03 Mar So, You Have Reached Your Goal. Now What?
Two weeks after winning Super Bowl 50, I knew I had to get off the couch. But I literally had no reason to move. I had nothing to prove, no one to impress, and that was the problem. I was woefully unprepared for achieving my goal. In talking to Olympic champions and business leaders who got their buyout, I have realized how many of us, once we reach our goal, have no idea what to do.
So, two weeks after Superbowl 50, I decided to take a risk. The next day I found myself at 8:00 in the morning in a Series Six licensing class learning about financial vehicles.
Was I going to use it? I had no idea. Did I want to do it? Absolutely not.
After you reach your goal, it can be hard to know what to do. Here are common themes that help figure out the next step.
Move
Literally, move your limbs!
What can you do once you have achieved everything you set out to do? The first thing you have to do is move. I sat on the couch the night before I had to go to my Series Six class, and I thought, “I’m not going. I do not need to go. I do not want to go.”
Then I looked down after I stood up from the couch, and I saw that I created a crevice in the couch cushion that I had been lounging in for weeks. At that moment, I realized that I could not make this crease any deeper. I cannot move to another side of the couch to make another one. I have got to step outside of this house.
I did not care what direction it took me, but I do know that knowledge never goes wasted. I like finance. I like money. I want to learn more about money.
So, I went to the Series Six class the next day. Before the class even started, three people had already recognized me from the Super Bowl 50 Broncos team. Each one had the same question, “What are you doing here?”
I gave each of them the same answer. “I have no idea.”
The look of shock and dismay on their face was comical, but I knew I was in the right place.
After you achieve your goal, do anything. But definitely move and keep moving.
It will be fantastic when you accomplish your goals. It is incredible when you sell your company. It is impressive when you get the job you want, the salary you want, the vacation that you have always wanted to take.
But just because you got there, you can not stop. Move in any direction. I literally told myself to move in any direction as long as it was not back on that couch.
Do Something Shockingly Different
Number two is to do something shockingly different. I am not saying just something shocking to you. Do something that will shock others. It could be as simple as trying a yoga class, martial arts, shooting, or learning a new language.
I recently talked to a sales consultant who, after achieving his goals and his aspirations in the consulting world, said to me, “Ryan, I went to China to learn Kung Fu for 30 days.”
“Wow.”
“Exactly,” he responded, “No one expected me to do it. Even I do not know why I did it, but I had to do something.”
There is no better time to try something new than when you are already successful. You can do no wrong. You can feel no pain in failure because you have already achieved your success. So do something shockingly different.
My own shockingly different plan is to start to learn Mandarin by the end of 2020.
Why? Because this is shockingly different than anything I am currently doing. Will I use Mandarin in broadcasting? No. Will I use Mandarin in my speeches to companies and corporations? Maybe not, but when will I use it?
I already know the benefit of doing something shockingly different, not just in my routine and my life. But your own shockingly different something must demonstrate that you are willing to take a new risk and try something completely different than you have ever done before.
Do something shockingly different.
Build a New Plan
One of my former teammates is opening a ‘Christian Brothers Automotive’ auto shop. A millionaire I know started a podcast after selling his business. An Entrepreneur I know started a workout facility for moms equipped with daycare. Another successful person I know wrote a book. Each did it by creating a new plan.
The last thing to do after you have achieved your goal is to build a new plan. What does it look like? Even if it’s a farfetched plan, put it out there. Include specific goals.
One of the things I said I was going to do after the Super Bowl was to get into broadcasting. I had never done it before, but I made a plan.
Who do I need to talk to? What do I need to do? How do I need to spend my time? Where can I learn about broadcasting? I included all of these in my new plan.
I knew I loved the impact of speaking. I knew that I wanted to share not just the story of success that I had in my career, but also the failures. I wanted to share the failures that made me successful and especially the failures that none of us talk about to each other.
So I built a plan to become one of the best speakers in the entire nation, and I am continuing to work that plan.
When you have reached your goal, move. Then do something shockingly different and build a new plan.
You can do it. Again.