Michael Hyatt's Blog, page 6

4 Consequences of Drifting to Avoid

It’s so easy for us to get caught up in life’s current. We start drifting, and we end up in a place we would never have chosen if we had been consciously aware of it. Unfortunately, that’s how a lot of people approach life. Drifting. Caught up in life’s distractions.

Maybe you’re hyper focused on your career, but not spending time with your family. Or you’re taking on more than you should. It turns into a default, and then you move from one overwhelming situation to another with no end in sight.

Regardless of how it happened, drifting can have serious consequences—not only for you, but for those you love who are counting on you. Being aware of those consequences can help you avoid the problem and course-correct now.

Here are four consequences of drifting to look out for and avoid:

Confusion. When we drift, we lose perspective. Without a clear destination in sight, the entire journey can feel meaningless. There’s no larger narrative to provide a sense of purpose for all of the highs and all of the lows. When this happens, we become disoriented and lose heart.Expense. Drifting can be tremendously expensive, both in terms of money and time. We zigzag our way through life far too often. Because we’re unaware of where we’re heading, we eat up valuable and limited resources along the way.Pain. Some pain in life is unavoidable. It’s part of the human experience. But much of it we bring on ourselves. This frequently happens when we fail to plan. For example, without a plan for our health, we can end up running on fumes and getting sick. Without a plan for our parenting, we can end up with estranged relationships with our children.Regret. One of the saddest experiences we can have is living with deep regrets. We become overwhelmed with the “if onlys.” If only I had spent more time connecting with my spouse, seeking to understand them. Or, If only I had been more generous with my resources, trying to help those in need.

You don’t have to get to the end of your life to know that there can be real consequences to simply “going with the flow.” The good news is, you can change course. You can control your decisions. You can live life on purpose. Starting today, even in this very moment, you can start down a new, more intentional path.

Which consequences of drifting through life are you experiencing? And what can you do today to course-correct for tomorrow?

4 Truths for Overcoming Goal-Setting Resistance

It’s that time of year again. It seems like everyone is talking about their goals, New Year’s resolutions, or how things will be different next year. But maybe you’re an outlier. Maybe you feel resistance toward that and, at the most, are only mildly intrigued. It can be natural to feel skeptical, especially if you’ve never set goals before. Or if the ones you set in the past fizzled out.

It could be that you’re fully on board. You’re ready for a change; you want to achieve something new. But you don’t want to do it alone. You want someone to join you on the journey. Someone to provide accountability and moral support, and vice versa. The only problem is, they’re not interested. Not only that, they’re reluctant.

Whatever position you find yourself in, you’re experiencing significant resistance to the process. Here are four truths everyone can stick to for overcoming goal-setting resistance:

Goal setting looks different for everyone. There’s no one-size-fits-all for goal-setting. You don’t have to compete with anyone. And you shouldn’t feel like you have to keep up. In fact, if your goals aren’t truly your own, there’s a chance you won’t follow through. Having a trusted partner or friend go through this process with you can help identify your blind spots and ensure your goals are authentic to you.Goal setting helps excavate you. There comes a time when we each need to do some soul-searching. Because what if you actually don’t know yourself very well? Setting goals gives you clarity about what you want your life to look like and opens possibilities for your hopes, dreams, desires, and gifts.Goal setting cultivates confidence. As you make progress on your goals and build momentum, you discover a new sense of confidence. By leaning into the process and pushing fear aside, you begin to accomplish things you never thought possible. This positions you to want to pursue even more.Goal setting offers a destination. You no longer have to go through life simply drifting toward a destination you never intended or wanted. You don’t have to feel like you’re living someone else’s life. Goal setting offers you a map. It helps you plot a course for where you want to go.

You can get clear about what you want your life to look like and actually make it happen. Don’t let fear, pride, cynicism, or resignation hold you back. If you’re a reluctant goal setter but want to reach for something more this next year, trust the process. The more you do, the more you’ll feel the resistance dissipate. As it does, you may just have your best year ever.

2 Actions to Avoid When Creating Compelling Goals

We all have dreams for a better future—from improving our health to taking up new hobbies, saving up for a big purchase, or traveling to new destinations. To turn those dreams into realities, we set goals. Unfortunately, most people struggle to set goals. There are several reasons for this, but high on that list is a person’s history with goals.

The average person makes the same New Year’s resolution 10 separate times without success. Maybe they lost steam or fell on their face, or maybe they just couldn’t get the goal off the ground and gave up before they really got going. No one wants a repeat of that—it’s a miserable position to be in!

Is the answer to become hopeless and never set another goal again? Of course not. It’s totally possible to break the cycle and keep history from repeating itself. That happens when you know how to create the right kind of goals. But how do you know if you’re on the right track?

