Red Bull Motorsports
MotoGP
Reverse planning his goals has helped Marc Márquez and it can help you too
Mind Set Win host Cédric Dumont hears from the MotoGP™ legend before sharing an exercise we can adopt to reach our targets using the alternative goal-setting process of reverse planning.
During his record-breaking stint of MotoGP™ domination, the thought of doing anything in reverse would have been alien to Marc Márquez.
His goals were big, his expectations were high, and at full steam ahead he achieved them all in scintillating fashion with a riding style that frequently defied the laws of physics.
Eight world titles in 10 MotoGP™ seasons, including six in the premier category, brought victory after victory and cemented the Spaniard's legacy as one of the greatest riders in the history of his sport.
However, a 2020 crash in Jerez put the brakes on the winning and sent Márquez on a path of pain, multiple surgeries, comebacks and contemplation.
He reveals on the Mind Set Win podcast: “I was winning every year and that was normal, but then from one day to the next, I crashed, got injured and all the nightmares started.
Marc Márquez prepares for the French GP
© Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
Keeping the motivation was impossible, but keeping a positive mentality was possible
Márquez admits that during this challenging three-year period he realised he “needed to change something” in order to enjoy the sport again and reach his goals.
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Instead of planning the steps he needed to take from start to finish, Márquez flipped the process on its head and worked backwards. Before the ultimate goal of winning again, he needed to set realistic and achievable targets to keep his motivation high.
So going backwards from taking the chequered flag, Márquez set his sights on a podium, a sixth-placed finish, a fifth-placed finish, a top-10 finish. All things he knew would bring him an “extra boost” to continue on the right path.
When I realised my arm wasn’t ready to win races, that’s when I started to make some realistic goals
“My expectations were high, but my body was not ready to achieve that expectation, and that brought a lot of frustration," says Márquez.
“In the past, I was always thinking about the biggest possible things, but you forget that in order to achieve this big thing you need to achieve lots of smaller things.
“Before it was easy, but then when I was in that difficult moment I knew I needed to change something. I needed to understand how to find small motivations and small targets to arrive at the biggest target someday.”
Márquez ahead of this year's race at Le Mans
© Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
Episode 25 exercise
Dumont’s exercise focuses on the concept of backward planning and helps give you a clear roadmap of the milestones you need to hit when plotting your route to success. Let’s recap it now.
- Firstly, write down a specific goal and when you want to achieve it by.
- Now ask yourself, what is the last thing you need to achieve just before reaching that goal?
- Now think about your second to last goal. What do you need to have done and by when?
- Keep repeating this process working backwards from the previous step and remember to set a date every single time.
- This will help you work out which tasks need to be done, but also the steps that require the most effort. It will also help you plan your time accordingly.
Márquez is looking to get back to his best in 2023
© Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
Studies have shown that there are many advantages to reverse planning. Dumont reveals in the episode how a 2017 study by Chinese, Korean and American universities found that students who adopted the technique had higher expectations, more clarity and were more motivated and less anxious during their progress.
The study went on to explain how by starting at the end goal, we begin to experience feelings of excitement through imagining all our successful efforts to get there. This excitement gives us more motivation to reach our milestones en route to our ultimate ambition.
Testing the 2023 Repsol Honda machine
© Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
Márquez in rehabilitation from injury
© Jaime De Diego/Red Bull Content Pool
Dumont says: “We all know the saying ‘if you fail to plan, you plan to fail’ and research bears out that a well-made plan improves the chances of achieving our goals.”
For Márquez, it’s through careful planning and a commitment to the routines that’s brought him success in all aspects of his life. And success is something he’s still striving for during his 17th year on the grid.
“Before, success was winning. Only winning. Now, success is enjoying,” says the Repsol Honda rider.
“Of course, you enjoy it more if you win, but if you enjoy it, you have success in both your professional and personal life.”
Find out more – including simple exercises to do at home – in Mind Set Win.
