WILL YOU SEE YOUR GOAL THROUGH NO MATTER WHAT THE OBSTACLES ARE?

Imagine this if you will.  You grow up your entire life playing the sport of football and being a quarterback.  You make it to the NFL and end up winning a Super Bowl, League MVP, many records, and are heralded as one of the best ever.

Then you find out that you have to have neck surgery that could keep you out a year.  You proceed to have the neck surgery and then you learn that you will be cut from the team that you have help build and you have been with for over a decade.

What would you do?  Give up?  Call it quits?  Breakdown?

If you are unfamiliar with the story, I'm talking about Peyton Manning, and Peyton used this time in his life to not breakdown, but to BREAKOUT!!!!

Do you want to prove someone wrong and show them that you can get it done when they think you can't? Or do you want to let them win when they say that you can't complete your goal?

Tough times don't last, TOUGH PEOPLE DO!!!!!

Let's get to work.  

MVP Mindset Daily Exercise
1.  Pick a goal that you will require you to stretch and become someone who you currently aren't
2.  Break that goal down into 8 milestones or mini goals that you will have to achieve along the way
3.  Take 30 minutes of action in the next 24 hours to start working towards that 1st milestone

WHO DO YOU LISTEN TO?

Who do you think you are?  What makes you think you can do that?  That will never work?

Do you have people in  your life that are asking you these questions when you are attempting to do something new?

I hope that you don't but it is very likely that you do.  Usually these comments are coming for people who are just looking out for us, but they are also keeping us from reaching our potential.

What would happen if you sought out people or had people that encouraged you and believed in you everyday?

People that will tell you the truth but inspire you along the way.

You need to make sure that you are listening to the right people as our circle of influence will determine where we end up.  Remember these two main points when you think about becoming someone better:

1.  They never made a statue of a critic
2.  The naysayers can tell me thousands of reasons why this won't work, I only need ONE reason why it will work

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise
1.  Take inventory of who you spend a majority of your time
2.  Does it include at least one person that will support and encourage you when you are trying to achieve your goals?
3.  If it does not, you must take the responsibility upon yourself to find this person

WHAT IS YOUR 1%

When we are attempting to change, it may be overwhelming in the beginning.  We look at where we are at now and where we want to go and realize that it is a LONG WAYS AWAY.

It is hard to take steps forward when you can't see the finish line and sometimes it takes all the wind out of your sails.  Yes, I'm talking to you.

In order to help push you towards the finish line you need to shift your focus and try to work on being 1% better than you were yesterday.  So what does that 1% entail?  It means eating one less candy bar, or taking 2 more minutes to stretch, maybe it means practicing two more free throws.

Whatever your 1% is, focus on that and not the entire goal that you have in front of you.  The only way that you are going to finish this journey is one step at a time, so why not focus on the steps that are directly in front of you today.

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise
1.  Determine your main goal for 2014
2.  Break that down into quarterly milestones and write down a goal to be completed by March 31st of this year
3.  Look at that goal and determine what action you can take today, NOT TOMORROW but today, and work on that
4.  Tomorrow, achieve 1% more than you did today

THE POWER OF A STORY?

What do you want to accomplish in the next 90 days?  If your response is I DON'T KNOW, then we have some work to do.  You have to know what it is that you want before you can begin to take action on it.

After you have a rough idea of what you want, then what do you do?  One of the toughest things about goals, is that we have trouble defining what the real life story would look like.  

You may say, I want to be able to run a faster 40 yard dash and that is your goal. 

But that doesn't have any emotion behind it, it is just a statement.  

If you want this goal to happen, you need to be able to describe the story of running a 40 yard dash.  For example you could say:

It is my senior football test day and there are three scouts from surrounding colleges there to watch me.  I am in my black running gear and I come to the line in my stance.  I have rehearsed and focused for the last 90 days for this moment and I am ready.  I come out of my stance lightning quick and I recite in my head the cues to run faster.  I am booking down this lane and I come to the finish line for my fastest 40 yard time ever.

What do you think will excite you more?

The more real you can create the story, the more power it will have.