When creating compelling goals, avoid these two actions:

Setting comfortable goals. When we’re not sure how we’ll accomplish a goal, we tend to pull back. We mentally regroup, settle for less, and aim low instead. But for a goal to matter, it has to stretch us. That means it has to stand somewhere outside of our comfort zone. If you know exactly how you’ll attain the goal, you’re probably not reaching far enough. Staying comfortable leads to boredom and discontent. On the other hand, pursuing a difficult goal not only increases the likelihood of achieving it, the motivation and satisfaction goes up too. Playing it safe rarely reaps true rewards.Setting delusional goals. Sometimes setting a challenging-enough goal isn’t the problem. Rather, it’s that we’re setting goals that are impossible and fail to align with the rest of our priorities. Our goals should be risky, but not flat-out crazy. If they are, they’re risky in all the wrong ways. They won’t inspire us and, worse, they’ll position us for failure. Setting delusional goals can happen if we’re not honest with ourselves. Talking with a spouse or close friend can help us identify our blind spots. Other times, we can drift into delusion when we put too much on our plates. Having ambition is good. But being too ambitious at the cost of everything else can be a train wreck.

The key to successful goal achievement is to avoid setting comfortable goals and delusional goals. What you want to aim for is somewhere in the middle. That’s the sweet spot. Set goals that are squarely uncomfortable. You’ll know you’re there when you start feeling emotions we typically consider negative: fear, uncertainty, and doubt. Because risky goals are a must, discomfort is a positive indicator here. When we stretch ourselves beyond our comfort, not only do we grow, but we experience the best things in life.

If you need help creating compelling goals, join our live event, Your Best Year Ever. With a method that is flexible, systematic, and proven, you’ll come away with powerful goals set and a plan in place to charge into the new year on a path to success. Register today and get the tools you need to build the life you want.

Click here to register now.

Michael’s Lessons From a Failed Sabbatical

You’re in a period of transition. Things are changing. You’re trying new things but haven’t yet found clarity. You’re struggling to figure out how to make your greatest contribution. How do you find a way forward when things are up in the air? 

How to Find the Balance You Need for the Life You Want

It’s easy to feel like we’re constantly going from one thing to the next. From our tasks at work, to our responsibilities and commitments at home. There are seemingly endless demands on our time and attention. We can only keep up the juggling act for so long. Soon, some areas of our lives will begin to suffer neglect in favor of other areas.

But our lives are more than our work. They are more than our social lives outside of work. In fact, it’s helpful to see our lives as consisting of 10 interrelated domains: spiritual, intellectual, emotional, physical, relational, parental, social, vocational, avocational, and financial.

All of these domains are connected. Each one affects all the others. For example, your physical condition impacts your work; your financial state will affect your social life. To get the life you want, you have to be touching all the domains. Only then will you have the balance you need. Finding that balance begins with knowing how you’re doing in all 10 life domains. It’s the only way to make progress. Of course, it can be hard to see what areas are suffering. Our perspectives are limited when it comes to our own lives. How do you get clear on where you are right now? I encourage you to take a quick and easy online quiz called the LifeScore Assessment.

Don’t let the words “quiz” or “assessment” scare you away. This tool provides the visibility you need and lets you rate yourself in all 10 life domains. It then assigns a numeric value to your answers and calculates your total LifeScore. Afterward, you receive a score-specific report with tips and strategies you can use to improve your score in the coming year.

Maybe you’re in the best health you’ve ever been in, but you’re not experiencing progress in your career. Or maybe you’re pursuing new hobbies and loving every minute of it, but you’re disconnected from your spouse. The assessment will uncover these things and help you determine which domains need the most attention, so you can pursue growth and set goals accordingly.

The future is built on the present. The decisions we make today affect the outcomes of tomorrow. Without a good sense of where things stand now, those decisions will be uninformed and our actions aimless. The LifeScore Assessment provides the insight we need to make significant—and balanced—strides in personal growth. The assessment only takes about 10 minutes to complete. It’s easy and it’s free. Best of all, it’ll give you the necessary visibility to begin your best year ever.

Click here to take the LifeScore Assessment now.

After you take the LifeScore Assessment, you might be wondering, Where do I go from here? The good news is, you can take charge of what you can control. Join our live event, Your Best Year Ever, and get the focus you need to build the life you want. You’ll come away with goals set and a plan in place to charge into the new year on a path to success.

Click here to register now.

3 Truths for When Your Goals Feel Uncomfortable

Having big goals is the only way big things happen. And the only way to achieve big goals is to become tolerant of the discomfort that comes with them. Of course, this isn’t our natural tendency. We’d rather play it safe and avoid failure. That’s perfectly understandable. It’s what’s comfortable.

