You can apply the techniques in this book to your job on a day-to-day basis or, as you read in Chapter 2, to set and reach a goal that is meaningful to you. Shortly after the first edition of this book was published I worked online with 30 people around the world, coaching them in using the methods you’ve just read about to help them reach their goals in a period of 60 days. I set a goal for myself as well. In this chapter I want to share with you some of the stories of this experience, including pitfalls and obstacles we encountered and how we overcame them.

If you want to jump ahead to creating your own step-by-step Focus goal plan you can proceed directly to the next chapter, but I think you might find it helpful and inspirational to read about our quests. Because some of the goals were rather personal, people have asked me to use only their first names.

Setting the goal

We had a great variety of goals, including:

• write the first 30,000 words of a crime novel;
• tighten blood sugar control and achieve an average blood glucose level of 7% or better;
• find a publisher for a biography of a nineteenth-century figure;
• organise papers, documents, investment records, photographs in such a way that it will be easy to keep them updated and tidy;
• find a producer for a completed screenplay;
• increase productive hours during the day by 100%;
• explore whether to change careers and, if so, what steps to take;
• achieve a body fat percentage of 15%, down from 18% (that one was mine);
• create 10 new jewellery pieces, photograph them and list them for sale on a website;
• direct a short film.

Of course I encouraged people to set Big Hairy Audacious Goals, but also reminded them that the only person to whom the goal has to be meaningful is you. In my own case, a body fat percentage of 18% is perfectly healthy so there’s no “rational” reason for taking it down to 15%. But I wanted to, just to give me a strong incentive for exercising and to see what it would look like.

The 60-day plan

We used 60 days as a unit of time for reaching a goal or part of a larger goal. It’s long enough to achieve a lot but short enough that you can see the end point.

However, you may remember from earlier in this book that I don’t believe that setting hard deadlines works well unless all the elements are under your control. In the case of reducing my body fat, that was true. By manipulating the amount of exercise and the intake of calories, I could slow down or speed up my progress towards my goal. Similarly, the writer who set the goal of writing 30,000 words over the course of the six weeks had it within her power, although it could mean giving up some hours of sleep or other activities.

On the other hand, the author who wanted to find a publisher for his manuscript could specify what he was willing to do to try to make that happen but ultimately he was at the mercy of the decision of the publishers. For that reason, I encouraged him to think in terms of what form his efforts would take and to have a Plan B in case he didn’t find a publisher.

Being alert

One thing participants noted is that when you begin to target your thinking towards your goal, all of a sudden opportunities for moving closer to your desired outcome seem to pop up out of nowhere.

To be sure that you’ll spot them, it’s useful to make a list of the kinds of opportunities you’d like to have, because that will further open your mind to them. Keep in mind, though, that often they appear in unexpected guises. Here’s a technique the participants found useful:

Every morning write in your notebook, “Today I’ll be alert to opportunities to . . .” and complete the sentence with something that relates to your goal. For example:

• If is your goal is to grow your business, you might write, “Today I’ll be alert to ways that other types of businesses are succeeding”.
• If you’re writing a novel, your sentence might be, “Today I’ll be alert to opportunities to encounter people or places that can somehow add to my book”.

Every evening write in your notebook, “Today one thing that happened that can help me move towards my goal was . . .” and complete the sentence. If nothing comes to mind, review everything that took place – you may find that you nearly overlooked an opportunity.

One of the participants, Giselle, said: “The synchronicity thing came at a great time! I believe in this – and have a practical method of applying it. At night I write out in full a question or issue that I want to deal with. It’s amazing how answers appear the next day in terms of a conversation, email, whatever. Of course – as Jurgen says – it’s about preparing the subconscious mind to pick up on what is already there. It’s not magic – but it can feel a bit magical sometimes!”

Obstacle 1: Internet addiction

One of the biggest obstacles that came up was internet and email addiction. Pauline, a stand-up performer, noticed how much more productive she was when these were absent: “I am in Edinburgh attending gigs and doing some of my own and yet I have plenty of time to write (almost as much as I have at home!) for a few reasons: one is that I don’t have my usual unlimited internet access – so am wasting less time Twittering and blogging . . .”

