This concept changed my life

- The gap & the gain

Not to be dramatic but….

This concept changed my life.

It will change the way you think about your progress and increase your motivation to do more as a result you’re going to be happier & more successful.

It’s called The Gap & The Gain

‘Most people, especially highly ambitious people, are unhappy because of how they measure their progress.
We all have an ‘ideal’, a moving target that is always out of reach.
When we measure yourselves against that ideal, we’re in ‘the gap’.
When we measure ourselves against our previous selves, we’re in ‘the gain’.

- The gap and the gain - Dan Sullivan and Dr Benjamin Hardy.

We are all terrible at giving ourselves credit for how far we've come.

The realisation that you will never reach 'ideal' because you will constantly be moving the goal posts is quite freeing.

It doesn’t stop you reaching for it, thriving for more, challenging yourself or continuing to aim for self improvement but it takes the pressure off and allows you to enjoy where you are at the same time (what’s life without that).

& it’s actually much easier to grow when you appreciate where you are and how far you’ve come.

It’s extremely motivating.

Imagine how you would motivate a friend who’s trying to lose weight.

You wouldn’t be like yeah you lose a few lbs but you still have LOADDSSS to go. You’re not even half way to your goal yet (unless you’re a complete d*ck)

You would encourage them, you would point out they’ve already lost a few pounds - you bet they can lose the next few too.

Remind them they are moving in the right direction, fat loss takes time but they are progressing every week and should be proud of that. & that they are completely capable of losing fat - their progress proves it!

Let’s look at 2 examples..

Jenny ‘gap’ Jones & Emma ‘Gain’ Storey - Gordon.

They’ve both lost 6lbs in the last 6 weeks & they both have about 12lbs more to lose before achieving a healthy weight for them.

Jenny is focusing on the 12lbs she hasn’t lost yet - she’s demotivated, she’s frustrated, she feels guilt & shame about where she is. She’s disappointed in herself and feels like a failure. Jenny is in the gap.

Emma is focused on the 6lbs she’s already lost. She’s proud of how far she’s come, she feels confident she can keep going, she’s motivated and is enjoying the process. Emma is in the gain.

In both of these situations the reality is the same - how the two individuals are perceiving it is what’s different.

Who do you think is more likely to continue? and thus to reach their goals and get results? (hint- it’s Emma).

If you always focus on the gap between where they are and how far they have to go (most of us do this as a default) you will feel pretty sh*t, demotivated, like a failure, self esteem & self belief is low & you’re likely to pack it all in & give up. That is the surest way NOT to get results.

Focusing on the gain means focusing on how far you’ve come - this feels completely different and motivates you to appreciate what you have and to keep going and striving for more. You start to believe in yourself because you’ve created evidence to prove you can do it, you are doing it, you are progressing.


Take home:

Most people focus on the gap between where they are and where they want to be and never appreciate how far they’ve come.

Most people thus struggle with these feelings of failure, low motivation and lack of belief in themselves. Those feelings don't tend to lead to successful outcomes.

It’s true in fat loss, it’s true in business, it’s true in your career.

Noticing it and drawing awareness to is the first step to changing it. It means you can call yourself out when you fall into this way of thinking. ‘Ah I am in the gap, I need to think about the gain’ - it requires effort initially but it soon becomes automatic.

Stop tricking yourself into thinking your next achievement is when you will feel worthy and successful. You won’t without changing your mindset because as soon as you get close you move the finish line further away.

The solution is to turn around and look at how far you’ve come.

Appreciate the progress you’ve made.

When it comes to your health, fitness and fat loss progress this comes up A LOT.

Most people focus only on the things they havent managed to tick off perfectly.

Maybe you aren’t doing 10k steps but you're doing 4k more on average than you used to do.

Maybe you aren't getting in 3 workouts but you are managing 2 consistently and before you were doing none.

Maybe you want to lose 8lbs but you lost 4lbs which is 4 more than you would have if you hadn't started!

Look at your life, habits, food choices now compared to before you started.

Consider your energy levels, your mood, your out look on life. (something we focus on on commit to 6)

I bet you've made huge improvements!

Could you make more? hell yeah. but when you focus on how far you've come and give yourself some credit then you're more motivated to continue.

And this perfect ideal is never going to be attainable. It will keep moving - it's like the pot at the end of the rainbow.

Apply this to improve your motivation and enjoy your life more!

Join our next commit to 6 intake