Making an exercise plan.

Matrix Key - Health & WellBeing - Exercise and Fitness - Exercise Plan

"No matter how slow you go, you are still lapping everybody on the couch."
Anonymous

One of my most basic coaching rules is that any result demands an intention, a period of time and some kind of action.  You can see this rule is key to any section of the WholeLife Matrix.  

Intentions must be specific and measurable.  Once you define what you want, you start to create it.  This is a logical process with itemized action steps.  The results from the actions do not always show up the way we envision, but they show progress on our intentions all the same. Unlike goals which require a specific outcome, we only fail our intentions if we quit trying.

You may set fitness intentions of any kind: changes in body mass or size, strength or endurance levels, weight loss, flexibility, improved emotional health...your list will be unique to you and your situation.  

In the WholeLife Matrix, we identify four key criteria for your exercise plan:

1.   Intentions

2.   Variety

3.   Keeping it Fun

4.   Support: Coach/Trainer/Friend

Having set your intentions, consider the other three criteria:  incorporating variety will keep your mind and body alert and aware; keeping it fun makes it so much easier to continue on the days you encounter resistance (and remember that skipping one day makes it easier to skips days 2, 3,4 and so on).

Finally enlisting a second and ideally a third person into the plan will also increase your wins at follow through.  Our mind can be our enemy when we challenge ourselves, and you have a 50/50 shot at talking your partner out of follow through on a particular day.  But when you bring a third person into the mix and form a triad, you have exponentially increased your ability to keep time and action focused on your intentions.

Are you ready to win?

Let's Be Intentional

“We wanted Nike to be the world’s best sports and fitness company. Once you say that, you have a focus. You don’t end up making wing tips or sponsoring the next Rolling Stones world tour.” – Philip Knight, Founder, Nike

We are halfway through January, and it’s time to get serious about your intentions for your business. Have you thought about what you want to accomplish this year? Where do you want your business to go? What do you need your business to do in order for you to have what you want? If you haven’t put pen to paper and figured out your business road map, your intentions, the time to take action is now.

So what is an intention anyway? How is it different from a goal? An intention is a tool that you use to drive the actions you take in your business. It’s a constant presence in your daily operations. Goals are lines in the distant future sand. You either cross over them or you don’t, and often you measure your success or failure based on that one moment.

An intention is more of a living thing. It is the concept through which you drive all your actions. An intention causes you to look at everything about your business that will have to stretch, adapt and produce in order to accomplish it. And an intention encourages you to celebrate all the breakthroughs along the way.

So where do intentions come from?

1. Intentions are future-based. This means they come from an idea about future performance, about where the company would have to be in order to give you what you want. Intentions are not based on past performance, or past mistakes. We create intentions based on what we want the situation to be.

2. Intentions are born from possibilities. No matter what the circumstances are, there is always a possibility for your business. Possibilities transcend circumstances, and are the spark that can ignite necessary change. Intentions come from the ability to identify possibilities for your business.

3. Intentions should deliver what you want. If you want your revenues to be $5mm and for you to be able to take off two months a year, an intention that will only lead to $1mm in revenue is not the right intention. Your intentions must be directly tied to what you want.

4. Intentions are the tools that dictate your actions. Once you are clear on your intentions, every action you take in your business should be an action that will play a role in delivering on that intention. You must remain accountable to that intention. The intention becomes your partner in making the daily decisions that move your business forward.

5. Intentions create access to breakthroughs. Intentions force you to consider new ways of doing things, to imagine what’s possible, to focus on what you need to deliver. When business people are operating in that state of looking at what’s possible, of getting above the problems, breakthroughs occur. You can see that change produces results, and the more often you produce results, the more committed you become to your intention.

What are your intentions for your business? Do you have any? Are they your partners in your daily actions? Will they give you what you want? If you would like some help developing intentions for your business, give us a call. We are masters at finding possibilities where they don’t seem to exist. We’ll help you sharpen the tools that will create change in your business in 2011 and set you on a path to win the game.

Are you ready to win?

The Business Bucket List

“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do…Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain, American Author

As I was watching the Packers play the Vikings this evening, I was thinking that it would be great to someday see a game in Lambeau Field. And that seeing a game at Lambeau should be on my bucket list. Just then, Chris Collinsworth, the commentator, said “If you’ve never seen a game in Lambeau Field, you should put that on your bucket list.”

