If I were to walk up to you right now and ask you, “What is your story?” What would you say? Could you answer the 4 W’s and a H? (Who, What, Where, When, and How or 5W1H).

Thinking about this can seem tedious. So much so that most people never bother. They have a dream of something…but never get around to defining Who they are, What do I need to do, Where they want to be, When they want to be there, or How they are going to get there. Try this. Take 10 mins (time yourself) and write down the answers to these 5W1H questions. You’ll be ahead of 75% of the rest of the population. If you take the the first step along the path you’ll be ahead of 95% of the population. If you take two steps, my guess is that you’ll be ahead of 99% of the population in terms of achieving their goals.

Let’s take a simple example. My weight crept up a couple of years ago. One day I looked in the mirror and said, “Hey this isn’t me!” So I answer the questions:

“Who am I?” I am a healthy person - but I’m not feeling very healthy right now.

“What do I need to do?” - I need to get down to at least 170lbs, preferably lower.

“Where do I want to be?” - I want to be in reasonably good shape - I do not need to be in “triathelete” shape. Not feel winded when climbing stairs. Be able to feel more energetic, my for my back and knees not to hurt during normal activity.

“When do I want to get there?” - I’ll give myself 6 months.

“How will I get there?” - Take a daily multivitamin. Workout at 3 days a week, although I give myself permission not to work out when on vacation or travelling. Cut my calories by 20% and eat a greater percentage of protein.

The Result? I acted. Within six months I went from 190 to 160, and now I float around 165. When I hit 170, I crack down on the plan - it’s my feedback mechanism to let me know when I’m off track.

Can you see that this is very much like telling a story? There is setting, character, struggle, climax, and resolution. Think about something in your life that you want to change. Tell yourself a story of how it ends. Right down the 5W1H. Take just 1 step down the road. I bet you’ll want to go the rest of the way!

Dan