I was recently asked what my goals are for the next 5 years.  This is a question that always makes me go deep into thought and look back on my life and where I am now.  This is a great question everyone should ask themselves from time to time.  Not only does it help reveal the bigger picture of achievement for you, but also is a good wake up call for those who may be just living day to day without any real vision.

This last week was a tough week for me.  I recently experienced some loss in my life.  It is never easy to lose a loved one but I recognize that it’s a part of life we all must deal with.  It has also been an extremely difficult week at the gym with my lifts.  It’s as though I am actually getting weaker compared to where I was a year and a half ago.  So some frustration and sadness had already set in.  When I was asked about my goals, I couldn’t help but reflect on my life of where I was now, and also on things that have happened in the past to question whether success was in the cards for me.

To give a little background on me, I am currently 35 years old and have had a job as a personal trainer for the last 12 years.  During that time I have always been an ‘independent contractor’, which means it was up to me how successful I would be.  I have never worked for a ‘company’ who had paid vacations, bonuses or raises, or medical insurance.  I’ve had my own business now for the last 2 years, and have recently relocated to California over the last year to pursue more opportunity in the fitness field.

I have always had goals growing up.  I come from a family who is very successful, so there is a lot of pressure to follow in those footsteps.  While I was in grade school, I truly believed that I would be a professional basketball player in the WNBA.  This may seem a little far fetched to most people.  But it seems as though most of my goals are on the extreme side.  But as they say, ‘If you dream it, you can achieve it….”   I would practice outside in my driveway for hours, imagining making the final ‘winning shot’ time and time again. I would spend countless hours watching every film on Michael Jordan that I could get my hands on, while my summers were spent attending every basketball camp that I could.  I had hopes of getting a full athletic scholarship to a Division 1 college, and then move on to play basketball as my ‘profession’.  Throughout grade school and into high school that was always my dream and goal and I never lost sight of that. I now know that reaching your goal is hard work.  Even if the effort is there, it’s not always guaranteed.  I wasn’t even close of reaching my goal.  I ended up going to a Division 3 college with no athletic scholarship, and wasn’t even considered to be invited to ‘try out’ for the Cleveland Rockers. 

With reality setting in, it was time to have a new goal.  During college I become more serious about fitness and decided to make that my major.  I was always good in school and had willingness to learn and do well.  I would read every magazine I could about fitness (and still do) and would soon learn a lot about the fitness models I saw and was able to recognize the many professional competitors by name. I soon had this urge of wanting to be seen as a regular on those pages and began to think that this would actually be something I could excel at. Not only did I have the knowledge to get myself in great shape, but I also had the dedication and time to put forth the effort of training to get to where I needed to be.  I always thought how amazing it would be to be paid to workout, with an end result of looking great and be featured in publications.  My new goal was to be on the cover of one of those magazines and have this become my new ‘profession’.   Again, my goal was not met.  That is not to say I didn’t achieve it because of lack of effort.  I worked out day after day, training sometimes twice a day.  I’d wake up early to be at the gym at 5:30am, and I would prepare my meals a week in advanced.  Being the age that I am at now, I know that it is too late for me in achieving this goal.  I’ve learned to let go, but still can’t help but feel discouraged by my failed aspirations.

With 2 different goals now unattainable, it was time to set out on a new goal.  This has led me to California and where I am today.  I am a huge fan of the TV show ‘The Biggest Loser’ and admire the trainers on that show.  Being in the fitness industry, it is not hard to relate and I am thankful for the opportunity to work with individuals to change peoples’ lives for the better.  Watching the show tends to make me reflect on my own success as a trainer.    I know that I am equally, if not better, than some of those trainers on that show.  This is not to say I have a big ego or that I go around bragging this.  I really do believe that my OCD in learning about everything in my field, along with my experience has set me at a different level than other trainers.  My new goal is to be as successful as ‘Bob Harper’.  It’s hard for me to know that they hold the same profession as me which has led them to a very successful and stable life, where I live my life paycheck to paycheck with hopes of having full time hours someday.   I know that it only takes that ‘one client’ to have a breakthrough in your career.  I just have to believe that the 3^rd time is the charm.  Even though the outcome of this ‘new’ goal is yet to be determined, I am hoping to change the pattern of my past. 

If this goal of mine does not work out, I have others that are ‘backups’ just in case.  Several of my smaller goals are to have one of those giant pictures of me on the wall in Lululemon.  I would settle for my picture on a billboard or building in LA.  Either one would be just fine.  You may wonder what my obsession is about this.  For me it signifies that others have thought so highly of you that they want to share you with the world for others to recognize your talent as well.  I would also like to work for Crossfit HQ in the near future, hopefully before I’m 40.  I can’t think of anything better than being able to travel and teach others about Crossfit.   There are days and weeks where I get discouraged and frustrated.  This past week was one of those.  I am thankful for the friends and family I have who are supportive of me and know when I need to hear those words of encouragement.  With the New Year right around the corner, it is never too late to set some goals and get ahead.  So I ask you, where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?