Living on Purpose: How to set SMART Goals That Actually Work

What if the problem isn't your goals—it's how you're approaching them? In this episode, Debra and Denise dive deep into living life by design using the SMART goal system (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-sensitive). They share personal stories about everything from losing weight to strengthening relationships, paying off debt, and building consistent exercise habits. You'll discover why you can't control outcomes but you can control your daily actions, how to avoid the "flat tire" mentality that derails progress, and why acting as if you're already the person you want to become is the secret to getting there faster. Whether you're working on your health, finances, relationships, or personal growth, this practical episode will help you create sustainable change across all areas of your Wheel of Life.

Wheel of Life Worksheet

Dx2podcast.com

Transcript

Welcome & The Wheel Of Life

Debra 0:04

Welcome to the D Times 2 podcast, hosted by Sisters Denise and Deborah. We are all about finding balance in the various parts of life. Using the Wheel of Life as our guide, we explore how to keep each spoke rolling smoothly. We discuss health and wellness, education and spirituality, as well as mental and emotional growth. Join us for real conversations, practical tips, and a few laughs as we share stories, insights, and strategies to help you create a life that feels balanced, purposeful, and designed by you. Hi Deborah. Hi Denise, how's it going? Oh, pretty good. Pretty good. Good. Same. Same for me, pretty good. Yeah, same old, same old. Mostly, yeah. Yeah. Okay, this morning we're gonna start out with a question from one of our listeners. What's the question? So the question, it's not phrased as a question, so I'm gonna read it exactly as she submitted it. Okay. I can't seem to actually carry out my good intentions. And I think the question is, how can I carry out my good intentions? Good question. That's a good question because we do have I don't know about you, but I have good intentions all the time. All the time. And sometimes I can follow through and sometimes not. So one of my thoughts on that, on carrying out good intentions, is to think about where that good intention is coming from. Like what's what's your purpose in having the intention? And does it affect you? Is it affecting somebody else and their choices? Like what's the purpose of your good intention? What do you think? Yeah, I think the motivation or purpose behind it helps, but also sometimes I think it's a matter of, and this is unusual for me to say, of acting before you think. So for example, the other day I was out with Tom, we were getting pedicures, and a flash came into my a thought just passed through my brain like a flash. And it was, I should invite mom and dad over for Sunday dinner. And normally I would think, do I have time? Is it a good weekend? What are we gonna make? And I didn't, I didn't think about any of it. I immediately sent a text and invited them over, and they responded, Of course, we'd love to come. And then I told Tom and we thought it through. But it was like, if I had paused to think about all of the logistics and all of the factors that would be involved, I probably wouldn't have done it. But it was like a thought in my mind that I knew I needed to act on, so I did it immediately without any thought or over overthinking. Does that make sense? Yeah, I think sometimes we can overthink our intentions. But I also think that I don't know, sometimes it's good to act right away. Yeah. Not every time. No. Sometimes you actually do need to think. Like sometimes you think, oh, I should do this for this person. But is it something the person actually needs, or is it something you think they need? And you're just trying to be a good person. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:24

Mm-hmm.

