Goal Setting and the 1% Rule

 As the New Year approaches, many of us are starting to think about setting goals for the coming year. No matter what your focus – career, health, or fitness, it’s critical to have the right mindset about how to achieve these goals. 

Setting the big goal

Setting big goals is a common first step to self-improvement. A big goal is a great thing to strive towards. But often times people begin and end here. When they don’t see quick progress, it’s easy to get off track and give up on that big goal. Instead of trying to make big bounds towards the ultimate goal, staying steady with small improvements and building habits can lead to incredible results. 

 1% Rule

Small changes repeated consistently over time can lead to enormous results. This is known as the 1% rule as popularized in “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. 1% doesn’t seem like much, but when practiced consistently it works exponentially. Small changes can lead to a significant advantage over time. If you outwork someone by 1% each day, you’ll be a mile ahead of them by the end of the year. In fact, if you practice this daily for a full year, you will come out 37.78% better than where you started. The key is staying very consistent with your habits that lead to these 1% improvements. Maybe it’s adding some side work into your gym program or squeezing out a couple extra reps in the last seconds of a workout when all you want to do is stop. 

 The 1% rule applies to recovering from injuries too. Gradual daily improvement focused at one of your physical limitations can lead to remarkable results over time. So when setting your goals for next year, remember your big goals are more attainable when you take small, consistent steps all along the way.

Shore Strength Slash Logo

The Shore Strength Slash Logo represents a couple things. It represents making progress, whether that’s healing an injury or increasing your fitness level. It can also serve as a reminder about the small improvements you can make over time and how they add up. It represents that at Shore Strength we strive to elevate the quality of physical therapy for every patient. Elevate yourself towards your big goals. You can achieve remarkable things if you keep focused on your goals and take consistent small steps to get there.