Motivational Strategies Inc. Helping You Engage Your Mind

Get the Results You Want:
The Well-Formed Outcome

By Judith E. Pearson, Ph.D.

What if you could have the things you want in life? Would you want to feel attractive, fit, and full of vitality? Would you want to be a confident public speaker? Would you want to manage your own business? How about improving your relationships with friends and family? What rewards and satisfactions would you enjoy? What habits would you pursue on a daily basis? What would you be doing now, that you haven't done so far? You KNOW the answers. Go ahead and create your dream! Close your eyes and live it. Dream the dream and let the dream become like a magnet that pulls you into the future. Make it just the way you want it. Imagine it in detail. Make it compellingly real. Take it all in and enjoy it. Believe in your possibilities!

Is it worth making some changes in your priorities?

Is it worth the effort to learn some new skills?

Is it worth investing the time and money on yourself?

Is it worth giving up some limiting beliefs and bad habits and excuses?

Is it worth learning how to create a life that you love?

Put What You Want Into Words

Now that you've visualized your future, the next step is to put it into words. Words and pictures are the building materials of our thoughts, emotions and behaviors. Words are the basis of our self-talk---the way we mentally speak to ourselves. The quality of your self-talk can influence your success. Positive, enthusiastic self-talk evokes positive emotions and motivation. Negative, self-critical, or pessimistic self-talk only leads to depression and lassitude. Haven't you had enough of it?

By putting what you want into words, you are formulating an outcome---a statement of what you want to accomplish. Words are the primary tools we use to program our emotions and behaviors, so it's important to select powerful, effective words when formulating an outcome. Why? A poorly-formed outcome steers your brain in the wrong direction, and keeps you stuck. A well-formed outcome, on the other hand, boosts your motivation and gets your brain working toward real results and solutions. A well-formed outcome is especially important when the result you want requires ongoing commitment and extensive lifestyle change---like when you decide to spend more time building your small business--like when you decide to start exercising and eating right--when you decide to get more education.

In the popular best-seller, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen Covey advised readers to "begin with the end in mind." Any endeavor starts with a clearly-stated objective. You won't get anywhere unless you know where you're going. A well-formed outcome is the first step toward success. The concept comes from Neuro-Linguistic Programming, and counselors, coaches, psychologists and social workers use it to help their clients establish and reach workable goals and realize their dreams and ambitions. If you want to make a change for the better, start with a well-formed outcome. The well-formed outcome begins with a simple question: "What do you want?"

Here are seven guidelines for creating empowering outcomes that will strengthen your commitment to making the changes that will lead to a lifetime of personal growth, achievement and satisfaction.

1. State Your Outcome in the Positive

Say what you want, not what you don't want. Instead of, "I hate my job, and I don't want to do it anymore," say, "I want to start my own business, doing the kind of work I really enjoy." If you create outcomes around what you do not want, you are still focusing on the problem, and not directing your thoughts toward the solution. If you think only of what you don't want, your unconscious mind is still creating an image of the very thing you want to avoid, and you will be unconsciously drawn toward it. For example, if someone says to you, "Do not think about a purple tree," what is the first thing that comes to your mind? ---It's a purple tree, of course! Start programming your mind for what you want, because you can never get enough of what you don't want.

2. Make Your Outcome About the Future

Your outcomes are about what you are going to do from now on or in the near future, regardless of what has happened in the past. Although it makes perfect sense that outcomes are about the future, some people continue to dwell on the past, when it comes to thinking about what they want. Statements like, "I wish I had gone to college" or "I should have saved more money in my retirement account by now," are not well-formed outcomes. You can't change the past, so put your attention and energies on what you can accomplish today, tomorrow, and from now on.

3. Create Your Goals Around Your Own Behaviors and Feelings

Only you can create your future. No one else can do it for you. Make certain that your outcomes are about what YOU can do, not about what you want someone else to do. Statements like, "I want my children to behave better," or "I want my boss to give me a raise," are not adequate. Granted, your outcomes could include the steps you will take to influence the behavior of those around you, and you could improve your communication skills to get more cooperation from others. Just remember, you cannot control others, so don't base your success on what they do. Make your outcomes self-initiated.

4. State Your Outcomes in Specific Terms

Our minds code outcomes as accomplishable when those outcomes are stated (and visualized) specifically. Specific outcomes are about observable, measurable behaviors and clearly defined emotional states. Make your outcomes specific by stating when, where, and how often you want them. Avoid vague words like "more," "less," or "some." Instead of, "I want to eat better and exercise more," say "I want to plan my meals, eat nutritious foods and ride a stationary bike at least every other day." Can you feel the difference between those two statements? The second one feels more doable, exact, and real, doesn't it?

5. Make Your Outcomes Realistic and Achievable.

Be careful about overblown or exaggerated outcomes. If they inspire you, that's fine. But if they lead to disappointment, procrastination, and frustration, then set your sights on something more realistic and achievable. We'd all like to make a million dollars a year, run a marathon, and look like some fashion model or movie star, but for many of us, it's difficult to really see ourselves doing those things--or to really know whether those things are possible.

Maybe it's better to channel your energies into just getting out of debt, going to the gym regularly, and losing ten pounds. Make your timeframes realistic. Give yourself sufficient time to plan, learn, negotiate, and implement.