That turned out to be the simplest solution for several participants: going to a coffee shop or other location without wi-fi to do some work. Another alternative was to use a few minutes as a reward after 45 minutes of focused effort. Others found it useful to apply the strategy of checking email only at two or three set times per day.

Obstacle 2: Old habits die hard

Participants noted that while it’s often not too difficult to give up some of the low-productive 80% ways of spending one’s time, it’s harder when someone else is involved. My suggestion: sometimes it’s easier to suspend activities rather than declare them dead. For example, if you’ve been meeting up with someone for lunch every week for years but no longer enjoy it, tell them you’re involved in a very time-consuming project for the next few weeks and need to suspend the arrangement. After that period you can decide whether to reinstate it as it was, change it (for instance, to monthly instead of weekly), or phase it out entirely. Or maybe you will decide to do something different with that person so that both of you enjoy the activity again.

Obstacle 3: Setbacks are natural

Sometimes the energy of starting work on a new goal carries you forward for the first week or two but then there are some setbacks and this can be discouraging. This is a natural part of the process.

For instance, Carmen reported: “I had a horrible day this week, no exercise, dropped my mobile phone in the pool, heat over 30 etc. I found that by taking it slowly the next day, I was able to get back in the groove. A bit of time off and rest allowed me to solve the mobile phone problem and I got some new trees to plant for my home which was great and fulfilling.

I have found that the idea that one might have some challenging days helpful – in watching out for them, being aware and getting back in the saddle.”

Helen described her situation this way: “Some successes and also some failures. For example, last Thursday after I did a terrible job on an important phone call, I was completely unmotivated for the rest of the day. Then, on Friday, I bounced back and was able to write an investor newsletter within the workday, which was record time for me!”

It helps to build in some leeway – for instance, I knew that in the middle of my quest for the 15% body fat I’d be going to Berlin for four days, so I factored in the “cost” of drinking that refreshing German beer on some hot sunny days by not expecting to make any progress that week but intensifying my efforts the week before and the week after. The same strategy is effective at work when you have a deadline coming up and know that there will be periods when other tasks will take most of your time.

In other cases, something unpredictable like getting the flu or being saddled with a sudden “emergency” project will come up. Do what’s necessary, then get back on track. This will be easier if at the start you build in a cushion of at least 25% more time than you think any task will take.

Obstacle 4: The mid-point slump

By far the most difficult point for most participants was the middle. The initial momentum had slowed down, some obstacles had popped up, yet the end was still quite a way away. This is the stage at which it’s really good to have some support. In the case of the programme, it was the lessons and exercises plus the participants’ ability to compare notes and share ideas. Walter reported, “What I really like about this programme is that I feel a power behind me. Kind of a diesel engine that is constantly moving forward (not too fast, not too slow).” Remember, if you don’t have supportive family or friends, find new friends (online or offline).

The mid-point is also a good time to take another look at whether your original goal was on target. A few people realised they’d been too ambitious. For instance, Josh set out to write 50,000 words in eight weeks, which turned out to be unrealistic given his other obligations. Forcing it probably would have impacted on the quality of the writing, so it made more sense to scale back.

Pauline discovered that reaching the mid-point raised some psychological issues. She wrote, “I am painfully aware of the mid-project slump in my productivity and feel it is a mixture of ‘fear of failure’ and ‘fear of success’. One of the ways that I hope to combat this is by just ‘doing it’ and setting my alarm every morning and just getting up.”

Some people were able to stay right on schedule or even go ahead. For instance, Bernice’s goal was to have lots of space in her cupboards and drawers. Halfway through she reported, “This one is 50% done! and more. This weekend we did a MAD [Massive Action Day]. We spent over eight hours on Saturday and five hours on Sunday. Goodwill [a charity] may have to build a new facility to house our treasures. Cupboards and drawers look so good we just stand and admire.”

Whether behind, ahead or right on schedule, the middle is a good time to take advantage of the 80/20 rule again. The way to do this is to jot down in your notebook:

• The three things you have done that have been most effective.
• How you can do more of these (assuming they are still relevant).
• Three things you’ve tried that have not been as effective as you’d hoped. For each one, write down an alternative you are already using or could try.
• How you are going to work the most effective and the most promising methods into your Week 4 schedule.

