People tend to do whatever gives them the least difficulty/tension/stress or whatever makes them the happiest first.

When you have to figure out the solution to a tough math/econ/physics question, suddenly popped into your head is the thought of this weekend’s crazy party, of playing some rock band with your friends later tonight, or of some cute girl you just met. You cannot concentrate on just thinking about the problem and get done with it. Why?

Because all these thoughts that just popped into your head are much more fun and much less difficult to do.

If you have only one goal to achieve: gain 15 pounds of muscle in the next 12 weeks, everything is a lot different. You think about it all the time. You don’t think about crazy party because drinking will mess up your training (i.e. you will be unhappy). You don’t think about playing rock band because training, school work/job, and friends/family take up most of your free time already. If playing rock band means you will have to miss homework or skip a meal, you will not be happy at all. You have one and only one goal, and you will not let anything mess up with it.

Having one goal for a short period of time (e.g. 12-16 weeks) help you focus your life around it. Nothing else in the world can make you excited or happy unless you reach your goal. It redefines all the other activities in your life. You will no longer be excited about partying, computer games, or girls because for these 12 weeks, achieving your goal is the only thing that makes you happy and gives you peace of mind. Moreover, when you have only one goal, your goal will become your true passion. And when it has become your passion, you think about it a lot more often than anything else. It just naturally happens that way. Nothing is gonna pop into your mind when you think about what you are passionate about. When you’ve reached that state, you will have a lot of creative thoughts for your passion. And that’s great! When you are passionate about getting something, sooner or later, you will achieve it.

Note: you should also read these articles: How many goals should you have beside your training goal? and The cost of a great looking physique-there’s no such thing as something for nothing.

RECAP: Having one goal focus your mind and activities on just achieving that goal.