6. State Your Outcomes Without Equivocation

Equivocation is a hedge--it says, "I'm willing to fail," or "I really don't want to." Avoid half-hearted statements like "Well, I guess I kinda, sorta want to take that public speaking course, when I get around to it." Half-hearted statements are not motivating; they make you want to yawn! A well-formed outcome is stated affirmatively, without any hemming and hawing around.

7. Make Your Outcomes Ecological

An "ecological" outcome is safe, realistic for your situation, and doesn't conflict with your needs or values. If you choose an outcome that isn't ecological, it won't feel right. You won't stick with it, or you'll engage in self-sabotage. Don't commit to any outcome until you've checked in with yourself--consulted your inner wisdom, so to speak, about whether you can truly commit to this course of action. If you feel vaguely uncomfortable about some outcome you've decided on, then there is probably some issue you need to resolve--or you may need to modify the outcome. Ask yourself, "Am I willing to do what it takes?" and "Is it worth it?" Every significant life choice carries a cost, a sacrifice, or a tradeoff. Each new commitment you make means there are other choices and opportunities you will forfeit.

Choose Your Chunk Size

"Chunk size" is an important motivation factor in how you define an outcome. "Chunk size" is your perception of whether your outcome seems too large to undertake, or too small to be significant, or just right so that it seems doable and worthwhile.

If your outcome is well-formed but seems daunting or overwhelming, you are thinking too big. Chunk your outcome down to doable steps. Instead of, "I'm going to lose 40 pounds by Christmas," say, "I'm going to lose two pounds a week, by following this daily meal plan."

If your outcome is well-formed but seems insignificant and not worthwhile, you are thinking too small. Chunk up to see the bigger picture and long-term, cumulative benefits and meanings that tie into your values. Instead of, "So what if I make only $2000 this week? What does it matter--I'll still be in debt," say, "If I make $2000 this week, and do the same every week... Hey! That's $100,000 a year!" Keep your eye on the prize!

Sacrifices or Trade-offs?

Any worthwhile goal entails some difficulty, sustained effort, and trade-offs. You might call these sacrifices, but really, the trade-off is giving up a short term satisfaction, in favor of something else that is more valuable, enduring and ultimately brings a greater sense of fulfillment. Some people call it delayed gratification, but I have a more elegant word for it: Discipline.

Learning to say NO to old habits can be difficult, until the old habit is extinguished and a new one takes its place. You could, for example, spend less time on the computer in order to spend quality time with your children. You could trade a few Saturdays at home to take that computer programming class at the community college. To make a trade-off requires two skills: 1) minimizing the importance of whatever you are going to give up, and 2) keeping the larger picture (your vision) and in mind.

Be careful with the way you talk to yourself. You can say, "Oh no!!! I have to give up ice cream and suffer for the rest of my life!" and that statement will only undermine your commitment, because it exaggerates the displeasure of having no ice cream. This tactic is called "catastrophizing." Instead, say, "What's a little ice cream, compared to the confidence I'll feel when I lose those ten pounds?" As you say these words, call your vision to mind---a glowing, Technicolor image of a healthy, active you. Remind yourself that the trade-offs are well worth the results.

Put it in Writing

Now that you've defined your outcomes, write them out. A study of the 1953 graduates of Yale University clearly demonstrates the importance of committing goals to paper. The graduates were interviewed and asked if they had a clear, specific set of goals written down along with a plan for achieving those goals. Only three percent had such written goals. Twenty years later, in 1973, the researchers went back and interviewed the surviving members of the 1953 graduating class. They discovered that the three percent with specific, written goals were worth more in financial terms than the entire other 97 percent combined!

Visualize your future with these outcomes. Live it in your mind. Anticipate your thoughts and feelings. Imagine the satisfaction you feel as you fulfill these outcomes! See the short term and long term rewards. Put these outcomes on 3" x 5" notecards and carry them with you during the day so that you can read them and remind yourself where you are going. Tape your outcomes to your refrigerator or the mirror on your dresser, so that you see them often and keep them in the forefront of your mind. Put them in your PDA or keep them handy on your computer desktop.

Next Steps

Now that you have well-formed outcomes, you can advance into the planning stages by asking additional questions:

How am I going to do it? What are the steps and timetable for completion?
What questions do I have? Do I need more information? Where will I find it?
What are my action items? How often will I engage in these actions?
Who else will be involved and what do I want them to do?
How will I know I am making progress?
Once I have the result I want, how do I maintain it, make it even better, or decide when it's time to go on to another outcome?

Go For It!

Now that you know how to create well-formed outcomes, go for it! Don't let negative, depressing pessimistic thoughts talk you out of it. Decide you are going to have the results you want, don't take "no" for an answer, and commit to the outcome with passion, drive, and motivation. Think positively and optimistically. Be ready to meet challenges with courage and creativity, move beyond setbacks with persistence, and find a solution for every problem. Ask for help when you need it. Associate with people who believe in you and support you. Be unstoppable! State your well-formed outcomes and bring them into reality!

Portions of this assignment were excerpted and adapted from Healthy Habits: Total Conditioning for a Healthy Body and Mind, by Kathy Corsetty and Judith E Pearson, copyright 2000, Dageforde Press, Lincoln, Nebraska.

Judith E.Pearson, Ph.D. is a Licensed Professional Counselor with a counseling and coaching practice in Springfield, Virginia, specializing in Neuro-Linguistic Programming and Hypnotherapy. Visit her web site at www.engagethepower.com.