Priorities And Letting Some Intentions Go

Living By Design And Long-Range Goals

SMART Goals: Specific Identity

Debra 3:26

So motivation or motive matters. And then how you move forward with it matters. But I don't think any of us are ever going to follow through on all of our good intentions. So think of the good better best. Maybe follow through on the ones that will matter most or have the most impact and let go of the others. Maybe. And I think it depends on what your intention is. So maybe you have a good intention to get up every morning at a certain time. Yeah. Well, that's a good intention. Is it reasonable? Maybe for the most part, but why do you need why? Some people go to work at the same time and they need to get up at about the same time every day. But some people don't. So what's your intention? What's what's the purpose? Some people want have a good intention to keep their house cleaner. I have that intention. But it's not but it's not super high on your priority list. Like how what is it in the pecking order? Apparently not very high. Because a lot of other things come before making sure everything is perfectly dusted and all of the windows are clean and all of the baseboards are clean. It is a good intention to keep your house spotless all the time, but when you have other people that live in your house, that's not actually feasible. Speak, sister. The thing is, maybe it's not high on their intention list. Like when I had little kids, it wasn't high on their intention list at all to have a house. They did not give two cents about it. I I think it's good to evaluate your intentions and see what you're actually doing it for. Hopefully that helps. Hopefully it's not to be seen of man. Yeah. Seen as a good person. And then choose the ones that matter most. Yeah. I like that. That's good. Hopefully that answers your question. That's our best thoughts on it. Right now. Off the cuff. Yeah. Okay, so today we we actually kind of want to talk about something that kind of goes along with that question. We want to talk about goals or more specifically, designing your life, living your life on purpose. Yes, living your life on purpose, I think, is good. And this one's interesting because usually when we get together to record, Denise will have something in mind, and we'll do one episode on that, and I'll have something in mind. And we both showed up with this same same thing. We did. So we know we need to talk about it, and hopefully it will come together from both of our thought processes behind it. Yeah. But I really think it's living on purpose, living by design, and with a long-range goal in mind. What do you mean by a long-range goal? Okay, I said that wrong. So a longer range. So there are big things that people tend to work for. For example, with myself, one of my big goals I had before, and I would rework it now, but I wanted to lose 100 pounds. If I just thought all the time about I've got to lose a hundred pounds, I wouldn't have taken the first step because it was too big. It was too overwhelming. But if I could say that's my long-range goal, right now I want to focus on the first five. That's a bite-sized chunk that's doable that I could take action on and not be overwhelmed with the scope of the goal. That's true. That's a four example. I said I would do it differently now because I can't control the scale. So I wouldn't set a pound goal, but I would set a desired outcome. A desired outcome and almost like a lifestyle goal. Yeah. A lifestyle that you just want to be. Yes. So let's talk about the formula that a lot of people use for goals. It's called the SMART goal system. And we'll talk about each of them individually and then kind of put it all together into how we have applied these kinds of things in our lives and how our thinking has shifted. So practical application within the wheel of life. Yeah. Okay. So SMART goals. The S stands for specific. So what is your specific goal? What is the specific thing that you want to become? Because, like Deborah said, we can't control the output of the outcome. We can control the output, we can control our effort, but we can't control the end result. No, not in everything we can't, like, especially with weight, right? Like I mean, I think that's that's one that everyone can understand. Yes. So set a specific goal, a specific, I I would say pattern of life. I'll use myself as an example. A couple of months. We love that. Okay. Several months ago, I decided that, you know, I I really like to exercise, and I have been letting things hold me back, hold me back, hold me back some more. And I decided that that's so crazy that I'm at a point in my life I don't