But inevitably we start to wonder what else is out there, beyond what we know or have experienced. Why? Because each of us is meant for something more. It’s in our nature to explore, to be innovative, and to feel pulled into some uncharted territory in our lives. We just have to take the first step. And it’s never comfortable.

No matter where you are in your goal-setting journey, you can achieve breakthroughs by remembering these three truths.

Discomfort is normal. Fear, uncertainty, doubt, even hating your goals—these are completely normal feelings. Our brains are wired for predictability, stability, and safety. When you venture out of your comfort zone and stretch yourself for a goal, it’s normal to want to call it quits. These feelings won’t necessarily go away, but they don’t have to control you.Discomfort is necessary. Pursuing goals strengthens you. Like exercising, when you first start, it feels really hard. Maybe even painful. But the more you do it, the stronger you become and the better you feel. Who you are changes along the way. So if we’re serious about growing, then we have to pursue big goals that catalyze the transformation process. Discomfort is a necessary part of that.Discomfort is good. It’s only through discomfort that our breakthroughs come. Discomfort looks different for all of us. Maybe you’re setting out to do something you’ve never done before, and you’re scared you won’t succeed. Or maybe you’re struggling with feelings of inadequacy, like you don’t believe you have what it takes to pull this off. However it looks, embrace it, because it sets the stage for the breakthrough you want. The weight of the discomfort forces you to put your nose to the grindstone, to keep chipping away at things until something gives—and it always does.

If you want to experience your full potential, you’re going to have to travel through some discomfort. It sets the stage for breakthroughs. There are no shortcuts, no cheat codes. But the more you do it, the easier it becomes to lean into the tension. There’s encouragement in that. Most of all, there’s hope—for achieving big goals, becoming a better version of yourself, and having your best year ever.

6 Steps to Trade Limiting Beliefs for Liberating Truths

We all wrestle with limiting beliefs. No matter your age, occupation, or role, it’s a universal struggle. A limiting belief is a misunderstanding of the present that shortchanges our future. These might be assumptions we hold about the wider world, about other people, or maybe, hardest of all, beliefs about ourselves.

Some of our limiting beliefs come from previous setbacks or failures. Other beliefs are fueled by the news media, or even social media. And still others come from negative relationships, ranging from friends and coworkers to family and faith communities. Whatever the beliefs are, or wherever they come from, you don’t have to be hemmed in by them. You can trade them for liberating truths. Here are six steps to help you do that.

Recognize the limiting belief. If a belief reflects black-and-white thinking, it might be a limiting belief. Maybe it’s coming from past work experiences or a relationship. No matter the belief or how true it feels, it’s critical to recognize it’s just an opinion about reality—and it’s most likely wrong.Record the belief. This belief might be something like, “I don’t have enough experience,” or, “I’m not good with money,” or even, “I’m not very disciplined.” We all have our own challenges, so it could be anything. Try jotting down the belief word for word. By writing it down you externalize it. You’re then free to evaluate it.Review the belief. Is this belief enabling you to accomplish the outcomes you want, or is it holding you back? Is it empowering or draining? Try looking at things objectively. And be honest. Honest evaluation is the key to freedom.Reject or reframe the belief. If a limiting belief is false, you can reject it. Sometimes it’s a straight swap, like going from “I don’t have the energy to walk 10,000 steps a day” to “I have the energy to walk 10,000 steps every day.” Reframing a belief requires more. Because limiting beliefs often have a seed of truth to them. But you don’t have to surrender to a limiting belief, even if it’s partly true. You can rewrite the narrative. Maybe you think, I’m not creative. You could just accept that and stall out. Or you could reframe it like this: “I’m not a creative person, but I can always collaborate with someone who is.”Revise the belief. This isn’t just about simple affirmations. It’s about reorienting your thinking around a new and liberating truth. For example, you might think, I don’t have the exact experience necessary for that job. Instead you can say, “I have different experiences that will make me a more unique candidate.” The old thinking holds you back, but now you have a foothold for real progress. Be sure to write down the revised belief, too.Reorient yourself to the new belief. Begin living into the narrative of this new, liberating truth. You might not fully buy into it. It might even feel like you’re faking it. That’s fine, even normal. But if you keep telling yourself the truth, over time you’ll feel more comfortable in it.

Every time the old belief creeps up, reject or reframe it, and restate the liberating truth. Do it again and again. The key is to start living as if it’s true. Because it probably is. And the more we live into what’s true, the more we bring our experience into alignment with our expectations. What are your limiting beliefs? What are the corresponding liberating truths?

Bonusode: Join the Inaugural Class of Full Focus Planner Certified Pros

You’ve incorporated the Full Focus Planner into your day-to-day life and have transformed your productivity. But you want to go even deeper. You want to maximize the Planner to the fullest and become a power user. You want to be able to display your expertise to customers, colleagues, and potential employers—and maybe even discover new revenue opportunities. Is there a path to all this and more?

