Don’t Quit But Readjust Your Plans
“Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.” — Jim Rohn
There’s a great deal written about goal attainment nowadays, so I want to focus on how daily action, irrespective of its size, compounds into more momentum. The problem or solution, whichever way we think of it, is that we have a goal to achieve by a specific date. I use problem or solution concurrently because our goal can be viewed through two lenses based on our current position. One thing is sure: we should move toward our goals regardless of what we encounter. The journey to reach our goals is seldom easy; it was never meant to be easy. If we believe it is, I challenge you to investigate the belief further. Perhaps you are setting lofty goals or ones that are easily attainable. The purpose of goals is the personal growth experienced along the way. I’m not suggesting that the final goal is of lesser importance, yet if it were not for the growth that takes place, the goal itself would be meaningless. The joy of the experience and who we become makes it worthwhile.
Quitting when the going gets tough is the easy way out, but readjusting our plans is a powerful act of self-determination. Abandoning our goals is like giving up on a journey because of a temporary roadblock. Yet, this is what many people do. They lack the confidence to find a solution and give up. However, that is the purpose of goals. To find new ways to reach them, gain new skills, and discover more about ourselves. Can you identify with this narrative of wanting to throw in the towel on a project or goal? If so, how did you find the motivation to succeed?
Find Ways To Motivate Yourself
“We are the creative force of our life, and through our own decisions rather than our conditions, if we carefully learn to do certain things, we can accomplish those goals.” — Stephen Covey
According to author Larry Weidel, goals require constant motion and making informed decisions: “If you want to win, you have to keep moving forward. To keep moving forward, you have to keep making decisions.” To achieve our goals, we should establish firm habits to support us in reaching them. Without good habits, external conditions and our internal world control us. I’ve coached hundreds of people who say they experience a loss of inspiration while pursuing their goals. Successful people like you and me are prone to feeling unmotivated occasionally. The difference, however, is that they have a strong framework of habits to fall back on. They don’t contemplate giving up or changing their goal but will adjust their route to get there. Consider an author who wants to write an 80,000-word novel and encounters periods of being unmotivated. They know they will fall behind their deadline if they miss a day of writing, and soon, their publisher will be on their back to complete the book on time. While projects and deadlines are good motivators, they can sometimes work against us depending on our motivational type. So, if we respond favorably to deadlines and have sound habits in place, we will likely stick to our goals. Knowing this, what habits do you have to mitigate a loss of motivation? Do these habits work for you, and how do you measure their effectiveness?
We should find ways to motivate ourselves, knowing conditions needn’t be optimal to tackle our goals. We may wake up feeling tired or with a cold or flu and still pursue our goals, anyway. That’s why sound habits are essential, especially when we are less inclined to pursue them. For example, when writing one of my earlier books, I planned to write one thousand words daily to finish the manuscript on time. However, there were days when life got in the way, and I missed writing anything due to other pressing matters. Yet, through good habits, I made up for it in the ensuing days by writing two thousand words or more. A strange thing happened as a result. The momentum of my habits pulled me along, and I completed over ninety-five percent of the manuscript. I was ahead because my habits forced me to focus on the task instead of being dictated by external factors. As the saying goes: “Easy to do, easy not to do.”
Create Sound Habits And Stick To Them
“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” — Zig Ziglar
Years ago, when I was coaching clients on their health goals, I recall many needed help setting goals with a specific end date. According to them, the goal seemed difficult because of the gap separating their desires from their current position. Most of the time, the client needed to form habits in this area, and it was my task to help them create the right ones to reach their goals. They were surprised when I set a plan that involved walking around the block twice in the first week and increasing it over the coming weeks. I imagine they were looking for a magic nutritional formula, specific exercises, and supplements to achieve their goals, yet it was much simpler than that. I wanted first to create sound habits they could stick to until it became second nature. It required focusing on building a solid foundation in the initial stages. When they were secure with their habit, the momentum was like a wheel rolling downhill; it gathered enough energy to keep it moving.
I liken it to consulting with an architect when planning to build a new home. In the initial discussion, they were unlikely to discuss the fittings for the kitchen or bathroom since that would come later. It involves agreeing on the designs for the foundations and framework first, then the rest will follow. That is the key principle of this article. Smaller steps become giant momentum if we keep moving toward our goals. If we stop or quit, we need to find the motivation to start again and create new habits from scratch. With this in mind, consider a goal you want to give up on. What small steps could you take each day? Think small and remain committed to the actions required to achieve it. Recall my earlier example of writing a book. While 1,000 words a day may seem like a lot of work, it could be chunked down to 500 words written in the morning and afternoon. The key is consistency. Quitting is not the answer; however, adapting our plan should be the aim to reach our goals.
Are You Ready to Transform Your Life with Confidence?
Are you ready to transform your life and unlock your potential? Start your journey with me today! My Life Coaching Program has empowered many to achieve lasting change. Schedule your FREE 30-minute consultation now and take the first step towards a brighter, more confident you.
Tony Fahkry
Expert Life Coach
