Pat and Dan discuss how “The Prisoner’s Dilemma” can help you get focused with your fitness efforts and achieve more results in less time. Live QnA to follow.
Psst… Be sure to checkout our sponsor Sarah Busse, who designs beautiful websites from a SMART marketing perspective at https://magdalenedesignco.com/
Focus Your Fitness Efforts with The Prisoner’s Dilemma w/ Dan John
The Two Numbers Goal Sheet
I’ve been goal setting my whole life. I’ve set some lofty goals and achieved them. In the ninth grade, I told my sister, Corinne, that I wanted to throw the discus for Ralph Maughan at Utah State University.
A few years down the road, my Dad yelled up to me from the downstairs that a coach was on the phone.
“I’m Ralph Maughan from Utah State University and I would like to offer you a full-ride to compete for our track and field team.”
Sure, of course, I haven’t achieved all my goals. I was never an Olympian. I never did get that Doctorate…well, the school closed down that I was attending so that gives me an excuse.
For me, I have to be careful about how I set goals. I tend to achieve them. My father, “Dad” in the little story above, had a funny curse:
“I hope you get everything you want.”
Oddly, when people get what they want it often makes life worse. I could bore you with stories from my students, my friends’ kids and probably a few celebrities but the cliches of someone having everything and yet having nothing makes for good holiday movies.
I have copious notes from listening to Earl Nightingale’s advice on goal setting. “You become what you think about” was Earl’s summary of practically everything in life. What I learned in psychology class seems to support this insight. We were taught about the Reticular Activating System and the example I learned that day is still amazingly true:
When you buy a red car, suddenly you see red cars everywhere.
You will also notice pregnant women everywhere when you or someone close to you is pregnant.
When I flip through a book, I see discus throwers and weight lifters. I picked up a Reader’s Digest in 1972 and my eyes popped on a discus thrower. That’s the RAS…at least my poor interpretation of it.
When I started the Atkins Diet, I found two people currently doing the diet. I seem to find materials on fasting everywhere I look.
It seems we rewire our brain exactly like Nightingale taught us: “You become what you think about.”
His goal ACHIEVEMENT system…any idiot can set goals, few, it seems, can achieve them…was fairly simple:
Each day, one takes a piece of paper and writes out ideas about how to achieve this goal. Thinking, as many of us discover as we interact with other humans, is underappreciated and, sadly, rarely attempted. This little exercise of writing out ideas has served me very, very well.
Derek Sivers, author of “Hell Yes or No” and the founder of CDbaby, has a great point in his book, “Anything You Want:”
For your business, have two numbers. He had one number for the setup fee he charged and another for handling the CDs. Two numbers. Massive business. Massive profit.
I have found that this “Two Numbers” approach to be absolutely brilliant in my goal setting approach. I use both the two numbers and Earl’s daily ideas practice. Let me share with you what I am doing now.
First, I want to lift in the 96 kilo class. So, I have to get down a bit more. As a reminder, I have already lost 16 kilos/35 pounds and I want to lose another six kilos/13 pounds. Sure, I can just stop eating.
Or I can become what I think about. There are better ways to lose bodyweight. Here is one day’s thinking assignment:
O lifting at 96 Kilos
Use the national website more
Longer fasts
More walking
Train the Hooper Bar more
Plan for bigger meets
Email local coaches
Get Hotel for PHX
Take fasting more seriously
More coffee!!!
Increase the walks…listen to Podcasts on walks.
List of Five:
Coffee
Vitamin D
Run/Walk more
Nuts/Seeds
Meditate
Oddly, I have already done most of this list. My other goal is to really expand the readership of danjohnuniversity. So, here you go:
Improving the Site
Ask for more help
Hire someone to advertise
Push the site more.
Follow up on the article requests
Hill Sprints first
Spend more time on DJU forum
Write more but Podcast live more too
Review Derek’s work again
More Earl Nightingale
Again, most of this…and you can see it in this little writing…has been done!
The two numbers goal sheet, my daily practice on thinking about my two most important goals, has been the MOST effective goal system I have ever used. For the record, I have invested in workshops, books, CDs, online courses and hired consultants to get me better at goal setting.
For goal ACHIEVEMENT, there is nothing better than the Two Numbers Goal Sheet. Earl was right: you become what you think about. Derek is right: two numbers provide clarity.
For me, this has become a gamechanger.
Questions
“You become what you think about” is the foundation of Earl Nightingale’s approach to success.
True
One could easily have dozens of goals and achieve them all.
False
It could be true; I have just never seen it happen.
Once most people begin using their brain (thinking), the steps of achieving a goal seem to begin to get finished.
True
Related Episodes
The Pat Flynn Show
If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean the world to me if you could subscribe to, and leave a review for, The Pat Flynn show on iTunes HERE or Stitcher HERE.
Reading your reviews and hearing your feedback is what keeps me fired up to make The Pat Flynn Show happen. Thank you!