How changing my personal goal for the year has helped me increase my motivation and focus
You may remember that at the beginning of this year, I shared my goal for 2022: to wake up at 4:30 a.m. on weekdays.
This goal served me well. For the first couple months, I stuck to the 4:30 a.m. wakeup time and started my day doing the things that help me show up as the best version of me: working out, reading, going for walks, thinking, writing, etc. I established a solid morning routine, and I learned to prioritize the things I need to do to fill my cup so that I can give to others.
After the first few months, I began to realize something deeper: The reason I felt I had to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to do these things is that I didn’t feel I had space throughout the day to make them happen. My days were often packed with back-to-back meetings and events, and my work would follow me into the night. The real solution to my problem wasn’t waking up earlier; it was making more time for myself. That realization led me to take a closer look at my calendar, set boundaries around my working times, and ask the team to help me free up my time. All of a sudden, I had more space in my day, and my evenings were mostly free. I found that I no longer needed to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to fit in the things that help me feel at my best.
While there are still times when I wake up at that time, I usually start my day somewhere between 5:30 and 6:30 a.m., and it’s really working for me. So now, I want to focus on a different goal—one that is really resonating with me right now. Are you ready?
Drumroll, please . . .
I want to feel the best that I’ve ever felt physically.
If you’ve been here awhile, you may remember this goal. It’s one that I set in 2019, when my one big goal for the year was to get into the best physical, mental, and emotional shape that I had ever been in. And by golly, I did it! By the end of that year, I felt like the best version of me.
And then . . . you know . . . the pandemic. Sometime between the second half of 2021 to now, my motivation to exercise and eat well seriously dwindled. I wasn’t pushing myself like I used to; I was cutting my workouts short or skipping them altogether; I wasn’t excited to move my body; and I ate foods that I knew wouldn’t make me feel the best. Physically, I feel so far off from where I was at the end of 2019.
I’ve gained some weight, but it’s not even about that. It’s that I don’t feel my best. Maybe you’ve felt that feeling before and you know what I’m talking about.
For the last few months, I’ve sat here in confusion. How, when I know that something is so important to me and I know exactly what I need to do in order to feel at my best, did I get right back to a place where I no longer feel good?
Here’s where I’ve landed: I think I feel this way because I burned myself out on exercise before my wedding. I’ve also experienced tremendous change in my business and my life, and I’m still navigating all of the emotions and toughness of the last 2+ years, as we all have. I can’t imagine that I am alone here. It goes without saying that we have all been through a lot, and there are all kinds of reasons why we might have let go of some priorities—a lot of which are completely out of our control. And that’s okay! We all have seasons where we feel a lack of commitment in areas where we once had strong commitment. Human, not perfect, remember?
A few months ago, we had a team conversation about this very topic at our quarterly review, and I learned that I wasn’t the only one who was struggling to find the motivation to do things that were once important to me. Others on our team were, too. So we had an idea to start a team WhatsApp group called “Best Us.”
In the group, we commit to doing things that help us feel at our best. That doesn’t just mean exercise; it can be anything that makes us feel better in our hearts, minds, and bodies. We use the group to keep ourselves and each other accountable to the commitments we want to make for ourselves. For me, that was physical health.
Just taking that one step with the group felt like I was getting closer to recommitting myself in this area. After we started it, I signed up to work with a new personal trainer who I knew would challenge me in new areas. I noticed a positive shift in my mindset and in my excitement toward moving my body.
More recently, I decided to challenge myself to run every day for 12 days. The idea came from my stint in 2019 when I was really feeling great: One of the things I did most often was run. Running not only helps me feel at my best physically, but it’s also a form of meditation for me, as I know it is for many others. I find that when I run, I get a lot more clarity on all kinds of thoughts and ideas. I do so much thinking on my runs that I leave them feeling calmer and more at peace.
I hadn’t been doing a lot of running and I really missed it, so I wanted to use this 12-day challenge to get back into it. I told myself that I would run every day for 12 days, but I didn’t have to run a lot. I didn’t set any rules around time or distance; I just told myself to run and see if that consistency and commitment could reignite my excitement and love for running.
My mindset at the beginning of the challenge was very different from when I finished it. Toward the end, I was genuinely excited to wake up and run. I couldn’t wait to get out there. After every run, I would notice how good I felt, and it made me want to do it again the next day. It also had a ripple effect in other areas: I started drinking more water and being more intentional with my food choices. It was just what I needed to light that spark within me again.
I know that working toward feeling the best I have ever felt physically won’t be easy, but I also know I’ll get there, and it will be so worth it when I do.
Before I sign off here, I just want to acknowledge that if you’re feeling any level of what I am and you want to make a shift, I understand that it can be really, really hard to get going again. If you’re in this season right now and you want to join me in getting back on track, please follow me on Instagram (@kristenhadeed) and sign up for my brand-new newsletter, Life Outside of Work (more details below!), where I’ll be sharing my progress, inviting you into movement challenges, and holding myself accountable to my goal. Let’s do this together!
Big hugs,
Kristen
P.S. Looking for a way to invest in yourself in 2022?! We’d love to invite you to join our monthly coaching group. You can find all the deets here!
P.P.S. Have you heard about our R&R Retreat happening on July 20th from 11am-4pm ET? Join us on Zoom, get away from the day-to-day, reflect, and recenter! You can get your ticket here!
WHILE YOU’RE HERE . . .
I’m so excited to be launching my new monthly newsletter, Life Outside of Work! I get so many questions about the things I do to set myself up for success. From my morning routine and workouts to my skincare and even the clothes I wear, each of these things helps me show up as the best version of me each day, and I’m excited to share more of them with you. If you’d like to learn more about what I do outside of work to help me be the best human and leader I can be, sign up here and I’ll see you there!
