If you’re trying to stay motivated to reach a goal, find a mentor who’s been successful, and ask what they do. I found a great example of this recently.

Last week we talked about how we can use the metaphoric counter in our heads to help us stay on track and meet our commitments as we build new habits. I was delighted to receive a comment from one of my own friends and mentor Ross MacInnes.

We may over the course of our lifetime, on a few occasions, meet truly extraordinary people.

Ross is one of those people.

A Life of Service

We first met in 1995 shortly after Ross had retired from a stellar career in law enforcement. He and his wife Dee had just started a nonprofit agency devoted to underage girls escape prostitution.

The agency he founded, Street Teams, provided a beacon of hope and a way out for many young girls.

Today, Ross runs an equine-assisted learning centre called Higher Trails, where he uses horses to help people cope with challenges like PTSD, anxiety, and autism. 

He is one of those rare individuals who never seem to run out of energy and who only ever see the glass half full.

In addition to his many talents Ross has authored numerous books and I was thrilled to learn he has a different but similar method of keeping himself on track.

We don’t spend as much time together as we once did, but still occasionally meet for breakfast and I always look forward to those times as I leave every meeting a little wiser than when I entered.

I was delighted to receive his comment, because I’ve been sharing the importance of finding ways to stay motivated to reach a goal. It’s something Ross excels at, and he had a suggestion.

How to Reach A Goal

He wrote …

“I have a similar but slightly different way of keeping myself on pace during a lengthy process such as writing a book. I am on my fifth book and along the way I had to work very hard to get on the computer and get those words flowing from my mind to my computer screen. I came up with a very simple, but effective method. I call it “the chain”. Each day when I finish my writing, I put a “link” on the calendar in front of my desk. And each day I link it to the one previous. I am compelled to keep the chain going, as if I do not put a link on, the chain breaks. It doesn’t matter how much I write (I’ve established a base-line of at least one paragraph). But it is vital that I write SOMETHING so that I am able to keep the chain going.”

Reading his comment confirms how vital a role consistency plays, to develop a habits and reach a goal.

And as my friend has so ably demonstrated, new, sustainable habits can be formed. Sometimes they just need a little help from a simple system.

If you’re looking to reach a goal, my OnCourse program might be for you. Here’s a video that explains what it’s all about:

Let’s make a habit of meeting like this.

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