Phase 1: Planning Your Shift
What is the issue?
The goals you selected in the last lesson are big, broad and aspirational. They may even be a little bit scary.
This is why you need a strategy before you start making changes.
Strategy turns goals into reality through deliberate choices. In our personal health, the strategy is the only thing we can control.
It can be very strange to learn that what you thought were choices - how you eat, when you eat, how much exercise you get - aren’t purely voluntary. Strategy is how we work through complex environments like our brains and bodies using what we have as well as we can. I liken this to the sail of a boat. In sailing, remarkable pace, stability, consistency can be achieved with basic boats when the sail is used to its full capacity and the sailor (that’s you) is practiced.
In sailing, your success depends on two essential sails working in harmony.
The Jib (Your Tactics) - The small front sail that you adjust constantly to navigate changing conditions. Quick to maneuver, responsive to every shift in wind. This is what you do - the specific actions that keep you moving forward regardless of weather.
The Main Sail (Your Objectives) - The large rear sail that provides power and stability. Slower to adjust but creates the thrust that moves you toward your destination. This is how you'll do it - the consistency and structure that sustains you when seas get rough.
The Knot (Your Commitment) - What binds tactic and objective together into strategy. Without the knot, you have loose rope. With it, you have the commitment that transforms intention into action.
Strategy = Jib + Main Sail, Secured by Commitment
True strategy requires:
Choosing what NOT to do (you only have so many hands, rope and sail)
Starting where you are (using current wind conditions)
Making tomorrow different from today (adjusting your sails)
Adapting as you learn (trimming based on performance)
Small wins that build momentum (each successful sail adjustment)
In The Shift, strategy combines carefully chosen tactics with clear objectives:
Tactics = What You Do (Maneuvers of the Jib)
Specific actions you take
Small, doable steps
Build on existing habits
So possible that you could do them right now
Objectives = How You'll Do It (Main Sail)
Measurable targets
Clear timeframes
Reality-tested plans
Ways to track progress
Strategy = Tactics + Objectives
True strategy requires:
Choosing what NOT to do
Starting where you are
Making tomorrow different from today
Adapting as you learn
Small wins that build momentum
For Each Goal:
Metabolism Strategy: How you burn fuel and convert food to energy.
Jib tactics that respond to daily energy needs
Main sail objectives that make movement sustainable, not heroic
Appetite Strategy: How and what you eat, experience hunger and wanting.
Jib tactics that navigate daily food decisions
Main sail objectives that make above water eating automatic
Perspective Strategy: The story you tell yourself about all of it and the way you learn from patterns you observe in your life.
Jib tactics that shift moment-to-moment thinking
Main sail objectives that make self-compassion natural
Your strategy should feel like skilled sailing - responsive yet steady, adaptive yet purposeful.
Excellence in sailing, like excellence in health, isn't born from dramatic maneuvers. It comes from countless small sail adjustments, each one barely noticeable but collectively transformative. Think of an experienced sailor - their success isn't just about reaching the destination. It's about thousands of subtle corrections, reading wind patterns others miss, and making adjustments that seem effortless but require deep skill.
This is the essence of tactics in The Shift - the small, responsive adjustments that keep you moving toward your 10/10 Life through any conditions.
What do you think?
Consider your own life. What daily habits or routines have shaped who you are today? How did these habits form – through sudden, dramatic changes, or gradual, almost imperceptible shifts?
Sociology professor Daniel Chambliss, after years of studying elite swimmers, concluded:
"Excellence is mundane. Superlative performance is really a confluence of dozens of small skills or activities, each one learned or stumbled upon, which have been carefully drilled into habit and then are fitted together in a synthesized whole."
In your Captain's Log, note a few daily adjustments that, if made consistently, could significantly impact your course toward your 10/10 Life.
What else would be good to know?
In The Shift, tactics are your jib sail maneuvers - small, specific adjustments you make to navigate daily conditions. They're not life overhauls, but responsive actions that keep you moving forward.
Effective tactics share key traits:
Responsiveness: They can be adapted on the fly to changing conditions in your day.
Simplicity: Easy to execute without elaborate preparation.
Personalization: They fit your unique circumstances and capabilities.
Immediacy: You can implement them today, right now.
Flexibility: They're adaptable, evolving as you progress and your needs change.
For instance, if your goal is to boost energy for family activities, a tactic might be "Stand up and stretch." It's small, doable, immediate, and easily adjusted. Note that you don’t need to assign a frequency, intensity or quality to this right now. That is main sail stuff. We will get to that in the next lesson.