As the weeks go on, your ability to home in on the most effective methods will give you more and more power to reach your goals. For instance, Sandy, our jewellery maker, reported, “My 80/20 discovery was that jewellery components and findings are selling more with less effort than finished items. I’ll find more sources for unusual findings and components and work with this.”

Walter, whose goal was to sell his screenplay, noted, “It is my impression that it works when I contact people with a personal letter, a short synopsis and a CV (especially – this is my very personal feeling about it) with snail mail. So I will do more of that. My other tactic was to ask my friends if they know someone who works in the film industry. And some of them actually do and so I got contacts to other people I have not known yet or I’ve not thought of.”

The deciding factor: 1,001 decisions

One key thing the participants realised along the way is that making the decision to go for a particular goal is only the first big step and it’s actually the little decisions that we make every day that determine whether or not we achieve it. I call this your “1,001 decisions”.

Your 1,001 decisions happen at the times every day that you have a choice of either moving towards or away from your goal. These decisions are sometimes so small that you don’t even notice them.

For example, if weight loss is your goal, these decisions might include:

• take the lift or take the stairs;
• have a muffin with your coffee or not;
• check that sweet wrapper to see how many calories are involved or just eat the sweet anyway.

If your goal is to get a certain number of words written every day or week, the decisions could include:

• watch that reality show or spend the hour writing;
• when waiting for a bus or the Underground, just stand and people-watch or get out a pad and brainstorm a scene or a character;
• when your alarm goes off early, turn over and go back to sleep or get up and work on your project.

If your goal is to get a promotion at work, the decisions could include:

• go home on time or stay an extra hour or two to finish an important report;
• stay at your current skill level or enrol in a course to develop new skills;
• read escapist books or read books related to advancing your career.

The good news is that when you consistently make the decisions that support your goal, after a while they become habits and no longer require thought or willpower. For example, Helen, who wanted to double her productivity, noted, “I know that when I time myself, I tend to do very well”, and she also got good results from deciding to “Go to sleep early, rather than doing Facebook or other web activities. When I don’t sleep enough, I find I am not as focused . . . which decreases the productive hours.”

The joy of achievement

As well as whatever direct benefits you get from achieving a goal, you will also find that it gives you a boost in self-esteem and energy for going on to other goals. That’s true even if you don’t achieve 100% of your goal. Here are a few of the comments the participants made at the end of the programme:

• Adrienne: “The programme forced me to focus and document my time. I now know I can devote 10 hours weekly to writing, I have a daily exercise schedule (I’ve lost four pounds since mid-August), I finished one draft chapter and have a second rough draft chapter done. So, I would say I’m at 75% success in meeting my goals. I also have a better, more honest sense of how and when I procrastinate. Finally, I’ve developed and posted goals and indicators to carry me through to the end of the year.”
• Nick: “I am probably 60–70% complete on my goal of shooting my short film. Even though I didn’t get it finished I see it as a success since I had previously been planning to do this for six months and didn’t do it. Also the reason why it’s not further is due to outside forces like other people’s availability, so that has to be taken into account. But a shoot date has now been set and the location and crew has been found, so the project is gaining its own momentum.”
• Sandy: “I was unaware of how unfocused I was and how much it affects my results. I’ve made a schedule for my days, to help me stay focused. I’ve made time slots for what’s important to me – exercise and good health.”
• Ben found three publishers willing to publish his completed manuscript, but he came to a new conclusion: “The breakthrough I have made during the last 60 days is to recognise that I shall probably have to publish the book myself, since this is the only way I shall be able to exert the control I want over the quality of the publication.”
• Helen: “What’s most important for me going through this programme is to gain more integrated awareness of my emotional state behind these goals, as well as the technical hurdles of these goals. The awareness helps the ‘hero’ to have the courage to continue the journey.”
• Me: “I beat my goal of 15% bodyfat – the final measurement was 14.75%. More important than just reaching a particular goal, along the way I learned vital information about diet and exercise that will serve me for the rest of my life.”

What’s next?

The next step is yours! If you’d like to find out more about my 60-day Breakthrough online programme, you can read about it at www.jurgenwolff.com, and if you mention the promotional code “Focus bonus” when you sign up you will get a 10% discount. Of course you can also use the next chapter to create your goal plan and go through it on your own.