have kids at home, I'm not working. There's no good reason that I can't exercise every day. So you decided to stop letting things hold you back in that regard. Yeah. I decided to be a person that exercises five to six times a week. So when my alarm goes off in the morning, sometimes I lay there for 10 minutes, but I get up. I get up and I exercise and then I go for a walk. And I just decided that that is gonna be a part of my life. It's part of your identity at this point because you have done that and you've done it for months now. Yeah, I've done that several times throughout my life. Like really, really good at exercising, and then something happens and I go off the rails and I don't exercise for a year and I feel crappy. But I know that for my longevity for life and my mental health and my overall well-being, exercising will make me feel better and help me live longer. So I have embodied that and I've been doing it five to six days a week for almost four months. And I feel so much better, and I identify myself as a person that does that. So that was your your specific goal was to become a person who exercises, not an I'm exercising in order to meet this measure or this stat. Right. Okay. Because yes, I would love to shed 50 pounds and be a nice, strong, cut, lean person. And it will happen eventually, but I'm not gonna put a timetable on that. Instead, I'm going to focus on the specific action that I can take in my life to help me be healthier overall. Beautiful. Do you have anything you want to share about specific? No, I think no, I think that was well said and uh we covered it. Okay. Never beat a dead horse. That saying has been around for a long time for a reason. People that are drinking energy drinks all day long just to stay functional, that's what they're doing. They are beating themselves up like they were a dead horse. We gotta stop doing that. The only energy drink that I recommend to my clients is update. It's clean energy without caffeine, so you don't have jitters and chaos and like the problems that caffeine causes in the body. And it also helps to give you focus and a clear mind. It's really the one I use and the one I recommend. To get a discount off of your order, go to drinkupdate.com and use the code DX2. That's D times two. That's us. So drinkupdate.com and then the code for your discount is DX2. So let's talk about M in the SMART goals. So the M stands for measurable. So regardless of what the goal is, you need to have some sort of a measure. So let's let's switch areas of the wheel because you were talking about fitness. Let's talk about a measurable goal with regards to family relationships. Oh, that's a good one. Right? Because people have a goal to have a better relationship with their spouse or with their kids or with their extended family, whatever the case may be. How can you measure that? Are you asking me? Yeah. Oh. What would you do if you were to measure that? Because I know you have in your realm of being that type of a goal. I I do. So I think to measure family relationships is to look at where it was a year ago or six months ago and where it is today. Measure over the course of time. Yeah. And like if I were to take specific steps, like what the S is, specific steps to work on a relationship with a specific person, then I could evaluate that on a month-to-month basis. Like, am I am I having more honest conversations with this person? Am I do I feel closer to them? Do they respond to me in a different way than they used to when I reach out to them? Uh-huh. Like that to me is a measurable way, a way to measure that relationship change. Does that make sense? Yeah, that makes sense. I'm also thinking that there are things that you can not really like a checklist, but there are actions you can take. Like for me, most of my like my stepchildren are further away, my grandchildren are further away, nobody is local to me in that realm of my family. So it's a matter of have I made sure I texted or called or FaceTimed or made contact on social media? Like, have I done something to let them know I'm thinking of them, they're loved, and to initiate conversation or interaction. And then make sure it's a positive interaction. So you can measure it by how often you reach out. Yeah. Yeah, that's good too. Not that it needs to be rigid, but you know, and at least a baseline. At least this often I make sure I take this action. Good. I like that one. Yeah. It would be different like if it was with Tom, my spouse, who's in my house. Like those actions would be different than people who are at a distance. True. That's true. Yeah. Measure that one kind of how y you want to. Like for the relationships.

