Crafting Goals That Stick: Your Blueprint to Thrive

Description

Looking to turn your big dreams into reality? You’re not alone — and it might not be your willpower that’s holding you back, but the way you set your goals. In this episode, host Gabe Howard welcomes Dr. Ross G. White, clinical psychologist, author of “The Tree That Bends,” and founder of Strive to Thrive, to demystify the SMART framework and help you build goals that stick.

Together, Gabe and Dr. White unpack each letter of SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-limited) to show you how to transform vague aspirations (“I want to get fit”) into crystal clear, trackable targets (“I will complete three 30-minute strength workouts each week for the next month”). You’ll hear concrete examples, common pitfalls, and Dr. White’s insider tips for aligning your goals with what truly matters in your life.

Plus, stick around for a candid discussion on why the “stay hard,” grit-and-grind mentality might be selling you short — and how a flexible mind can be your secret weapon for thriving, not just surviving. Tune in and start setting goals you’ll actually achieve!

“The mere ordinary seems to be resistant to going viral. It's only the incredible and the extraordinary that goes viral. So we are skewed in terms of some of the reference points that we have around what we should be capable of, what we should be doing, what we should be achieving. And that leads us to be highly motivated to try to make an impact, to establish ourselves. But it also then can tip over into threat if we feel that we're falling short, or that people are judging us for not being enough, for not doing enough, for not contributing enough.” ~Dr. Ross White

Our guest, Dr. Ross White, is a Professor of Clinical Psychology at Queen’s University Belfast and the founder of Strive2Thrive, a clinical psychology consultancy firm that provides interventions and training to help individuals and organizations thrive. He is an expert in supporting the mental well-being of adults working in high-performance settings. Ross is the author of several books, including “The Tree That Bends: How a flexible mind can help you thrive.