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise

1.  Pick a goal that you want to accomplish in the next 90 days

2.  From that goal, create the story of when you accomplish it and be as detailed as possible

3.  Write all of those details down and say them outloud while tying heavy emotion to them

4.  Rehearse this over and over again for today then begin to start each day with this same story and visualize it in your head while tying heavy emotion into it

WHAT ADVERSITY WILL YOU OVERCOME ALONG THE WAY?

With it being the first week of the new year, most of us have our goals set for 2014.  Being at the beginning of a new goal and year, we are very motivated, excited, and determined.  But what will happen when adversity hits or when you are faced with a decision to move forward or give up.

The story below of Luke, is a great example of what it means to be committed.  Although, he had to amputate a leg to stay alive, he decided to use that to drive him, instead of give him an excuse.

What excuses are you holding onto today?  What is something that you have been telling yourself internally that is keeping you from getting to that next level?

There is power in decisions.  Decide today that you are 100% committed to achieving your 2014 and you don't care what type of adversity it is that you will have to overcome, that you are COMMITTED to achieving it.

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise

1.  Look back over your 2014 goals and do this exercise with each goal

2.  Ask yourself if you are 100% committed to achieving that goal

3.  If you don't feel 100% committed to that goal right now determine if it is you that needs to change or do you need to alter the goal

4.  If need be, lower that goal so that it is something that you know that you will commit to achieving

5.  Take action today, no matter how small the action is, make sure that you do not finish this day without taking action

THE POWER OF CONSISTENCY

It would be nice to wake up tomorrow and have everything exactly the way that you want it to be wouldn't it?  Unfortunately that is not the way that massive change works.

In order for us to make a change in our life it is going to take consistency.

For instance, say you have the goal, to increase your vertical jump by two inches.  You then determine that you can get there with strength training program that is 10 weeks long and has sessions 3 times per week.

You get off to a fast start training for 3 weeks in row, but then you fall in a  rut and take the next 2 weeks off.  What is going to happen then?

Will you maintain where you were from week three?  Most likely you will not, and you will have to start back at square one.

Consistency is important and it usually boils down to how important the task at hand is for us.  To continue consistently with something, make sure you have taken the steps mentally first, to ensure that this goal is important to you.

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise
1.  Determine what goal is important to you and write that down on a 3X5 notecard
2. Underneath that goal, list 3 reasons of PAIN that will be caused by not following through on this goal
3.  Underneath that, list 3 reasons of EXCITEMENT of how good it will feel when you achieve this goal
4.  Carry this card with you everywhere so when you find yourself not wanting to take action of your goal, you are reminded how it will affect you later

WHAT IS YOUR PLAN OF ATTACK FOR JANUARY

The holidays are a great time to relax, spend time with family, and reflect on what you have accomplished the last year.  I hope everyone had time to relax and enjoy the New Year.

Now it's time to get back in the saddle and start to attack 2014.

Have you written down your goals yet?  If you haven't, and you want a better year, what are you waiting for?  You have to begin with the end in mind so that you know where to start.

The new you is not going to show up at your doorstep, you have to go out and become that new person.

Once you have your 2014 goals written down ask yourself these three questions:

Are my goals clear enough that if I were to tell a complete stranger my goals, they would know exactly what my goals are?
****The clearer and more defined the destination is, the easier it is to see how to get there****

Do I have a plan to look at my goals every single day?
****Your goals need to be on your mind throughout the day because all of the small decisions you make throughout the day will impact your goals****

Do I know what I have to accomplish in January to achieve this goal?  
****You need to know what has to happen in January so you can start taking action now, instead of getting caught up with planning the entire year****

MVP Mindset Mental Exercise:
1.  Buy a new notebook to use to write your goals down every morning
2.  Make a commitment for three days to start every morning by writing out your goals and then review that goal before you go to sleep
****After the three days, you will want to create this into a habit you do every day

CONGRATS TO MSU, GREAT REPRESENTATION OF THE BIG TEN, COACH DANTONIO KNEW EXACTLY WHAT HE WANTED BEFORE THE YEAR BEGAN SEE VIDEO BELOW

http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/92889/video-dantonio-predicted-rose-bowl-success-in-may