Mix It Up

Sometimes, it pays to adjust your training to fit more closely with the exact goals you are trying to accomplish. Of course, this makes perfect sense. But, many people ignore the law of specificity when it comes to training.

It is noble to create a specific training plan and then be extremely diligent in carrying it out. However, as you become more advanced, you will find that designing training that directly influences the exact skills you are trying to improve upon works best.

For example, I have added sprint and hill training to my weekly workouts to compensate for the new demands placed on my body for starting competitive rugby again. I had begun to find out (the hard way) that general cardio fitness developed from running at a constant rate on a treadmill or in my neighborhood does not even remotely prepare you for the stop and go style of a competitive sport. This is even harder when you have younger and stronger guys chasing you and trying to turn you into a lawn divot.

Establishing a foundation of fitness is extremely important, but eventually, you must get specific. What are the abilities I need to develop? What are the skills that are needed from this new demand? What are my weaknesses that are not improving? This frank discussion with yourself must end with new action steps that customize your efforts to your new goals.

The same concepts apply to business development. Yes, you must learn the basics and establish a baseline of competency. However, once you get specific goals, such as developing your speaking skills or conducting great first client meetings, there is no substitute for actual practice and working on honing those specific skills.

Specificity of training is hard. But, trying to make your generic program one that produces specific skills that get you closer to your goals is much, much harder.