Constant and Never Ending Growth

 

When I think of the leaders I work with they all have one thing in common, they all seek constant and never ending growth. This may look different for each leader depending on their current dreams and goals. 

One thing I have learned over the years is that when you are specific about what you want and you have a made up mind, you will certainly be able to move closer to achieving it.

I have also observed another interesting thing, people often are not specific, clear and haven’t set SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely) goals. I know because I have done it. We get excited and we either rush into action or we simply try to take on too much. 

There are seven main areas that people set goals in. They are: 

1. Physical body

2. Relationship with self

3. Relationship with others

4. Schedule

5. Work, career or mission

6. Finances

7. Contribution

I’ll write more about each of these areas but since the physical body is almost always first on people’s lists, here are some facts from the Center of Disease Control you will want to know. 

Obesity is a common, serious, and costly disease

• The prevalence of obesity was 42.4% in 2017~2018. 

• From 1999–2000 through 2017–2018, the prevalence of obesity increased from 30.5% to 42.4%, and the prevalence of severe obesity increased from 4.7% to 9.2%.

• Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer that are some of the leading causes of preventable, premature death. 

• The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the United States was $147 billion in 2008 US dollars; the medical cost for people who have obesity was $1,429 higher than those of normal weight.

When setting goals for any of these areas you want to make sure you can measure them over a period of time to see if what you are doing is taking you closer to your goal. Say you want to exercise and you leave it at that, most likely that might not get you motivated to get you even dressed to work out. However, if you say I am going to work out 4 times a week at 9 am for the next 90 days. With this one you can measure and assess if this is helping get you to your goal of making working out a routine. 

This can be done in every area of your life. Set a goal/ intention, a timeline and have a measurement system. Pick one area and set one SMART goal. Master that and then you can look at another area to add on. 

Best, 

Manal