In this bonus episode, Courtney talks with special guests, Michael Hyatt and Megan Hyatt Miller, about the new Full Focus Planner Pro Certification program. They discuss what this program makes possible for you and how it will open the door to a whole new level of productivity, goal achievement, and success.

In this episode, you’ll discover—

Who the Full Focus Planner Pro Certification program is forHow to get insider access to product announcements and testingWhat bonus gifts are on offer for those who register in 2021A new, exclusive community for deeper connection and in-depth training

Resources:

Full Focus Planner Certification

How Gratitude Makes Us Resilient

There’s a widely held assumption that gratitude leaves us feeling complacent. If we’re comfortable with life, we’ll feel no need to achieve more. And also have no need to set goals, right?

But the opposite is true. Gratitude doesn’t make us complacent. Instead, it increases our efforts in the pursuit of goals. There are several reasons for this, all of which have to do with resiliency. And I’ve never met anyone who wins very much for very long without resiliency.

Here are three ways gratitude makes us resilient:

Gratitude keeps us hopeful. Our circumstances often look a certain way, but they don’t stay that way. While they might be bad at the moment, they can also be better. Our life’s stories remind us of that. When we take notice of the distance between where we’ve been and where we are now, gratitude emerges, as well as a hope for what could yet be. Gratitude keeps us optimistic and enables us to keep showing up when life throws obstacles in our way.Gratitude reminds us we have agency. We have the power to act and effect change in our lives. Because a lot of gratitude is about giving thanks for what others have done for us, this might seem counterintuitive. But if we don’t use our agency to receive and act on what others have done for us, we won’t benefit. We express our gratitude when we’re good stewards of what’s been given to us and put it to use.Gratitude expands our possible responses. When we operate from a scarcity mindset, we’re more likely to be reactionary, closed off, tightfisted, or even mean. Gratitude moves us from that into a place of abundance. We’re more resourceful, creative, generous, optimistic, and kind. Most of us know this from our lived experience. In general, we perform better and respond better to what comes our way when we’re grateful.

Regardless of our individual circumstances, we can all affirm resources, blessings, and gifts in our lives. Of course, there are countless things we don’t have or things that haven’t happened but we wish had. But there are also countless things we do have. No matter our past, looking at life through the lens of gratitude helps us rediscover how full the present is. It has the potential to amplify all that is good in our lives.

What are some things you’re grateful for in your life that have recently gone unnoticed?

How to Keep Employees Engaged

Most leaders are good at pushing their organization forward. They’re able to hit their goals, and they might even be decent at profit. But, unfortunately, many leaders don’t prioritize their people. If a leader doesn’t know what to do with their people, morale will be low, people will leave, and the business will suffer. The cost is too great.

Attracting top talent, finding the right fit, and then keeping good employees and ensuring they’re happy and engaged is essential for a stellar company culture. It’s hard work, but the reward is greater.

How do you start transforming your company culture? Here are three strategies every leader can implement immediately to ensure employees are engaged and feel connected to the business mission.

Offer time. People need an individual place to connect with their direct supervisor. Allow 30 minutes to an hour for one-on-ones, depending on the nature of the role and current projects. One-on-one meetings are ultimately about accountability and alignment. They’re a time for leaders to give focused time to their direct reports, discuss ongoing or new projects, and establish expectations moving forward. In the process, these meetings also provide the opportunity for the relationship and trust between a leader and their direct report to build.Offer affirmation. Everyone likes to receive recognition for their efforts. It’s something we all need, and verbal affirmation can be the easiest way to do that. When you notice a team member doing something good, catch them in the moment and tell them right away. Offering affirmation in front of others will also have a positive impact on surrounding team members. Alternatively, there’s nothing like a thoughtful, handwritten note. It communicates both that you care and took the time to say something sincere. You’ll receive more of what you affirm, so begin to slowly develop this habit. When you celebrate the wins and contributions of your team, they’ll push for more.Offer a vision. Employees want to be taken somewhere. They want to be part of a journey bigger than themselves. But if they don’t feel like they’re going anywhere, or they’re confused about where they’re going, employees disengage and slip into siloed work or team-specific strategies that are disconnected from the central mission. You can drive employee engagement by clearly communicating a compelling vision for your company—for your team, products or services, sales and marketing, and impact. When employees feel connected to the bigger picture and see themselves as contributors to the vision, engagement goes up and they’re less likely to start looking for a job elsewhere.

The key here is intentionality. It communicates to employees that they belong, they have a place, and that the organization is better because of them. Which of these culture-building strategies do you need to implement to ensure employees are engaged?