Making Your Objective Priority One

This article is not important because it's about something I did; it's more important because of what my story may mean to you. My experience may be helpful to you in developing a plan that will allow you to succeed in a major endeavor.

Since I was a child I tended to be stocky; not fat, unpleasantly overweight. I went on my first diet when I was twelve. It was successful. That is, I lost the weight I had wanted to. But then I regained it all back. Therefore the diet had ultimately been a failure.

In the years that followed, I began and succeeded in at, at least, two dozen diets. I regained all the weight I had lost. In 2002, at age 79, I decided this procedure had to end. I determined to go on a diet and never regain the weight. I made this objective Priority One. I decided on a plan and immediately put it into effect. My weight at this time was 200 pounds.

I purchased a doctor's scale. The plan required that I weigh myself frequently and record the weight with an accuracy of four ounces. I started a computer file in Excel to record my weight and to make charts. I started a computer file with Microsoft Word to record my daily calorie intake. I decided to diet during the week and to allow Saturdays to be days of no restrictions. On Saturdays, I could go off the diet!

A key element was that I had to be successful during the week in order to enjoy Saturdays. If I did not meet my goal during the week, Saturday could not be an unrestricted day. During the first six months of the diet, my goal was to lose 50 pounds. This was to be at a rate of two pounds a week for a time, then, one pound, then half a pound, then, finally, one-quarter pound. This was all planned ahead of time. These objectives were met because I kept my focus on Saturdays. Saturdays were my rewards for having been faithful to my diet during the week! I reached my goal of 150 as planned. The remarkable thing is that unrestricted Saturdays did not hurt the diet at all. Yes, I gained weight on Saturdays but not as much as expected. I found that the body cannot create weight efficiently enough to keep up with one day of unrestricted eating!

After the objective of the diet had been met, I went into maintenance mode. This required that I gain no weight during the week. If I was successful in doing this, then Saturday could be an unrestricted day; otherwise not. It is now almost ten years later and maintenance mode has worked superbly. I still weigh 150 at the end of each week.

During the diet, I faithfully recorded my weight several times a day. I made a chart that I updated daily. I recorded my calorie intake daily. The objective of maintaining my weight became one of my most important objectives during this period of time. My wife, Ann, marveled at the extreme dedication I gave to this plan, but she was supportive. My doctor was supportive also. There were problems along the way, of course. What does one do on holidays, birthdays, retirements, etc. These problems were solved one way or another as they arose.

Now, what does all this mean to you? Do you have an objective that urgently needs to be achieved? It does not have to be weight control! It can be something that is personal to you. My suggestion is to decide that you need to take supreme measures to make it happen. Develop a plan. Make this plan Priority One! Do whatever it takes to make the plan work! You'll find that it may be easier than you think. Starting is important and initial successes are important. After you have created a modest investment of successes, you'll find that there will be nothing that can swerve you from your plan.