SPEAKER_02 14:45

Mm-hmm.

Measurable Relationships And Check-Ins

Achievable Actions And Consistency

Debra 14:46

For the fitness, like I said, I can look back over the last month and see how how many times I actually did it. You literally can have a checklist. Yeah. And how I feel. You can do that with finances. You can see how much you how much debt you've paid off or how much you are saving and how much I don't know. Or how well you're staying within your budget. If you, you know, do a budget and have categories. Am I in budget in every category every time, or am I going way off the deep end? Way out, way out of line on one of them, but I'm good on the others. So kind of a periodic check-in to make sure in whatever the wheel of life, whatever spoke of the wheel of life you're focused on for that specific goal, for sure. Okay. The A in SMART goals is is it achievable? Some of us shoot for the stars in our goals and in our desires, in our intentions. And while it's good to aim high, we don't need to aim too high because that makes it that literally makes it out of reach. Right. So is your goal something that you can achieve? Like me. With the exercise? With the exercise. Like, it'd be great if I could lose 20 pounds of fat and be this cut person that I want to be. But my the achievable goal is exercising five to six days a week. Yeah. With your relationships. That was the last one we talked about. Yes. Is it achievable? You're not gonna have perfect harmony with everybody all the time. So that's not achievable. And you can't control what the other person does. So what are you doing that's an actually an achievable action? Right. So I can make sure I initiate some communication, some contact. I can control that, I can achieve that. Yeah. I don't want to keep saying control because I'm not a control freak, but that's within my power. Yes. Yeah. So same thing with education. There's the education spoke. What are you learning? What if you want to learn a language? That's in that spoke, you can't control how fast you learn it. But is it an achievable goal? Like achievable, are you working on it? On studying the language four days a week. That's achievable. So I think of it in steps. Like, am I at least taking a step or two in the right direction on a consistent basis? Because some things will be daily, some things will be weekly, some things will be monthly, whatever the goal is, right? But am I moving in the right direction, whether it's a step or two, or sometimes it's a giant leap, and then sometimes due to whatever circumstance, there may be a step or two backwards. But my intent and direction is always going to be forward momentum. I I like how you said that the direction is forward momentum. It doesn't matter how fast you get there, how steep the climb. It's do you keep on moving forward? And I honestly think if we try to push it faster and steeper and shorten the time frame, that that usually will set us up for failure because we have more unrealistic expectations. Or we'll burn out, or motivation will go, and then consistency never had a chance to set in because motivation is fleeting. It's the daily consistency or the weekly consistency that pays off over time. I I thank you. That was very well put. You're welcome. Something that James Clear talks about in his book Atomic Habits. Lovely book. Very good book. He actually I've been listening to a few interviews with him, and something that he said is that habits aren't about perfection. Yeah. It's about going forward. And he said, if you miss, we're going to talk about workouts because that's what's been on my mind a lot. So you get to listen to what's been on my mind. So if you miss one workout, don't make it two. If you eat a crappy meal, don't make it two. Yeah. If you miss a week, don't make it two. It's not about perfection, it's about making movement forward. And not giving up because one thing went bad or one thing didn't measure up. Yeah. So I think of it as like, because I talk to people a lot about food, right? Um, and giving them guidance there. And they'll say, Well, I had a hard time. I had a party over the weekend and I ate some stuff I shouldn't have. And then it just, I just kept going. And I think that's like I got a flat on my car, so I decided to slash the other three tires. Like really good enough. Don't deliberately sabotage yourself because there was one situation that was uncertain, like not perfect. Yeah. Because life isn't perfect. No, no situation is ever going to be perfect. So let's keep all the other wheels intact and reinflate that tire and get back on the road. Yeah. You had a bad meal, don't make it too. Yeah. Drink some extra water and come back to get back on track. If you had a bad, a bad interaction with somebody in your social circle, don't make it to. Like don't stay there, don't stay stuck, don't slash all the tires in that relationship. Repair. Fix it and move forward. Let's talk about the immune system. One of the best defenders we know comes from optimal health systems, and it's called defense. So it supplies your body with researched back ingredients to shown to support your immune system and fight off illness. It also boosts the immune system, providing a potent dose of antibodies for a quick recovery and reduces the risk of viral infection. One of the things I love is that it increases the white blood cell count in your body almost immediately while filling your gut with healthy bacteria. This is one of those things I recommend to my clients to always have on hand. You can take it continuously through, quote, cold and flu season or when you're under a lot of stress, or just pop it in here and there if you feel like you're starting to come down with something. Take it for a day or two, maybe three, and then put it on pause. But it ultimately restores health to areas of your body that are affected by potentially unhealthy eating habits, like during the holidays, and also from overstressing. And it does it by using whole real food ingredients. You can go to optimalhealthsystems.com and use the code D times2, that's DX2, to get a great discount off your order. So those are achievable, yes. The next one. Goal relevant or why is it relevant? I think that's a good question. Why is this goal relevant? Why does it matter? Yeah. Why am I doing it? Why am I working on building a savings account? That's funny you say that because I was just thinking, like, one of my goals right now is paying off debt, increasing retirement investing. Why does that matter? Well, it matters a lot so that at some point we can retire and have money to live off of and not debt that we're trying to pay off from foolish or immediate wants. So it matters a lot, but it's not always easy to keep the down the road goal in mind. So this week it matters because I want to have this much set aside for to invest this month. So let's talk about the education spoke again. Okay. Is what you're learning relevant to your overall life and well-being? So you can learn about sourdough bread. You can learn how to speak Spanish. You can learn how to invest your money wisely. You can learn more about how to be a better parent or a better friend or a better spouse. Are those things relevant to your life? If they are, you'll stick with the goal. If they are not, then maybe choose a better goal.

SPEAKER_02 23:30

Yeah.