We're not aiming for perfection or overnight transformation. We're cultivating a series of small, sustainable actions that compound over time. As Chambliss notes, "There is nothing extraordinary or superhuman in any one of those actions; only the fact that they are done consistently and correctly, and all together, produce excellence."
How do I apply this right now? How do I explore this more?
For this strategy session, you'll select 1-3 tactics for each of the goals - MAP: Metabolism, Appetite and Perspective. area. That's 3-9 total tactics - enough to keep you responsive without overwhelming you.
If this is the first time you’re working on your health and weight in a non-diet way, consider just these three "baseline" tactics in The Shift:
Metabolism: Meeting your Daily Protein Target
Appetite: Meeting your Daily Fibre Target
Perspective: Keeping your Ship's Manifest
In the end, you will have 3-9 Tactics to work with on The Shift, which may include these three baseline tactics. Eventually these may become automatic (Phase 5) and you won’t need to apply a lot of thought and planning to them.
These tactics will be reviewed monthly in strategy sessions, where you'll assess what's working and what needs adjustment. Some may become so automatic they no longer need conscious attention. Others may need to be replaced with tactics that offer more appropriate challenge.
These tactics get re-selected every 1-2 months. We do this together at the SMS Weekenders.
In a few weeks to months, many could become automated and then you will have to pick new ones or ones that require a little more stretch to keep things interesting.
Keep in mind:
Consistency trumps intensity: Aim for actions that feel almost too easy. This is the opposite of the goals. Goals are aspirational. Tactics are practical.
Use existing momentum: Look for ways to integrate new tactics into existing habits.
Exploit your intrinsic motivation: Focus on what genuinely motivates you, not what you think you "should" do.
You may stop reading the lesson and do these activities now or wait until the end of the lesson to do the activities in sequence.
Once you complete this lesson, the activities will appear on their own pages so you can find them and repeat them anytime.
Activity 1:
Selecting Your Personalized Tactics
In this activity, you will select 1-3 additional tactics per goal through a structured process.
Activity 2:
Reality-Testing Your Personalized Tactics
By taking these small steps now, you're not just planning for change – you're already beginning to make it happen, one tactic at a time.
This process helps refine your tactics, ensuring they're not just achievable, but also sustainable and engaging.
Now that you've selected your tactics, let's give each one a quick test run over the next 15 minutes.
This activity will help you take one concrete step towards implementing each tactic in your daily life.
You will repeat this activity for each of your personalized tactics. Sometimes more than once until you find something that works for you right now and is low friction with your current reality.
How do I bring it all together?
By now, you’ve gazed at the horizon and been inspired by your destination but perhaps also a little daunted. This is normal. Now, in order to make The Shift feel doable right now, you can redirect your gaze to the near field, to your boat and to your inner experience of the mind.
This is where you take small steps consistently and focus just on this. You already did the enormous work of identifying values, the 10/10 Life and your goals. The selection of tactics is the first step towards committed action in the direction of your 10/10 Life.
Reflect on your chosen tactics within the context of your broader journey:
How do these tactics collectively support your goals?
In what ways do they embody your values and vision of your 10/10 Life?
How can you weave these tactics into your daily life?
How will you use The Ship’s Manifest and The Captain’s Log to track your consistency?
If desired, you can now download and complete this one page display of your Tactics. It will get more layered in the next lessons.
How will I know if this is making a difference? How do I start noticing the changes?
As you implement your tactics, be attuned to subtle shifts:
Increased agency: You may feel a growing sense of control over your journey.
Evolving self-perception: Successfully implementing these tactics may reshape your belief in your capacity for change.
Unexpected improvements: You might notice positive changes in areas beyond the specific focus of each tactic.
Automaticity: Over time, these actions may require less conscious effort, becoming ingrained habits.
Document these observations in your Captain's Log. Regular reflection on your progress, however incremental, reinforces your commitment and fuels ongoing motivation.
What is next?
In our next lesson, we'll help you set your main sail - transforming these jib tactics into powerful objectives with clear structure and measurable progress. We'll also explore how your tactics will evolve over time, ensuring they continue propelling you toward your destination.
Remember, tactic selection is ongoing. You'll regularly review and adjust them at the SMS Weekenders or on your own. The key is to begin with tactics that feel both achievable and motivating right now.
Trust in the cumulative power of these small, responsive adjustments. With consistent jib work, you're not just working toward your goals - you're reaching your Life Weight in any condition or circumstance.