We’re well into February, my friends, and I’m curious: How are your New Year goals/intentions/resolutions going?
Still hard at it at the gym? Eating those dark leafy greens several times a week? Making solid progress on the novel you’ve had squirreled away in your guts all these years?
If so, I’m sending you great big high-fives and happy dancing for your success!
If not, let me officially welcome you to the majority of humanity! I have no statistics (though I’m sure there are plenty out there) and yet will happily bet a moment of public ridiculousness that dropped goals outweigh completed goals by a million to one across the globe and through time.
Dropping the ball doesn’t need to mean dropping the goal, though. Instead, let’s Pause, regroup, reevaluate, and move forward heart-first, shall we?
Step 1: Offer yourself some compassion for being part of a species that often dreams bigger than it acts.
Imperfection is a part of the process; our progress much more often resembles the back-and-forth steps of a cha-cha than the steady incline of a highway on-ramp. That’s true for all of us, regardless of what your tough-talking inner gremlin voice is likely to say.
Step 2: Invite in some exploration of what’s keeping you from moving forward with your goal.
You might use these questions to prompt some journaling or conversation with a trusted confidant:
- What is the deepest purpose of this goal?
- Is this goal my best approach to that deepest purpose?
- Have I broken the goal down into actionable steps?
- Have I made time to tackle those actionable steps?
- What are the reasons I’m giving myself for not moving forward? Is there validity to those reasons or are they excuses in disguise?
Step 3: Do the smallest thing you can toward that goal if/when you decide it’s still valid to you.
Right away. Don’t pause, don’t think too hard about the step. Perfection is the enemy of done, and doing any tiny thing adds a little juice to your motivation tank.
If you’d like a little extra support (and play) around these steps and moving forward with the 2018 you most want to create, come out to one (or both!) of my free classes coming up this week!
Roanoke friends: We’re getting together this Wednesday, February 21, at Little Green Hive on Grandin Road starting at 6pm – but come early because you’re going to want to grab a yummy beverage and snack from my pals Sharon and Leo.
New River Valley friends: We’re making it happen at the Radford Public Library this Thursday, February 22, starting at 6. Bonus at this one: My pal Elizabeth, director of the library, is giving away a 2018 planner to one lucky participant!
At both events, we’ll be breaking down the process to discovering the purpose of your goal(s) and getting to the place where dreams become actions.
I’d love to see you there!