“I just need someone to tell me EXACTLY what to do, and I’ll do it.”

I remember thinking this at various points in my life when I was desperate for change-

whether I was thinking about wanting to get in shape, or later in life, looking for ways to build my business.

It’s a comforting thought, isn’t it? 

The thought that someone else has all the answers for us-

that if they’d just share those answers with us, all of our problems would go away overnight.

I hear this sentiment from people all the time when it comes to their fitness-

guys tell me that they “just need a solid program” and they’ll be good to go,

or people ask me to “tell them exactly what to eat” and they’ll do it.

It’s not reality, though.

There is no “perfect” workout split, macro breakdown, or fasting window.

But it’s tempting to believe one exists—because if the answer is “out there,” you don’t have to do the hard work of figuring out what works for you.

Anytime we’re spoon-fed information- whatever problem we were trying to solve is just being pushed off till later.  It will resurface.

More than that, though, when we’re spoon-fed information- we’re robbed of the chance to truly learn.

It’s one thing to memorize facts- it’s quite another to go through an experience, have a few challenges, have to course correct…

and emerge on the other side having truly learned the lesson.

One way teaches you to be dependent on others for answers about your life, the other teaches you how to look inside and find your own answers.

And that’s where real growth happens.

Yes, there’s a time and place for guidance. For structure. For someone more experienced to lay out a starting point so you’re not spinning your wheels.

But that’s just the beginning.

A plan that only works when life is perfect isn’t a real plan—it’s a fantasy. 

And if your only tool is someone else's instructions, then every deviation becomes a crisis. 

You blame yourself for not following the script, instead of learning how to adapt the script to your life.

That’s not discipline. That’s dependency.

Here’s what I do instead:

When I coach someone, we don’t just hand them a meal plan or a workout split and call it good. We build a system together. One that actually fits their life. One they understand. One they can modify as things change.

And when they struggle to follow the plan—which always happens—we don’t shame them. We troubleshoot.

We look at:

• What’s not working?

• Why is it breaking down?

• What does life actually look like right now?

Then we adjust. And in doing that, they don’t just get better results—they gain a skillset.

They learn how to problem-solve.
They learn how to adjust without losing momentum.
They learn how to trust themselves.

Because the real win in fitness (and honestly, in life) isn’t following someone else’s instructions perfectly. It’s becoming the kind of person who can adapt, think critically, and stay consistent even when things get messy.

So if you’ve been telling yourself you just need the “perfect plan”...

Maybe what you really need is a better system—
One that evolves with you.
One that teaches you how to think.
One that makes you more capable, not more dependent.

I’m fully aware that this approach isn’t for everyone. It requires a ton of effort, communication and personal responsibility.

In other words, it’s the hard road. It’s the opposite of the easy button.

But it’s also the lasting solution—the one that doesn’t just change how you train,
it changes how you handle everything else.

Because once you stop chasing the perfect plan...
and start building the skill of adaptation—
you don’t just get better in the gym.

You get sharper, steadier, and harder to knock off course.