I just returned from a gorgeous walk out in the sun, made ever more wonderful by the fact that it has been raining practically non-stop for weeks. It actually feels like spring today; it’s only February 4th. Works for me.
Listening to a podcast this week, the speaker said that by February, only about 8% of people are still going strong with their New Years resolutions. That’s not even 1 in 10 people!
And in case you were wondering…yup, I’m still thinking about goals. Perhaps if I continue to keep them in the forefront of my mind, I will achieve great things this year?
In my last post I talked about how our goals often aren’t actual goals, but hopes. When we merely hope for things, the likelihood of us achieving them is slim to none. If we hope for things, but don’t create actionable steps to achieve them, they will likely just remain hopes.
This is likely true for the 92% that have already abandoned their resolutions for this year.
Hopes are like aspirations. We might hope or aspire to be successful, but what will get us that success?
Maybe we aspire to be a leader or own a business or get a degree or lose some weight or write a book or learn a new skill…
…so why don’t we achieve what we deeply desire?
Author and speaker Carrie Wilkerson argues that the reason we often don’t achieve is because we get too comfortable.
She goes on to say that most people are comfortable being 15-20 pounds overweight, comfortable with an average of $40,000 in debt, comfortable with never paying off their mortgage, comfortable living paycheck to paycheck, comfortable spending hours watching TV and mindlessly scrolling through apps on their phones.
For some, those might be fighting words. Perhaps it sounds caustic…perhaps, because it’s true.
I like to be comfortable, just as much as the next guy (or gal).
“A comfort zone is a beautiful place, but nothing ever grows there.”
“Great things never came from comfort zones.”
Do you want to grow? Do you want to achieve great things?
These quotes have encouraged me to get up and do something about my dreams.
The truth is, it’s far easier to be comfortable.
Easier, yes, but what if the other side of your big hairy audacious goal is something far greater?
It may not be easy to achieve, but I bet it’s worth it.
I remember reading a quote somewhere that went something like, “The great thing about the extra mile is that it’s never overcrowded.”
Think about it, if only less than one out of ten people stick with something, then if you can just keep going, you automatically out-do 90% of your competition! That’s pretty good odds of success!
So what sets apart this 8%?
Focus. 100% committed focus to achieving whatever goal it is that they’ve aspired to.
Whether or not you’ve stuck with your resolutions this year, it’s not too late and you don’t have to wait until next year to make more.
Resolve today to change one thing: Just one little thing that you can stick to (actionable like “walk 10 minutes every day,” not “lose 5 pounds”), and if you’re really feeling like attacking it head-on, track your progress every day so that you can celebrate your wins, or see that you either aren’t really committed to your goal, or that you need to maybe shift your goal into something more achievable.
Beginning with the new year I started tracking 10 routines that I wanted to accomplish every day (eg exercise, reading, etc). In addition to this, I usually set three daily goals that I make sure get done sometime during the day. By doing so, I stay focused and I’m able to prioritize what gets done. And, when I finish my day and reflect by checking off the boxes, I feel good that I have accomplished what I set out to do that day.
Do you have a big hairy audacious goal that you’ve set aside because you think it’s impossible? It doesn’t have to be! You just need to break it down into smaller and smaller steps and do at least one thing every day to get you closer to that goal.
Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.”
It’s time to start thinking you can. And you will, if you focus.
Happy achieving my friends!