Today’s guest post is by CEO of Brute Strength, Michael Cazayoux, husband to Working Against Gravity CEO, Adee Cazayoux.

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How often do you look at the BIG picture of your life, and really spell out what you want out of it? How often do you create a clear vision, and how often do you check-in with yourself to see if your actions are in line with that vision?

The problem most people make with goal setting and creating a vision for their life is that they focus too much on the “How will I get there” and not enough time on the “What do I really want?” They start moving in a direction quickly before they even get clear about what direction they want to go in.

I’m the king of this. About 6 months ago Adee and I did a scavenger hunt in the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum). Adee would read about 5 words of the next clue, and I would take off in the direction I thought it would be in and start looking for it immediately amongst the seemingly endless artifacts. This led to two things: 1. Adee being upset at me and 2. Us being pretty shitty at the game. Had I actually listened to the entire clues first and let them sink in I would have found things faster than I did sprinting from place to place without knowing where I was going. This has honestly been a theme for me for a long time. Then I came across the following method for creating my own vision that completely changed what I thought was possible for me in my life.

I highly recommend this to you if you want to challenge yourself to think big and bold, and if you want to get clear on where you want to go. This small bit of planning, and regularly updating this, can and will help you go 10x further in every area of life.

Before starting, I have one big suggestion for you. Make all of your goals BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) that you are almost embarrassed to say aloud. Maybe you want to win the CrossFit Games, marry the girl of your dreams, make 10 million dollars, cure cancer. Huge dreams. If you want any real chance of accomplishing your dreams, then you first have to dare to put it down on paper.

Don't let self-limiting beliefs hold you back here. We have no idea what we can learn, how we can grow, and what we can build in 10 years. Think big.

Here’s the format:

  • Work backwards: Start with the end in mind. Set your 10 year goals first, then move backwards to 5 year then 1 year.
  • Quantifiable: You must be able to measure your goal.
  • Specific: Precisely articulate the desired activity, object, event, or outcome in the goal.
  • Present tense: Write your vision & goals in the present tense. (ex. At the 5 year mark “I have cured cancer.”)
  • Affirmative language: State what you want, not what you don't want.
  • Concise: Use as few words as possible; no justification is required.
  • By-when date: State when the goal will be achieved.

If you find this exercise helpful, share it with a friend! Then as a HUGE bonus, share some or all of your goals with those closest to you, and hold each other accountable to your goals.

Download this worksheet to use as your guide in planning your 2017 goals.

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Michael’s Bio: Michael Cazayoux is the CEO of Brute Strength Training and BIG, two companies that have trained some of the most prominent faces in the CrossFit and Olympic Weightlifting industries. At the age of 17, Michael moved from a small town in Louisiana to Utah for drug rehabilitation. It was that experience that led him to fall in love with CrossFit and helping others through coaching and mentoring. Prior to coaching multiple CrossFit Game athletes, Michael competed and became a back-to-back Affiliate World Cup Champion in 2012 and 2013 with his team, "Hackspack." He currently resides in Austin, Texas, with his wife, Adee, where you can often find him participating in CrossFit, Jiu Jitsue or bow shooting.

Experience more of his knowledge bombs on the Brute Strength Podcast.