Timeframes, Micro Goals, And Momentum

Reassessing With The Wheel Of Life

Act As If: Identity Drives Action

Generosity, Habits, And Small Starts

Polished Presence And Daily Standards

Debra 23:31

Or re rework it. Yes. So that it is a relevant goal. The last one in the SMART goals is T. Time sensitive. Or time appropriate is another way to put that. Is now the time. Yeah. Well, is now the time and is my time to accomplish this goal appropriate? Oh, uh-huh. Yeah. So some things are time sensitive, like you need to have it done in a certain a certain amount of time. Like if you're in school and you have the papers due, you have a midterms and finals. Yeah. So those are time-sensitive goals to get your studying done, to study along the way, so you're not cramming the night before a test. That's that's time sensitive in my head. But back to my hundred pound, lose a hundred pounds goal. I didn't have a time frame on that. I just knew I wanted to head in that direction. And I needed to do everything in my power so it wasn't actually time sensitive. There were want time sensitivities to that, but not actual. I must meet it by this time frame. Because I couldn't control that. Like I couldn't force it to happen within a certain time. So some things there there is an appropriate time limit on but I I think there has to be some kind of time limit, anyways. Because to make certain steps to make progress. To make it not open-ended. Yes. So if you're trying to improve a relationship, there really kind of is no end date to that. But you can set little micro time sensitive things, time appropriate things like like you were talking about reaching out to people, friends, family that are not local. Are you reaching out to them once a week or once a month, whatever is appropriate for that, and find a way to make the time appropriateness of it work to your advantage to accomplishing your desired path? Does that make am I making sense? It makes sense. It it makes sense. And I think because we're trying to talk about the whole wheel and the areas in that wheel, that there could be a whole lot of different time frames involved. Yeah. Yes, thank you. And that's where you're like, but wait, but wait. Yeah. Right? Because, like, if back to the investing, I was talking about investing for retirement and paying off debt. I have in my mind a certain time-sensitive time frame to have all debt paid off. But then there's a longer time frame to having fully funded retirement account. That's a longer range goal. So there's the different micro goals along the way towards the macro goal, the long range goal. That's better. And then some goals are just a one step and then done. So there will be like you're taking a course at college and it's one semester. And you're done. And you're done. But then that stacks up hopefully toward a degree over a course of time. She said it way better than I just did. But it applies. But like she said, it applies differently on whatever spoke of the wheel that you're working on. Because some things are some things are time-bound and others aren't. But I think it's important to have steps along the way that kind of a checklist, but not really a checklist. So yes, I'm thinking part of the checklist is reassessing with your wheel of life and grading yourself, you know, giving yourself the number reading on each spoke of the wheel. Hopefully we do that periodically. And then that's kind of a built-in time sensitive check-in literally on every spoke. But then within there, there's all the micro nuances. Yeah, I like that. So if you don't know what we're talking about, if you haven't been following along, the wheel of life is kind of what we base our podcast on. And it's in episode four. If you want to go back and listen to that, and we have a free printable that you can download, print out, put on your laptop, whatever, and reevaluate yourself. Do the do the process. So that you can see where you are and what kind of progress you've made. You can measure your life and what your goals are and what you want to become. In the in the major different areas. So we talk about the areas being one of them is mental, emotional, spiritual. One of them is family, one of them is financial, education, health and wellness, right? There's the different areas. Recreation and play. Yeah, recreation and play, social. Go back and and listen to that episode or download the wheel and and see how you're doing in the different areas of your life and make some smart goals that go along with that. Do you think you need to have a goal in every area every time? I think you need to have a direction. Yes. At least a direction. It can be overwhelming to set goals in all of the areas of life, but we've also talked about how areas of life overlap. Yeah. And they they don't stand alone. That's why they're on a wheel. They angle there. Yeah, they all work together. So when you have a goal in one area of your life, it's going to affect the others. I think it's good to have one main goal in two or three of the areas that are your weaker areas or the areas that you want to add emphasis to to bring everything into harmony. You can maybe not set as aggressive a goal in an area where you're already pretty good. Pretty good. But you never want to