The Ascension Game
Reach your full potential through daily action
The Ultimate Plan To Living A Full Life
This is the same guide I use with my 1:1 clients to help them start planning their life. All here for you to use for free.
To reach your full potential you have to constantly plan and challenge yourself. This program is designed to create results for high performers by giving you challenges and forcing you to commit to actions and execute everyday. Gain clarity, build confidence, and expand your potential.
This program is free for anyone to use. If you need help figuring out what direction you need to go in or overcoming challenges to getting what you want, that's when coaching comes into play. If you need more 1:1 help check out the "90 Day Coaching Intensive."
Are you ready to change your life?
STEP 1: Yearly Intentions
What direction are you going this year? What do you really want? Write out your full intentions for this next year. Make a list of what you want for...
- your health
- your income
- your relationships
- your purpose
It's OK to dream big, these are not commitments, they are intentions that will help direct your actions over the next year. Here are some examples...
- I have increased my income to $10k a month through helping people become financially stable with my unique planning methods.
- I am living in a huge log cabin in the woods with a perfect view of the mountains. There is room for all the family to come visit. We have fun playing with the kids in the huge indoor pool and watching the sunset on the huge back deck. The 6 car garage is filled with nice custom cars and motorcycles for us to take leisurely drives in the mountains and watch the leaves turn from green to bright red and shades of amber fire.
Tell a story that you can visually see yourself in your head enjoying. Use the wording as if this has already happened to you, the thing is already part of your life.
STEP 2: Quarterly Direction
Every quarter you are going to go through the process of choosing a direction for all areas of your life, not just business. It will cover health, income, relationships, and purpose.
Write down all 4 of these on a piece of paper (health, income, relationships, and purpose) and for each list out how you are going to improve in these 4 areas to get you closer to your yearly intentions. Answer what you are going to do and how you are going to do it.
Example for health: I am going to loses 25 lbs and build strength. I will be doing this by watching my carb intake, eating more salads, supplementing protein, eating out no more than 2 days a week and working out in the gym 3 days a week. I will also do a 30 minute ruck walk 2 days a week.
Next, get out your calendar and start scheduling time for the following monthly challenges:
1: Try something new once a month:
Try yoga, boxing, crafts, a new hobby or class that might look interesting. The goal here is to continually discover who you are. Life is an experience and you have to get out and do things to get to know yourself better.
2: Visit a new place
A park, museum, city, or venue are options. This also stretches who you are by seeing new people, new things, and possibly making new friends. Experience something new every month to expand your horizons.
3: Meet new people
Go to a group event like hiking, group bike ride, car meet, meetup event, class, etc. This should be an event where people can go meet new people and make new friends. To meet this goal you have to talk to someone new. They don't have to become a friend but you at least have to meet someone you never talked to before.
As you uplevel your life you will find some friendships don't last, which is fine. Essentially you are the average of your 5 closest friends. The fastest way to expand your potential is to make new friends. If you are the smartest person in the room you are in the wrong room. Always be reaching out to make friends with people who are where you want to be.
4: Evaluate your intentions
As you learn and grow you may find your intentions grow. Continually add to your intentions as you learn more about what you want from life. Reserve the quarterly review to evaluate and change/remove old intentions.
You might be asking the question, can I do 1, 2 and 3 at the same time? Yes you can! If you find an event that meets all 3 categories that one event meets the criteria for that month. However, I would urge you to do all 3 separately. You will find the more you get out and experience the faster you grow.
Get these on the calendar! Later you will add them to your daily planner and check them off as part of your score.
STEP 3: Weekly Targets
Now to pick your weekly targets. I recommend doing this every Sunday, if not first thing Monday morning. If you really want to be ahead do it Friday the week prior.
Print this planner and fill it out as outlined below. Remember, choose wisely. What you put on this planner is what you are committing to working on every day this week.
Income
List out up to ten things you are going to accomplish this week to grow your income. These should be in line with your intentions and quarterly direction.
Health
Being healthy requires doing the right things to get there and stay there. We all start somewhere and are at different levels so do not judge what you are doing against someone else. Choose what is right for you. I do list some minimums here but within those you still have options. Lifting heavy when you are first starting out could be step ups with a 25 lbs weight. The goal is measured improvement over time.
- Move goals: gym, walk, run, weightlifting, you choose. Minimum 5 days cardio, 3 days heavy lifting, 15 minutes each workout. Cardio can be 15 minute walk at fast pace (heart rate above 100). Do what you can with what you have and strive for better every time.
- Food goals: List foods you are going to avoid and what you plan on incorporating. Recommended: Cut out sugary drinks and avoid fried food. Drink water! Personally I refuse to eat fast food. The goal is to pay attention how you feel after you eat. If it makes you feel like crap, it doesn't matter how good it tastes. It's not healthy for you.
- 20 minutes outside daily! Workout outside counts
Connection
- One event with friends or date night a week. This can be one of the events you already have in the calendar or it can just be dinner out at your favorite joint. The point here is to continually grow your relationships especially with your spouse. Do something every week that you can grow together. The more the better but at least once a week, even if you are uncomfortable. In fact, if you are uncomfortable getting out with your spouse and doing something this task is more important. If money is an issue, do something interactive at home. I will create a list of options and post is here at a later date.
- Reach out to a friend or make a new friend once a week. This isn't a short text, this is a longer conversation with them. Learn something new!
Purpose
How are you going to learn and grow this week? The deeper you go internally the more you know what fills your soul. Some options are...
- Learning: book, podcasts, class
- Meditation
- Self development course
- Call with a coach
- Church
Morning routine
What is your morning going to look like every day this week?
- Daily planner (required)
- Gratitude (required)
- Supplements (if any)
- Meditation (recommended)
- Shower, ice bath, gym?
Summary
The goal is to push yourself every week. No week will be perfect but you can continue to move forward and get better over time.
STEP 4: Daily Action
This is where the rubber meets the road. You will plan our your daily actions everyday and mark them complete as you finish them. Part of the daily actions includes reflecting on how things are going and what you could do better. High level successful people are constantly reviewing their actions and challenging themselves to be better. Following this plan you can grow exponentially.
Download and print the daily planner.
Plan Your Days for Action
Use your weekly targets and align your daily commitments with your targets and calendar. Fill out the planner every morning and check off all your actions when complete. All checks mean a win and your daily score goes up. If you miss anything, your score for tomorrow resets back to day 1.
Your daily score will consist of completing the following:
- Morning routine
- Health: Move and food
- Discover: Learn something (podcast, read)
- Connection: Teach someone, help someone, message someone a thoughtful message
- Gratitude
- Daily improvement
- Daily targets tracking
- Evening plans
- Evening journal
As you track your score your confidence will increase and you will push yourself more to level up your life.
Why This All Matters
Every area of your life through Health, Wealth, Connection, and Purpose affects all other areas. If anyone one of them is off too far then they all start declining. There is no such thing as a perfectly balanced life but there are ebs and flows. If you pay attention you will know when one area of your life needs more attention. The Ascension Game will help you stay conscious of what's going on in your life while challenging you to constantly improve all areas of your life.
Join Me Online
Post your results and tag me on instagram @realajmcdonald. I love seeing your success and would like to celebrate with you! Together we can help others become aware of what's possible and change for the better.