Are You Still On Track For Your 2008 Goals?

Today is the 43rd day of the year.

I know because it’s the eve of the 44th day of the year (one of my favorites) and because I have to do 43 push-ups. The result of a suggestion by The Brewmaster that we do one push-up for every day of the year. So, January 1, you do 1 push-up. On the second you do 2, then 3, then 4, etc. If we stick with it we’ll be doing 366 on December 31. That will be fun.

Elements of a good goal

For some reason I like goals like this. Probably because it has all the key elements of a good goal.

1. Measurable. You know exactly how many push-ups you have to do for the day. Plus, you can look back and see how you’ve done.

2. Progressively harder. To complete the goal you have to do a little bit more than the day before. This isn’t crucial in a goal as it’s not a feature of something like the joggling streak goal, but it does add to the appeal.

3. Do something every day. Goals that you have to think about daily are harder to fail at than ones you only do occasionally. This is primarily because it’s harder to forget about something that becomes part of your routine. My push-ups are done almost every morning before I get in the shower. If I don’t do them I have this nagging thought in my head the entire day reminding me “do your push-ups”, “do your push-ups”. I just do them to get the little man inside my head to shut up.

4. Amusing / Ridiculous. There is something about ridiculous goals that are particularly appealing. Perhaps because they make the most interesting stories. Or maybe because they make people wonder “Why?” People rarely seem satisfied by my selection of answers, “Because it amuses me”, “Because I want to”, of “Because I’m just curious.” They seem to think more is required. But really, all things in life can be boiled down to a single reason

Because I just felt like it

Goal progress review

Today is a good time to reflect on how your 2008 goals are going.  This is just about the time when most people have forgotten about them.  Have you?

I’ve made good progress on many like hat balancing, running minutes, distance, juggling time, joggling sessions, pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, weight loss, inches around the gut loss, etc.  But I’ve also let a few things slip like planning dates with my wife, reading books, sending birthday cards to friends, calling my mom, playing the piano, etc.

To accomplish these things I’ll have to regroup and revisit my plans.  Achieving your goals is not always easy.  Only through frequent reflection can you ever hope to remember and achieve them.

Ok, now I’m off to do my 43 push-ups.   I have to report that they are getting harder.  Yesterday was the first time I wasn’t able to do all my push-ups without stopping.  I’m blaming it on the fact that I did my handstand workout just before doing the push-ups.

That was hard.  Don’t do that.