just let it all go. The wheels will fell will fall off. Yes, you will get a flat part on your wheel and you will not roll smoothly. No. So that's why the wheel of life is a really good exercise to do. Just check in. See where you need to improve a lot, see where you need to improve a little, see where you need to cut back so that you can have a well-balanced rolling along life. The wheel needs to keep moving forward. Forward. You don't want to stop because then you're not really stopped, you're going backwards. There's no just stopping. There's going forward or there's going backward. And we want overall momentum forward. That doesn't mean you're not going to struggle in some areas, but that's why we evaluate so we can see how our life is rolling. Keep working on it, keep adjusting, keep tweaking, and then have ways that you can measure and be specific, like with the with the smart evaluation. Yeah. Is the end thing a goal? The end thing is a goal, but it's also almost like an ideal. And you have to find micro wins or small wins and joy in the process. I don't love the saying, but find joy in the journey because it's the journey that is the whole thing. It it for sure is. You become a different person along the journey. And you may think that your goal is this one specific thing in any area of the wheel, right? But once you get to that point, if you actually get to that point, the person you are is different than the person that started because of what happens along the journey. I find that oftentimes that goal will evolve based on the person you've become. Or if it is a short-term back to school. Like sometimes the goal is just to pass the class and move on to the next. That's it, you're done with that goal. But it shouldn't be, I'm done learning. So it's what's next? Where am I going now? Yeah. What we're talking about can be hard to think about and and to maybe see. So one thing to do to help you along your path with your goals and what you're trying to do is to act as if. Act as if you are that type of person. Now that does not give you license that if you want to be, have you know a million dollars, that you act like you have a million dollars because you can you can be irresponsible and poor, and you can be irresponsible and rich. We see it all the time with with movie stars and singers and whatever. They are get all this money and then they're broke because they were broke to begin with and they didn't change their ways. So the act as if means, like me, I want to act as if I am a strong, lean person. So it makes me pay more attention to what I'm eating, how I'm sleeping, what I'm doing with my body, how I'm exercising, and if I show up or not. So I'm acting as if I am a strong, lean person. I'm not there yet, but I'm acting as if I am. One of the most toxic things that people do is color their hair. And my hand is up. I am guilty of this. I love to play with my hair color. I have for years, and now I love to cover my grays. The best non-toxic hair color that I have found is polar hair care. It is easy, it applies like a shampoo. You only have to leave it on for 10 minutes. It lasts for about six weeks, and it doesn't have any of the harsh chemicals and all the nasty stuff in it. Plus, it's infused with rashi, macadamia, jojoba oil. So it leaves my hair feeling better and not dried out and abused. Use the code Deborah 6334. That's my name, D E B R A 6334. So if you go to polarhaircare.com slash Deborah 6334, you'll get an awesome discount off your order. So I think of it as the two things coexisting at the same thing at the same time. So let's talk money-wise. You talked about a million dollars. I want to have a million dollars in the bank or I want to earn a million dollars in a year, whatever the goal is. Okay. We're going for a million dollars. So what are my actions right now doing to make me be that person? So I have the identity of someone who has a million dollars in the bank. My actions today are I'm spending my money wisely, I'm not making impulse purchases, I'm staying within my budget, I'm deliberately saving towards that million dollars. I'm maybe looking for extra ways to make extra money to get there quicker. And then when you get to that place, you've built up the habits that will help you keep it. Yeah, and I am that person. Yeah, yeah. So some people want to be more charitable. Great. Start where you are. Like if you're if you have an hour a week that you can donate some time to something, start there. If you want to give a certain amount of money, say we keep using the million dollars, but I'm gonna say if you have your million dollars and you want to be charitable, well, start today. You can give 10 bucks a month to something and make that a habit that every month you're gonna give a certain amount of money to a good cause. And then when you have your million dollars, you can increase that. But you've already made the habit of giving, and it's not a big deal anymore, it's just part of who you are. Does that make sense? It does. Sometimes people, I mean, part of it is the getting to that where you have whatever, whether it's time or resour resources to give, but we all have something. So I think about lately, you and I both have been doing some decluttering. And we think