I Used to Set Better Goals. Now I Build Better Habits

Every January, I set better goals.

Clear goals.

Specific goals.

Goals I genuinely cared about.

And for a few weeks, it worked.

Then life happened.

Busy days.

Low-energy mornings.

Missed routines that slowly unraveled.

I remember thinking, I’m doing everything right - why doesn’t this last?

What I finally understood

It wasn’t that I didn’t want it badly enough.

I cared deeply about my health, my routines, and how I showed up in my life.

What I didn’t understand yet was this:

Goals depend on motivation.

And motivation is unreliable when life gets full.

That realization was uncomfortable, but freeing.

The shift that changed everything

I stopped trying to set better goals and started building better habits.

Goals focus on outcomes.

Habits focus on identity.

A goal says, “I want to lose weight.”

A habit says, “I’m someone who takes care of my body.”

Goals are something you reach for.

Habits are something you practice.

That shift changed everything for me.

Why habits hold when goals fall apart

Habits don’t ask for perfection.

They ask for repetition.

They work on low-energy days.

They survive busy seasons.

They don’t disappear when motivation fades.

Think about this:

You don’t rise to the level of your goals.

You fall to the level of your systems.

If your system relies on willpower, it breaks.

If your system fits your real life, it holds.

Where accountability fits

This is where most people struggle to do this on their own.

Knowing habits matter is one thing.

Building them consistently is another.

This is exactly why I built MKH.

Not to hand out another plan,

but to provide real accountability, structure, and support while habits are forming.

Because habits are fragile at the beginning.

And support is what helps them stick.

What this looks like in real life

Real change is quieter than we expect.

It looks like:

• habits you can keep on your hardest days

• systems that make the right choice easier

• support instead of self-criticism

This is why I don’t chase goals the way I used to.

I still care about outcomes.

I just know now that habits are what actually get you there.

If you want this January to feel different, don’t start by asking what you want to achieve.

Start by asking who you want to become - and what that person does consistently, even on ordinary days.

– Mailoha