Habits 2 Goals: The Habit Factor® Podcast with Martin Grunburg

"I can teach anybody how to get what they want out of life. The problem is that I can't find anybody who can tell me what they want." ~Mark Twain So, what do you want? Last week it was about WHY we should be challenging ourselves. This week it's about knowing/understanding what you want? Consider an all-you-can-eat buffet. You could eat any of the amazing food choices and as much you want, the pro...

"When it comes to personal development, 'Why?' is both the question and the answer." WHY challenge yourself? Why get involved in personal development? Why read 'self-help' books? Why try to improve? Why run a marathon or try to write a book? Only you can know your personal motive. Understanding what drives your behavior helps you produce personal power— self-efficacy— the ability to create a desir...

"With just one short life to live a powerful question smacks us right between the eyes: What obligations come with it?" This week's theme layers nicely on top of last week's MBM, The Bucket List . Obligation : An act of being morally or legally bound; a duty or commitment. A debt of gratitude. While philosophers through the ages have struggled with this question, MG asks the listeners to consider...

"If beginning with the end in mind is important, and it is, than the bucket list exercise takes you to the ultimate end!" This week's theme layers nicely on top of last week's MBM, Motive . If knowing our motives helps to spark the action that drives the formation of our habits and goals, than knowing what is most important in our life, before we die, is the ultimate motivator to get moving! Too m...

"Find the motive that drives the action you desire" Building off last week's Mind Bullet, "Feelings & Focus", MG tackles the significance that your motive plays when it comes to goal achievement and/or habit development. Simply put; motive drives action! The large majority of people remain frozen— stuck by inaction— waiting for ideal circumstances or, too afraid to make mistakes and fail. The path...

"Your emotions guide your focus." A powerful element to goal achievement and habit building is taking control of your emotions and channeling them positively. The emotions you feel at any given moment can either help or hurt your ability to focus. One of the reasons this is important to understand is because so many people set goals that are uninspiring! As adults, we get to identify which emotion...

"Begin something today you'll be pleased you started three or five years from now." When the environment around us shifts so dramatically that it dictates what we can and cannot do, concepts like non-resistance teach us to use constraints positively. No matter the pressure we're feeling, we have the opportunity to refract it towards optimism, hope and faith. (See The Pressure Paradox ). Thus, we k...

"We know from a lot of research that when things get tough, the general rule is people actually tend to help people out...” ~Glenn R. Fox Today's interview brings the return of Season 2, episode #12 guest Glenn R. Fox , head of Design, Strategy, and Outreach at USC Performance Science Institute. For more background on  Glenn, be sure to check out our prior interview . The topic de jour is Covid-19...

"Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.” ~Viktor Frankl This "tweener" Mind Bullet episode centers around how we respond to situations beyond our control—a fitting topic that comes during a time of great uncertainty throughout the world. Last week we addressed the Covid-19...

"A rising tide lifts all boats." This "tweener" Mind Bullet episode was going to be about accountability , coming on the heels of our recent episodes on self-mastery and justification . But as the world shifts its priorities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Habits 2 Goals pivots its subject matter to the idea of TIMING . In a time of understandable stress and panic, what we can do is be patient...

"Becoming aware of how you justify your actions will help you produce the results you want. ” This in-between-seasons ("tweener") Mind Bullet episode was inspired by last week's episode on Self-Mastery as we dive into the idea of justifying our behavior . We learned last week that "Habit is the most imperious of all masters," meaning it will dominate our lives, with or without our permission. The...

"Habit is the most imperious of all masters. ” ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe On this in-between-seasons ("tweener") Mind Bullet episode we examine a subject we've touched on but never fully explored: self-mastery . Self-mastery is simply the ability to take control of your life without being blown off course. Your body is the servant and not your master .  Self-mastery ties into the idea of challeng...

"No one told you when to run, you've missed the starting gun. ” ~Pink Floyd On this in-between-seasons ("tweener") Mind Bullet episode we tackle a subject first brought up in the season 6 episode The Future : the moment is now . How many times have you heard a comment like, "Now is the defining moment of our time," in terms of an election or another big current event? But there's more to it: Now i...

