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Hey everyone, welcome back to Podcast and Chill. I'm Leo

and I'm Gwen. How are you feeling today?

We hope you're still doing well and ready to learn something new with us.

Leo, I want to ask you something. Have you ever felt like it's hard to handle work, study, health, family, and your hobbies?

Oh, wow. Yes. All the time. I feel like I'm always trying to do everything, but never really doing well at anything.

That's exactly what I thought. And here's another question. Why do so many people set goals but still can't reach them?

Hm. Maybe because we give up too easily. I know I do that a lot.

Right. And do you ever feel like days just pass by? And you're tired but feel like you haven't done much.

Story of my life. I go to bed thinking, "What did I actually do today? It's annoying." And it's like every new year I make a big list. I'll go to the gym three times a week. I'll eat healthy. I'll learn a new language. Then what? Two weeks later, back to pizza and old habits. And the time feels like it's running fast, but still no change.

I think many of our listeners feel the same way, Leo. But here's the good news. It's not because you're lazy or weak. The problem is not only with goals. The real problem is with the system.

A system like a robot system？

Not exactly. A system means your daily habits, your plan, things around you, all the things that help you move toward your goal step by step.

Ah, I see. So, it's not about screaming, "This year I will change my life." It's about building something that can help change happen.

And that's why today we'll talk about how to build systems to actually reach your goals before 2025 ends.

Oh, that sounds much better because honestly, my 2024 goals are still waiting for me and I'm done feeling tired all the time.

Perfect. So, let's start with something that might change how you think about reaching your goals.

Hold on, Gwen. I want to ask you something first. We are talking about goals, big goals here, but many people give up quickly. Why does that happen?

Let me ask you back. What usually happens when you try to reach a goal?

Well, I get excited at first. I make a plan like yes this year I'll go to the gym every day but after a week my body hurts work gets busy and goodbye gym.

Uh-huh. And you probably think I just need to try harder or I need more motivation, right?

Yeah. I always blame myself for not trying harder or something like that.

That's the challenge, Leo. People only use motivation. Motivation feels so strong in the beginning, like something new and exciting, but then after some time, the energy goes down and life makes it hard for you.

Yep. That suddenly I'm sitting on the sofa with chips saying, "Tomorrow I'll try again." And then tomorrow becomes next week, next month, and the goal disappears.

But don't worry, it's not you, Leo. The real problem here is the way you're doing it. Most people try to run only on willpower and motivation. But those things are like batteries. They run out.

So now what? Do we just need bigger batteries?

No. The answer is systems thinking.

Systems thinking, that sounds very serious, like something in science.、

It's actually very simple. Systems thinking means you shouldn't just try harder. Instead, build small habits that work together, like parts of a machine.

Parts of a machine. So everything moves smoothly.

Yeah. Let me give you an example. Think about brushing your teeth. You don't need motivation every night. You just do it because it's part of your system.

True. I never say, "Oh, no. I don't feel motivated to brush my teeth today. I just do it."

That's the point. We need to make learning or working become habits we do without thinking. Just like brushing teeth.

Okay. But how do I build that system?

Now let's use English learning as an example. If you say I will study 3 hours every night, it sounds too hard. You'll give up fast.

Yeah, 3 hours feels like too much.

But if you break it into small parts, it feels lighter.

Small parts like Lego blocks.

Yes, Lego blocks. Instead of saying, I'll study 3 hours every night, you break it into smaller parts. I'll study for 30 minutes after work right at