A spooky coincidence just in time for Halloween? Perhaps, but it got me thinking that I should also have a bucket list for my business. Those things that would be really great to accomplish, but that fall just outside of “business as usual.”

At Possibilities Unlimited, we coach clients to divide their tasks into three categories, things you’re doing, things you’re not doing, and things you’re never doing. We tell people to schedule the things they are doing into their calendars and get real about the things they are not doing. I guess the bucket list would fall somewhere in that category. So how do we get some of the bucket list items back on to the front burner? We schedule them in time. I’m never going to get to Lambeau Field if I don’t schedule time to go to a game, buy the tickets and show up. It’s the same with your business.

Here’s a few ideas for a business bucket list:

1. Open a branch office.
2. Hire an assistant.
3. Scan old files and clean out file cabinets.
4. Create a business continuity plan.
5. Get a certification in your field.
6. Launch a new product line.
7. Launch a new website.
8. Re-brand your company.
9. Attend an industry conference.
10. Take a vacation.

Take a half hour this week to create your business bucket list. Be sure to brainstorm. There are no bad ideas. Schedule time in your calendar each week to review your bucket list. Pick one task and start chipping away at it. Remember, the only way any bucket list will become a reality is if you find time in your calendar to realize your dreams.

What’s on your business bucket list? Share your ideas with us! We’d love to know what you’re thinking, and your vision for winning the game of business.

Are you ready to win?

What Are Your Intentions?

“Excuse me gentlemen, but what exactly are your intentions?” Tom Hanks as Captain Jim Lovell, Apollo 13

As business coaches, we are constantly working with people to craft their intentions for their businesses. It’s surprising how few people have put serious thought into what they want to get out of their businesses or their careers. One of the first things we do as coaches is drill down to the specifics of what people want.

“I want to make a lot of money.” “I want to work fewer hours.” “I want to sell the business.”

These are all understandable ideas, but they are not specific intentions. You need to think about exactly how much money you want to make. Are you wanting to make enough to retire? To put kids through college? To pay off debt? How much money is enough? Be specific about what you want to make.

How many hours is “fewer”? Twenty-five hours a week? Thirty? And if you want to sell your business, how much do you want to sell it for?

We ask our clients to come up with three big intentions for their businesses. These intentions need to be something unprecedented, something they don’t already know how to do. And they need to be specific.

Once you get specific about your intentions, you can start using them as tools to that will drive all the actions and decisions you make in your business. Your intentions become the top of the mountain that you are going to climb. Stand at the top of that mountain and ask yourself how you got there. What resources did you need to do to accomplish your intentions? More hours in sales? More employees? New computers? Whatever it is, start doing it. Set a timeline for accomplishing your intentions and make sure you have specific and measurable benchmarks along the way to track your progress.

Do you need help creating intentions for your business? Do you need someone to hold you accountable for those intentions? We’d be happy to help. We’ve worked with thousands of people over the years to help them deliver on their intentions and win the game of business.

Are you ready to win?

New Year, New Strategies

"If your team is going to win, you need to play better than the other quarterback." - Peyton Manning, Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts

This is the first of three blogs that will address simple strategies for getting yourself off to a good start in 2010. Some of them are conceptual, and some are activities or resolutions that will keep your business healthy and fit in the coming year.

The first step is to look backward. Take a few minutes to analyze what worked in 2009. Some things to review are:

• Where did you make money?
• What products sold the best?
• What key decisions did you make that improved your bottom line?
• What systems or processes did you change that resulted in greater efficiency or cost reduction?
• What lessons did you learn that you can take into 2010?
• What risks did you take that paid off?

Make a list of things that worked and acknowledge your success in those areas.

Next, look at what didn't work. Did you have employees that didn't function as a team? Did you have expenses that trended sharply upward? Where did you lose money or time? Make a list of these things and rank how they impacted your bottom line.

Once you have a handle on what worked and what didn't in 2009, it's time to look forward and make a comprehensive plan for 2010. Here are some key questions to ask yourself when developing your winning strategy:

• What is your primary goal or company directive for 2010?
• What is the biggest challenge your company faces in the coming year?
• What is your sales target? Your net profit target?
• What percentage growth are you after?
• Are you ready to commit to your company's plan? What does being committed to that plan look like?

There are bound to be questions that are germane to your particular business or industry. make a list and be honest with yourself about possibilities and challenges that you face. Consider working with a business coach who will hold you accountable for your intentions and keep you on the path to winning results.

Next in the Series: Winning Stories from 2009

Are you ready to win?