Thread by Shane | Achievement for Soloprenuers

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Most New Year's Resolutions will be abandoned by January 19.

We're 7 days in.

If you want to become a new person in 2022, you need to build an actionable roadmap for change.

Here's how:

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Jan 19th.

It's known as "Quitter's Day."

According to a recent study by Strava of 800 million activities, it's the day you're most likely to give up on your resolutions.

But the problem isn't the resolution itself, it's how you treat it.
In Part 1 we broke down the why & how of an Annual Review process.

(If you missed it, check it out below.)

In Part 2, we're turning our focus to the future.

The clock is ticking, if we really want change in 2022, let's make it happen.

//The Structure//

1 — Define the Vision
“Who do I want to become?”

2 — Uncover the Roadblocks
”What will stop me from becoming this?”

3 — Build a Plan
“What habits, routines, & projects do I need to get there”
//Vision//

Vision is important for two reasons.

Yes, you need to KNOW where you’re going.

But you also need to FEEL what it will be like when you arrive.

Look ahead.

Paint a picture of what your life looks like when you achieve your goals.

Try this...
1. Pick your categories

Borad and general don't work.

Start by defining some categories.

Things like "work, health, & relationships" are okay.

But I find that the more specific I get, the better the results.
For example...

After going through the 2021 reflection process, I realized that my big areas of focus were:

Mindfulness
Investments
Emotional awareness

Write down any area that will play a significant role in who you want to become in 2022.
2. Paint the picture

Under each category, ask yourself:

“12 months from now, what will this area look like?”

In other words, give yourself an example of how a change in this area has shown up in your life.
{Example}

Category: Mindfulness

Vision: I'm sitting at lunch with my friends.

Something stressful is happening at work, Slack is pinging off the hook.

I feel the anxiety cropping up. I start to disconnect and go into my head.

Worry, worry, worry.

But then...I stop.
I remember that these people sitting here are important to me.

I remember that life is happening right now, and whatever’s on Slack can wait.

I feel what it’s like to let go.

Then I’m back at the table.
Drinking my margarita.
Enjoying my life.
That's my outcome.

Getting there is going to be a challenge.

But now I have a north star. I have an actual example of where I want to be.

I’ve experienced how good it can feel to be that person.

This is successful vision setting.

Show yourself what it looks like to win.
//Obstacles//

Look, we know ourselves pretty damn well.

We have a good idea of what might stop us on the road to success.

Instead of waiting for it to pop-up and surprise us down the road, let's get ahead of it.
Under each vision, answer one of these questions:

“12 months from now, what stopped me from achieving X goal?”

or

“Why don’t I currently do/have this?”

Brainstorm on these, be brutally honest.
{Example}

Category: Investments

Vision: Broaden my horizons, play on a bigger scale.

Obstacles: When I get down to it, I realize I’m uncomfortable with risk.

I have a fear of loss & feel like I need to know everything about an opportunity before I get in the game.
Notice how these obstacles aren’t always physical, real-world challenges.

In this case, they’re mindsets.

They are gaps in knowledge.

Different goals will have different types of obstacles.

Identifying them now will allow you to install preventative measures.
//Tactical Changes//

So you know where you’re headed.

You know what might stop you from getting there.

But what tactical changes do you need to install in your life to give yourself the best chance of success?

Habits? Routines? Projects?
Try this trick:

Don’t think about this in the first person.
(”I” need to do X, “I” need to become Y)

Instead, imagine building an avatar from scratch.

What habits/traits/behaviors/routines do you need to program into this avatar to give them a fighting chance?
Here's why this works.

By taking yourself out of the equation, you open up the sandbox a bit.

You free your mind from the creative constraints of your current life.
My brain may deem a change “unrealistic” for me (Shane), but not for this avatar.

This simple thought experiment might surface ideas that we wouldn’t otherwise consider.

Break your answers into the following categories:
Habits & Routines: What needs to be done on a daily/weekly basis?

Projects: What one-off projects will be required and in what order should they be prioritized?

Mindsets & Knowledge: What knowledge needs to be accumulated? What mindsets need to be ingrained?
//Make a Decision//

So here you are.

You know what you want.

You know what you need to do and who you need to become to get there.

Now you have a choice.
12 months is a long time.

Even if you start strong, you will get side-tracked.

You will face unforeseen obstacles.

You may even quit altogether.
What matters now is how you execute.

Your grittiness.

Your ability to adhere to a daily/weekly protocol that’s designed to keep you moving toward your goals.

(If you don’t have one yet, check out this thread on building a Daily Execution Framework).

You’ve done the work. You have the answers.

This process can be revisited at any time.

Nothing is written in stone.

You can always start over, you can always begin again.

Stay focused, remain intentional about how you approach your life. You will see progress.

Good luck.
Working alone is hard.

For tweets on productivity & achievement frameworks for freelancers, indiehackers, and soloprenuers, follow me:
@shane___martin
If you learned anything interesting from this thread, a retweet would be greatly appreciated!

Linked it up below👇

Thanks for reading

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