Goal Failure Demystified

+ 144 Studies Synopsized

Watch: Powering through Motivational Dips: Re-engineer Goals into Behaviors

“Research has shown that the most effective behavior change from nutrition education interventions occurs when the interventions are behaviorally focused and theory-driven.”

From Goal Setting as a Strategy for Dietary and Physical Activity Behavior Change: A Review of the Literature

Lifehack: Goal Rearticulation

1. Look at your list of New Years Resolutions
2. Take 10–15 minutes to change all outcome-based goals into measurable behaviors
3. Add those behaviors as habits to your Coach.me dashboard

Examples:
Lose 50 pounds in 6 months
Track what I eat in a food journal every day
Do pushups and pullups daily
Sign up for weekly personal training sessions
Start a business — Reach $2000/monthly in passive income
Spend 60 minutes every morning working on projects that will reward me with freedom
Quit smoking
On Monday-Friday whenever I feel like a cigarette I force myself to wait another hour
Save my marriage
Make love to my spouse three times a week
Tell my wife I love her once daily
Start on my master’s degree
Network weekly with the professors in the programs I want to get into
Learn to speak Spanish fluently
Practice Spanish 10 minutes daily with Duolingo
10–15 minutes of conversation in that language
Improve my memory
Do brain training 10 minutes daily
Get a girlfriend
Approach women, I find attractive twice a week
Stop drinking so much
Limit the times I hang out with my drinking buddies to once a week

In the past measuring behaviors was an annoying daily task involving calendars, pen, and pad. If you missed a day or lost your day planner you were in trouble.
My favorite tool for habit quantification, gamification, and application (sorry I wanted to get as many geeky verbs as possible in a sentence) is Coach.me
This is a free iPhone, Android, and web browser app that does an effective job of tracking and motivating you to practice winning habits.
So add Coach.me now, it’s free, takes maybe 2 minutes a day to manage.

Watch: Lifehacking Self Control #2 the Coach.me habit gamification App

Add the habit Hour 1: Empire Building

Watch: Hour 1: The Empire Building Habit

Duolingo — One of the best language learning apps

Duolingo Lifehacker Review: The King of Language Learning Apps

Dual N-Back Brain Training — Enhance your working memory

HighIQPro [Biohacker Review]

Personal Accountability Coaching — Work with Jonathan

Biohacking Consultation & Lean Life Coaching

Please leave a comment letting me know any examples of ways you managed to re-articulate an outcome-based goal into a measurable behavior.

Originally published on LimitlessMindset.com. I’m not a doctor, medical professional, or trained therapist. I’m a researcher and pragmatic biohacking practitioner exercising free speech to share evidence as I find it. I make no claims. Please practice skepticism and rational critical thinking. You should consult a professional about any serious decisions that you might make about your health. Affiliate links in this article support Limitless Mindset — spend over $100 and you’ll be eligible to join the Limitless Mindset Secret Society.