Goal Setting, Nutrition and Why You Need Morphing Goals

Laird Hamilton Big Wave Surfer & Author

Nutrition Goal Setting and a Lesson We Can Learn from Surfer Laird Hamilton

The word “goal” has all kinds of different meanings depending on the context. I’ll get into nutrition goal setting in a second…sometimes I wish we had different variations of the word to better explain the type of goal we are talking about. There’s been a long argument about whether the native peoples of Alaska have 30+ different words for types of snow. Each is believed to perfectly describe a specific type or texture of snow. If this sort of thing interests you, you might want to read There Really Are 50 Eskimo Words For Snow and decide where you stand on the debate. Either way, we surely could come up with more than just one word to describe the various levels of goals we encounter in life, right?

Go to a goal-setting seminar and you will no doubt hear the following words related to goals: short term, long term, measurable, observable etc etc. A common goal setting approach is to use SMART goals. Specific. Measurable. Attainable. Relevant. Timely. While all that may be helpful in many areas of life and business I find that when dealing with health and wellness goals, there is an emotional component that needs to be considered as well.

Words I Like To Use When

As a nutrition coach I work with clients on nutrition goal setting. Some goals are smaller (short term) and I look at them as stepping stones that help us get to our final destination or larger (long term) goal. Yet I don’t like the use of either of those terms. A destination should never feel final, and neither should a goal. If we do things right then once we achieve our goal we should find ourselves continuing to move toward new areas that keep opening up to us.

How best to describe that? I recently heard an interview with Laird Hamilton, big wave surfer, author and model. Oprah was asking the questions and when she asked him about his goals he said he had “morphing goals”. I immediately knew what he was talking about and I think it best describes the type of goals that we should work toward. “Morphing goals” don’t just end when they are reached. They grow into new challenges and help us live a very rich life. I can’t imagine attaining a goal and then thinking: “That’s it! I’m done!” What an empty feeling that would be.

But reaching a goal that opens up all kinds of new pathways to new challenges is what gives richness to life. And that is what makes life an adventure.

So thanks Laird for my new favorite term.

And here is my wish for all of you,

“May all your goals be morphing goals and lead you on an incredible journey.”

Mush On and Happy Trails!