"Killing Two Birds With One Stone"
- MJ Stock
- Oct 21, 2022
- 6 min read
I hate when people ask what are you going to do in 5 years.. 10 years.. -- what an uneventful way to talk about your life's game plan. This question often evokes confusion and stress given that the question arises - is it actually going to happen or go as planned that way?
Reflect on your past, you probably have not said with 100% confidence: “In 5 years I WILL HAVE a house, or a Ferrari, or I will be the 1st place medalist" .. Because it is hard to be CERTAIN that long term goals will actually happen. Shit happens... money changes... your physical/mental/emotional wellbeing changes... people/places/things around you change.
I often try to rephrase the "I will be/I will have" into: "I am so passionate about blank and I HAVE a 5 year limit to blank”.
"I have a 5 year limit to be a power house at ______ which will give me the outcome of ______."
"I have a 5 year limit to build my credit every day, which will amount to me getting ______."
If you feel like “I have one year to complete X task and now I am stressed/anxious to do it.” That is when you evaluate and say “could I best accomplish X in 2 years? Yes, that’s now my 2 year limit.”
Prioritize. Be realistic. And then …Work your ass off. A large percentage of the time you may even beat the 2 year point and be able to do it in 1 year (as originally desired).
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As we all know, blah blah blah, it's been said before that it is not a straight line from one point to another. But then what is it?
It is passion, it is drive, it is pursuit, it is creating time frame, it is developing desire.
How disappointing to be so matter of fact that in 5 years you'll be something, do something, get something, make something... without the deliberate action it takes. It is not a straight line from one point to another, but you have to MAKE whatever it is that's between the two points REALITY!
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It is what inspires you in the NOW (that means daily) that determines where you go in the next 1, 2, 5, 10.. years.
"I have a 5 year limit to be CEO of ______ company".
What EXACTLY right now is making you feel that way; you enjoy being a leader of a small group within that company?
"I have a 5 year limit to be a Personal Trainer".
Is that because you enjoy teaching? Working out? Writing well structured programs? What is it that you are REALLY, ACTUALLY, enjoying about what it is that you're wanting to pursue.
"I am going to be the manager one day".
What in the CURRENT is preparing you for that and have you found in yourself WHY you want that?
USE THESE SMALL PASSIONS TO BUILD UPON. DIVE INTO YOURSELF TO DETERMINE WHAT IS BURNING FOR YOU IN THE NOW.
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Training at the gym: "I hate Bulgarian Split Squats".
Sometimes saying to yourself "just do it because you'll feel better afterwards" or, "if you keep forcing yourself to do it one day you'll like it" or, "if you do it you'll really like the outcome" IS. NOT. ENOUGH. to break the cycle. BREAK IT DOWN!
What is your favorite/“least hated" section of that movement?
Great, train that!
BECOME passionate about why it is the preferred position; is it because you have control in that section? Because that's where you feel the strongest? Because that's the weakest part and it gives you something to focus on? You like the way it makes your body look?
Often times in finding pieces of what we like AND ACTING ON IT we CREATE an unconscious desire to better THE REST OF the movement/task as a whole.
Example: "I hate drinking my greens supplement (that is good for me) but I just can't get myself to drink it consistently".
What do you love about it when you DO drink your greens?
‘The one thing I love when I take it is that afterwards I am very inclined to drink plenty of water to wash it down. Which helps me reach my goal of staying hydrated. Not only do I feel fulfilled for taking my greens but I am also doing something else which is serving me that I actually WANT to do!
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HOW DO I DO THIS?
How to: create (and sustain) passion in this era: Surround yourself with it.
Let’s run through an example of what this looks like with the hobby of ‘fly fishing’ **insert any hobby OR passion project here**.
(Want to be a better communicator? Better parent? Better reader? Better partner mentally/sexually/emotionally? Better competitor? Better conversationalist?).
Example: You work a great desk job but also want to pursue the hobby of fly fishing? Act like you are a fly fisher.
Go through your social media and unfollow uninspiring things/people. Follow a plethora of fly fishing groups, memes, YouTube channels and stories, people, short informationals. *you may not be doing or putting 100% devoted effort in developing that skill. But when you are mindlessly scrolling you are also acquiring key bits of information that help flood the subconscious mind.
USE SOCIAL MEDIA FOR THE GOOD. STOP filling your feed with 20 year olds bopping around with enticing/funny facial expressions. For what? Is it your passion or desire? How does it serve you? Catchhabits that don’t serve you.
Buy a book on it. You may not even read or like to read. Boom your first initial monetary investment on the endeavor!! You don’t have to buy the equipment in order to officially be invested.
Set that book on your side table, on your counter, in your car, by the bathroom vanity. You will look at it- remember why you bought it and bring back that memory of your passion even in the chaos of your “current reality”. You may never even read the book (not recommended) but maybe you hate reading- well one day when your buddy tells you “you should read more” or you think to yourself “I wish I read more” … well there’s a book…. And it just so happens to be about something you ACTUALLY want to learn about.
Create reminders in calendars. Reminders for what? For your passion project. You don’t have to actually DO something because it’s on your calendar… but if you check it 10x a day for your clients or appointments, and right above ‘Dr. Appt at 3:30’ it says “PURSUE FLY FISHING” on a repeat calendar appointment.. well I bet you you will think about your passion project 10x more than you would have before.
Buy the equipment: even in pieces. Break down the equipment you bought. Buy just the fly fishing rod. Take a week to figure out what it’s made out of and why? What’s it named and who made it? Why is it the length? Why is it thick or thin? What reel could fit on it? How does a reel fit on it? … that leads you into reels…. which will eventually lead you into… lines… which leads you into… flies… which leads you into which fly to choose and how!
Put the train on the tracks, start it off, and LET IT ROLL.
Tell someone. Ask them to remind you to pursue your passions. “Hey how’s the fly fishing going that you said you wanted to get into?” If your reply is “well… I haven’t even thought about it”. It may be a catalyst that helps you stay on track.
Teach someone. Have a friend or family member that might want to know or have interests in your pursuits? You may not be a master at the hobby but you can certainly share what you have learned to a willing and listening ear. This always helps solidify and clarify the information to be more well thought out and structured in your own mind.
Have you ever read a book and someone asks “what is it about?” and for some reason you cannot structure it in a well thought out way to tell them what you have been reading? This is a great reminder that while you are learning about your hobby you think “if I were to take this information and have to teach someone the exact same thing tomorrow- how would I do it/what would I say?”
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Remember, these concepts also apply to the flip side, bad habits. Catch your bad habits. Observe them.Why do you do them? And how are you going to address changing them? If you don’t know… that is when the exploration beings!
Purse knowledge of the unknown.
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With ALL of this being said, it is just “killing two birds with one stone”… with a slingshot.
The slingshot (catalyst) = your passion for something.
The stone = what you ACTUALLY like about what your pursuing.
The two birds = your short term and long term goals.
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