"Desire is the most important element of habit and skill development, not streaks. ” On this in-between-seasons ("tweener") Wednesday Mind Bullet episode we discuss the subject of streaks .  Many people confuse and misinterpret the connection between streaks and habits. Streaks are something you do every day, and we often think we have to do something every day— have a streak —to develop a habit....

"If people knew how hard I worked to gain my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful after all.”  ~Michelangelo This Frequently Asked Friday ponders a common theme: Should I work hard , or should I work smart ? Common wisdom implores us to work smart , not hard. But like so much of the thinking we encounter here at Habits2Goals, this is another example of dichotomous thinking.  Working smart first...

"You have two lives, and the second one begins when you realize you only have one. ” ~Confucious This special Mind Bullet Wednesday is inspired by the above quote about coming to the awareness of life as a precious and fleeting gift. This kind of awakening usually happens after a few decades of living. We leave behind our autopilot, mindless existence and move to the clarity and understanding that...

"The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life."  ~ Muhammad Ali  Today's Mind Bullet Monday tackles a concept that spans the human journey of growth and change: evolve . What sparked this episode was remembering Kobe Bryant. When he started in the NBA he was young and brash, but he evolved. He entered the league as a talented athlete and exited as an e...

"Conscious breathing is my anchor.”  ~Thich Nhat Hahn Today's Frequently Asked Friday (FAF) picks up where last Friday's Mindfulness vs. Habit episode left off, exploring the significant role habit plays in mindfulness. To recap, an acquaintance "thought leader" asserted that he didn't believe in habit; he believed only in mindfulness . In the episode, we described at length how this is dichotomou...

"You're only going to know how mentally tough you are, and what your limits are, by testing yourself. ” This bonus sixth episode continues where episode 5, Mindset, left off, answering the critical question: How do I develop the GRIT mindset that will lead to success ?  The first step toward creating a success mindset is to take control—grab the wheel of your mind. One way to do this is to practic...

“You are the programmer... you are responsible. Write the program. ” ~Stephen R. Covey Today's Mind Bullet Monday explores the idea of being programmed, a topic inspired by the Gay Hendricks book, The Big Leap . In the book, Hendricks discusses a coaching client who had a difficult time making changes because she had been "programmed" for many years to do things a certain way. This applies to all...

"Use mindful, intentional, thought to forge the habits that will then serve you subconsciously.”   Today's Frequently Asked Friday (FAF) addresses a common question and a confusing concept: What role does habit play in mindfulness? This question sprang from an offhand comment by a "thought leader": " I don't believe in habit, I believe in mindfulness. " First of all, this falls into the trap of di...

"Begin with a grit mindset that constitutes healthy habits of thought. ” Episode #5,  the final chapter of our 2020 Vision & Wellness series, is all about mindset. Mindset is critical because it's your mindset that will help you recalibrate when obstacles throw you off track.  Just as we have behavior habits , we also have thought habits . We rehash the same thoughts from one day to the next, and...

"Bring your energy to the here and now. ” ~Roz Savage For this Mind Bullet Monday, we explore the idea of taking things one stroke at a time. A little backstory: Eco-activist Roz Savage wrote the foreword for The Habit Factor after using the app to reach her goal of rowing across the Atlantic Ocean (she subsequently rowed across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as well).  When discussing with a frie...

"Many successful people get up before 6 am in the morning. They have rituals. They exercise, stretch, organize their day, and walk through that series of rituals.”  ~Brian Tracy Today's Frequently Asked Friday (FAF) tackles a basic yet important question: What's the difference between habits and rituals? A ritual is simply a series of habits. For example, your morning ritual may consist of healthy...

"If you're not tracking you're slacking! ” Episode #4 in our 2020 Vision & Wellness series brings us to the all-important concept of tracking our behaviors to form good, supportive habits of our goals! After many thought exercises in the first three episodes, we find ourselves here, diving into the mechanism that bridges the gap - from vision to reality. In this episode, MG shares a handful of rea...