of it as we're decluttering our environment. But every time I declutter, I have good things that are set aside that I then donate to charity. So it is also a donation to a good cause, right? To people who really need it and it will benefit. But I'm not having to pull from resources I don't have to do that. So we all have something we can give, but ultimately we want to be the person who can donate at will or give time at will or whatever. Yeah. That's your example, right? Yes. Yeah. Act as if you've got it to give and give it however you can. And then live wisely and take inspired action forward. Let's let's use this act as if in relationships. So if you have a relationship that you want to improve, you can act as if it's already better and treat that person how you really want the relationship to get to. If you want a better relationship with your spouse, are you short-tempered with them? Are you thinking the best of them? Yeah. Are you doing small things that you know that they love? Like, what are you doing to improve that relationship to get it to where you want it to actually look like and be? You can not get offended. Right. When they criticize something that you do or you've done. You you can uh pause before you respond and like just act as if you're there already, uh, and then that helps you get there. Right. Beautifully said. Same thing with education, right? You can act as if okay, maybe not all education. My son is studying to be a chemical engineer. He can't act like a chemical engineer because he's not there yet. But he can fill his brain with things that will help him get there. Yeah. And see things that will help him get there. And he can take internship internships with companies that he would like to end up with or that kind of thing. Spend pe time with other people that are in the same program that he is. You can do that if you're not a student. I'm not a student, but I like to talk about certain things. And so I can as I'm learning about something, I can talk to people about it and I can act as if I'm super smart. Yep. Anyways, but we can take on that personal that persona. Not imposter, not faking it. Don't be an imposter in it, don't fake it, but genuine, and then you get there faster. Yeah. So let's take it to something that's kind of could be considered superficial. Okay. Some people say, I want to come across as being a polished, well-dressed person. So when people see me, they don't think I'm a schlub. Okay. All right. So then get up and do your hair, put on some nice clothes. Maybe don't choose the leggings, choose the trousers or you know, whatever. Like you can be polished with what you have where you are to become that person, and then it becomes actually who you are in your identity. You like the schlub? I do. I do like the schllub. I think everyone knows what I mean when I say that. And sometimes I leave my house looking like a schlub, and I don't feel good when I do. Yeah. But most of the time I don't. I saw a meme the other day, we're gonna talk about memes for a minute. I saw a meme the other day that this person that was dressed in jeans and tennis shoes and a like a button-up shirt felt like they were dressed high class when they went to Walmart because everybody else looked like a schlub, you know. They're in their slippers and their pajama bottoms and yeah. You can dress up with what you've got and look nice and use what you have to become what you want. Yeah. Act genuinely. Yeah, don't be fake about it, be genuine about it, and know that you're moving forward. And like I the thought that just keeps coming to me is inspired action, like purposeful action to move you forward. One of the things that James Clear talks about in Atomic Habits is 1%, be 1% better. And if you are 1% better every day, by the end of the year, you're gonna be a totally different person. Yeah. And you'll be farther ahead than 95% of the people on this planet who just don't even pay attention to what they're doing. So 1% compounds over a year, and you you can make your life over a year and over a decade and over a lifetime. So much better. Yeah. And isn't that what we're trying to do is live our lives better. That's what we're trying to do. That's the whole goal. Anything else? Nope. I think we covered that well, huh? Yeah, I think we did. Okay. So if you found anything useful in this episode, please like it, share it with somebody who you think might benefit from it. Remember that in the show notes we have some resources. Our website is also linked on there. And if you go to our website, it's dTimes2podcast.com. Um, there are free resources and brands we love and discount codes and all that kind of stuff for you. Yeah, we hook you up pretty good with all that stuff. We try. Okay, so until next time. Keep your will rolling strong. Thanks for listening to the D Times2 Podcast with Denise and Deborah. We hope you enjoyed today's episode. Be sure to subscribe and share it with someone who's ready to roll toward a more balanced life. Your support means the world to us. And just a quick note we're sharing our own experiences and ideas, not professional advice. Always do your own research and talk to a qualified expert before making big decisions. Until next time, keep your wheel rolling strong.