Growth Requires Overload #105 Overload

For a person to grow, setting specific goals is essential.

By making goals specific,
the gap between "who you are now" and "who you want to be" becomes visible.

Then, to bridge that gap,
it becomes clear "by when," "what," and "how" you will act.

With vague goals, the actions taken for growth will also be vague.

"Reverse Thinking" to Achieve Growth

For goal setting, there is a concept called backcasting (reverse thinking) .

First, what is important is to set a clear deadline.
Then, you specify what needs to be achieved by that deadline using frameworks such as
• 5W1H
• or 6W3H

.

Only when it is this clear does a "goal" truly exist.
Conversely, things with vague deadlines and tasks cannot be called goals.

Furthermore, to achieve that goal,
• mid-term goals
• short-term goals

it is important to set these interim goals by working backward.

Growth is Changing Your "Standard of Normal"

I believe that growth is achieving high goals so that that level becomes the "new normal."
And actually,

more than the process leading up to achieving the goal,
the mindset after achieving it

is perhaps more important.

The "Principle of Overload" in the World of Training

In training, there is a concept called the principle of overload (law of overload) .

For example,
suppose a person who can lift a 50kg barbell 5 times
continues to lift the same 50kg only 5 times every day.

In this case,
while muscle strength might be maintained, it will not improve.

This is because, in order to grow,
a load slightly higher than your current self is necessary.
• If you want to increase power, increase the "weight"
• If you want to increase stamina, increase the "number of repetitions"

In other words, it is necessary to keep applying a load slightly higher than the current state.

People Who Grow Keep Raising Their "Standards"

This also relates to the concept of
deliberate practice proposed by psychologist Anders Ericsson.

For a person to grow, it is said that training is necessary that involves:
• practicing based on theory and evidence
• applying a load that slightly exceeds the limits of your own ability

However, there is something important here.

Just because you increased the load does not mean you will get results immediately.

The Moment Growth Stops

Being satisfied with one or two successes.
Or giving up after one or two failures.

The moment that happens, growth stops.

On the other hand,
people who only repeat the same actions make that their

"standard of normal."

As a result,

• no new learning is born
• performance does not improve
• in some cases, it may even weaken.

Growth Accelerates Suddenly One Day

In the book "Mental Toughness," there is a passage like this:

One day, you will get better. Faster, stronger, knowing more, achieving more. You will solve things naturally. You will keep doing more and more. You will keep getting better.

The results of effort do not appear immediately.
However, it is said that if you continue to accumulate effort,

a "breakthrough point" will arrive where you leap forward all at once at a certain moment.

Are You Giving Up Just Before the Breakthrough?

If you were to give up just before that moment,

it might be close to abandoning the potential dormant within you.
That is why,

• without compromising
• continuing to apply a slightly higher load
• continuing to challenge high goals
Through that accumulation,

your "standard of normal" will gradually rise.
And I believe that beyond that

lies true growth.