let the things that you know trip you up, well.. trip you up. But, that’s exactly what happens.  

In the ‘Intro Session’ that we complete with every prospective member we ask three questions. The first ultimately guides the prospective student to tell us what isn’t working with their health and fitness. The second question is the one I’m talking about where we ask them, “What might get in the way of you accomplishing your goals here?” And, without explicitly saying it, what we’re asking is, “Why will you quit later?” The third question is ultimately about their goals. 

The remarkable thing is that when we ask people the second question, they can see all of the things that could explain their future failure. “I always seem to let work travel kick me off track,” one might say. And, sure enough, after nine months of life changing training a work trip comes up and they can’t get back on the horse. This begs the question, what are we doing about this valuable insight?

The reason I bring this up is that awareness is only as good as what we do about it. Ask yourself what will get in the way of your goals and then do something about it. You already know how the story will go if you don’t intervene, so it’s time to hedge against all the habits and distractions that history has shown to be troublesome. 

 

Logan Gelbrich   

@functionalcoach