Happy New Year! I hope you had a joyous holiday and are ready for 2017. I’m off to a flying start, thanks to the folks who joined me for the 2nd Annual Resolution Invitational. These folks demonstrated why it’s good to be a Wannabe.

I’m a Wannabe. I wannabe more than I am today. That’s why I gathered like-minded people to help me plan my future.

I assembled a great team – Don, Terry, Ed, Robert, Peter and Nicole. We gathered around my dining room table (five in person, two online) and together we celebrated 2016. All our struggles and all our wins. It was a powerful exercise.

Powerful because we tend to forget most of what happens to us each year. When we reflect on our success despite all the adversity we face, it gives us the strength to wannabe more than we are today.

The Science Behind It

Then we studied the behavioral science of setting and accomplishing goals. How Self-Efficacy (your belief in your ability), an Inner Locus of Control (believing you control your outcomes), and the Hope Theory (that we’re not on a doomed planet hurtling toward the sun) are the critical qualities we need to succeed.

Yes, there is a scientific path to your dreams. And a surprising amount of it has to do with belief. What we believe about the world, what we believe about ourselves, what we believe is possible.

Benjamin Hardy, a blogger I follow, posted a brilliant article on this last week. I couldn’t not use it for our Resolution Invitational, and I highly recommend it for you at home.

The Vision

Next we closed our eyes, let our minds wander, and thought about the awesome things we want in our lives this year. We tried to see, in our mind’s eye, us doing and having the things we desire.

Visualization is a powerful tool for us Wannabes. It programs our subconscious (our higher selves, third eye, Godhead, thingamabob, whatever you want to call it) to move toward our desires.

Seeing is believing, but this is seeing without your eyes. Seeing with your mind and your heart. This is how you go from Wannabe to BE.

Because if you can see it, you can believe it, then you can feel it.

And if you can feel it, you can definitely do it. Then you will BE it.

The Mechanics Of It

There are many little actions you need to perform over a period of time to achieve a goal. So you break down your goals to little daily behaviors. Create a list of 8-10 behaviors that will get you to your goals over time.

So if you want to lose weight, you list the specific diet and exercise behaviors you need each day. Like x amount of water, and x minutes of y type of exercise. You also list negative behaviors you don’t want to perform – like bingeing on sugar or Nacho Cheese Doritos.

Then you rate yourself on each behavior, every single day, right before you go to bed. Shouldn’t take more than 2 minutes.

You ask yourself, “Did I do this today?” If ‘yes’ you score one point for that behavior. If ‘no’, you get a zero and have to ask yourself why. Did I forget, did I try but fail, or did I not care enough to make the effort?

After a while you’ll build some momentum around this. Your brain will remind you throughout the day that you still need to do something to earn a point. I know this sounds nuts, but it totally works, and this is where it gets exciting.

From Wannabe to Been There Am That 

The mere act of measuring your daily behavior will cause your behavior to improve. When you score yourself each day you’ll get better results, feel good about yourself, and start having more fun.

Because you’ll be on your way from Wannabe to Already Am.

I start off each year with this scorecard and update it every night. When I score well I feel good and encourage myself to keep it up. When I end up with zeros, I don’t beat myself up. I revisit the goal and ask myself whether or not I really want it.

If I still believe that goal is worth pursuing, I look at how I’ve broken down the behaviors.  Maybe something needs to be tweaked. I re-evaluate and adjust as I go.

And Maybe Next Year…

So far I’ve scored 9 out of 10 points each day this year. I’ve already lost a few pounds and I’m feeling strong, committed, and on purpose. This Manic Impressive system for goal achievement has done wonders for this disorganized, undisciplined Wannabe.

If you’re serious about your goals this year, I’ll help you develop a daily scorecard for yourself. Just write ‘Scorecard’ in the comments section and I’ll hook you up.

And maybe you’ll get a seat at my dining room table December 31, 2017, in person or online, for the 3rd Annual Resolution Invitational. You can set yourself up for a fantastic 2018 and join our growing team of Wannabes…