I have been reading a great book—The Code of the Extraordinary Mind by Vishen Lakhiani. In his book, he describes a system for living involving Non-Negotiable Set Points. I wanted to share this with you.
So often we think about our goals and areas of our lives that need improving. But, what about the areas of our lives that are good? How do we keep paying attention to those areas so that they stay how we want them? Here’s how…Non-Negotiable Set Points.
Set Points are different from goals because goals move you forward to reach something better, whereas set points help you maintain what you already have. For instance, we often talk about weight loss as a goal, but someone who is at their ideal weight would have set points instead. Some examples of weight maintenance set points could be a number on the scale. It could be a certain belt loop or it might be your favorite pair of jeans getting too tight. It has to be something that you would notice often so that you wouldn’t get past your set point.
However, if you do get past your set point, the wonderful thing about set points is that they turn what is perceived as a failure into a challenge. Just remember that set points have to be quantifiable.
So, here are the steps to create your set points:
Step 1: Identify the areas of your life that need set points.
Step 2: Determine the set point for each area.
Step 3: Test your set points and correct if you miss. This is critical. If you don’t stay at your set point, you have to be disciplined enough to correct it. Figure out a plan beforehand that will help you get back to your set point as soon as possible.
Step 4: Ramp it up! If you do slip off your set point and get back to the normal set point, add a little bit more. If you have a normal set point at 150 on the scale, ramp it up to 149. Increase the challenge a very little bit—not enough to get discouraged.
Here are some examples of set points:
Social Life: Stay in touch with a phone call to a friend once a week or go to dinner once a week with a friend
Love Relationship: Frequency of date nights or working out together
Health and Fitness: A number on the scale or tracking your blood pressure
Learning: Read two books a month or go to one play every month
Career: Read three online articles every day about your industry or join a professional group and commit to a certain number of meetings
Family: Call your mom or dad twice a week or have Sunday breakfast as a family
Spiritual: Try 15 minutes of meditation every morning or read three pages from the Bible every morning
I hope you try this. See what works for you. It might be fun!