Work your way to Goals.

What do Jerry Rice, Tom Brady, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant all have in common? Besides being arguably the best in their respective sports and eras, all these guys weren’t afraid to put the work in and they had realistic goals. These guys would work tirelessly to reach their goal of being the best. Most of us only see the glamour of their game winning shots, championships or their records but we don’t see behind the curtain where they would work on their craft all day everyday to make that game winning throw. We all want that glamour but no one wants to put in the work.

As a time has progressed the need for manual work has become less and less. We have more free time now tend to focus more on what is fun instead of work. Why work when you could watch tv?  I have a sneaky suspicion that if everyone thought like that, not much would get done.

If you have bigger dreams for yourself and you have goals then you have to put in the work. Find a passion and work to make yourself better. Study, practice, read and push yourself. Be your best motivator and your worst critic. The guys mentioned in the beginning didn’t believe their own hype and kept working no matter what outside people said.  You always hear about players relying on their God-given ability but not putting in the work to take themselves to the next level.

Working towards a goal and achieving that goal is extremely satisfying. Goals are not achieved by waiting and wishing upon a star. The saying goes “Good things come to those who wait”, but they come fast and more abundantly to those who work for it.  While you wait, I’ll grind.

Have a long term goal and small intermediate goals along the way to keep yourself on task. Say you have a long term goal of benching 225lbs. A short term goal would be at every month have a certain weight you need to lift to get to the ultimate goal of 225 lbs. When making goals, make them realistic. Benching 225lbs in a month when you can’t lift a 45lb bar is not realistic and you are just setting yourself up for failure. This is the point where people get discouraged and quit.  This is a good time to enlist someone with knowledge in the field of your goal to help you set an appropriate time frame. That’s where Aesthetic Physiques comes in.  I know that was a shameless plug.

I recently joined a website called Quora which is where people go ask questions and other people answer them.  I can’t begin to tell you how many people post questions like “How can I get abs in a week?” or “How can I lose 30 kg (~66 lbs) in a month?” or my all time favorite “Can I get ripped and not work out and still eat fat food?”.   Honest to God this is what people are asking.

If you are reading this, then you have already taken a step towards being better and I congratulate you. It won’t be easy and there will be many bumps in the road but don’t let it deter you. Don’t be afraid to work, all the best do it. Have a goal and don’t rest until you made it. The internal reward for accomplishing it will be worth more than any external reward could do. If you never have tried it, I would highly recommend it. Benjamin Franklin once said “I am a strong believer in luck and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.”