I’m a BDO Kind of Girl… 😉
The BDO is my go-to solution to get unstuck from overwhelm. From the book, Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, which was the lightbulb moment that taught me to weigh my options between the BTO and the BDO (definitions below).
Happy 2-Tips Tuesday!
Here are two ideas to consider this week.
By Jennifer Broxterman, RD
1. I’m a BDO kind of girl… 😉
A lot of my nutrition coaching success has come down to this formula:
+ read a book
+ learn something useful
+ teach something valuable to a nutrition client
+ help them implement the concept or lesson
+ remember their success as a story or metaphor
+ teach it again to more clients
So, here’s a story about Janice (one of my nutrition clients), and Jen (that’s me!).
Book credit goes to Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, which was the lightbulb moment that taught me to weigh my options between the BTO and the BDO (we’ll define what those mean in a sec).
Back to Janice.
Janice was a former client of mine who had big goals of working her way up to run a half marathon race. She purchased a 12-week, 4x/week running program, and she planned to follow it to a T while working with me for nutrition coaching.
But Janice was also a mom with two young kids, and the reality was she only had one time slot each week where she had designated childcare and could escape for two hours to train.
Sure, there were certainly other times in the week where she could go for a short jog or a long walk with the kids in their stroller, but it didn’t seem like enough. She wanted to follow the program properly so she could get through the half marathon race in the best time possible.
The result: Janice put running on hold indefinitely until she had the time to diligently follow the program and train for her race the “optimal way”. She never did sign up for that half marathon…
Consider this:
An option that doesn’t exist in reality isn’t actually an option.
It’s just an idea, or a Best Theoretical Option (BTO).
Enter: the BDO
Janice did not have the luxury in her schedule to block off four 1-2-hour blocks to run. This was not an option. Her solution was then to do nothing at all.
The BDO stands for the Best Doable Option.
Imagine instead, if Jance had chosen the BDO for her training plan.
In her case, this would have meant doing one long run a week, plus some shorter walks and jogs with the kiddos in tow. Still a better option than nothing at all, right?
I do think about Janice when I’m feeling overwhelmed or “behind”, and then I mutter to myself, “An option that doesn’t exist in reality isn’t actually an option. What’s the BDO here?”
Here are a few examples for my own BDO’s:
✅ I should meditate regularly (BTO), but I can do 3-4 rounds of box breathing (BDO).
✅ I should stretch daily (BTO), but I can do the cooldown exercises my gym programs after class (BDO).
✅ I should eat a ½ plate of vegetables with all of my dinners (BTO), but when we order pizza, I can add extra veggies on top, or add a side salad, or pull out the baby carrots from the fridge (BDO).
✅ I should finish every work project I start (BTO), but I can do the most important task this week that moves my business forward (BDO).
Say it with me:
“An option that doesn’t exist in reality isn’t actually an option. What’s the BDO here?”
To me, the BDO is about giving up the pressure of perfection and optimal execution, and just doing whatever is your BEST and most DOABLE action, right now.
2. Coach yourself, in this very moment!
Don’t let the lesson of Janice (BTO) and Jen (BDO) go to waste. If you’ve made it this far, take one minute to reflect on something that’s been tripping you up. A “should” and BTO that’s felt like a 800 lb gorilla sitting on your chest.
Let that gorilla go! 🦍
Can you set your gorilla free (BTO), and swap it for a more agile and lighter monkey (BDO) that still gets the job done, imperfectly? 🐒
Write down your 🦍 BTO to BDO 🐒 swap, and apply it today.
Or, try it out with a nutrition client who just can’t seem to break the all-or-nothing mindset.
#share
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www.prospernutritioncoaching.com/blog/BDO
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❤️🐻🌈
Jen
Jen Broxterman
Registered Dietitian
Prosper Nutrition Coaching
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Jennifer Broxterman, MSc, RD
REGISTERED DIETITIAN & SPORTS NUTRITIONIST
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