I started this year gung ho. I positioned myself to have my best year ever. Pretty exciting. I had my theme- “Live Like No One Else Will”. I wrote down my 3 BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals).
I was ready to crush it.
When the bells finished ringing on New Year’s Eve I was off to the races. Fully committed, my alarm couldn’t ring early enough. Night came too quickly. I was feeling good and riding high.
Until….April.
Do you ever have this experience? You fully commit to a goal, get excited and ramped up, buy a gym membership, start that first novel, throw out all the holiday treats and set that alarm 30 minutes earlier? Then, after a bit of time the newness wears off, it gets easier to skip the routine and those goals you set days, weeks months (minutes?) ago start to seem a little less important. I started to experience this during the month of April. I was (am) still committed to my goals for the year and I was (am) still working daily towards their completion but I just felt my enthusiasm was waning.
I took a week vacation hoping it would clear my head and get me back on track but all it did was encourage my “lazy brain” – being unfocused appears great. I say “appears” because the reality is there is nothing great about being unfocused. It’s an empty calorie that after it is finished leaves you wanting something more. The vacation didn’t work. So as I considered ways of recharging my enthusiasm and sparking my engagement I came up with the following 7 practices for overcoming the mid-goal doldrums.
1- Power Through – Sometimes you just have to power through. As evidenced above- although I was feeling uncommitted in April I still stuck to my routine. I woke up every weekday at 5:30am and did my pushups. I still made time to write a minimum of 500 words (you can check out that challenge at http://www.familybeforefortune.com/blog/30daychallengepost/. As I committed my mind to goal completion I found the repetition and the accomplishment of sticking with the effort gave me motivation. The motivation was not just in the goal but in not giving up on the goal.
2- Remember how far you have come – When my alarm goes off I lie there momentarily thinking of a million reasons to stay put. Nothing could possibly be more important than 10 minutes more of sleep (so I rationalize). But then I shift my thinking to how far I have come this year. This truly is the best year I have ever had. I have accomplished more in the first 4 months than all of 2013 combined. That pumps me up. I am excited to grow even further. And so, I roll out of bed and go.
3- Focus on those who believe in you – You are not alone, though at times it can feel that way. Each of us has our support systems. A cheering section of those who want you to be super successful and conquer your goals. Close your eyes and imagine your biggest fan- for me it is my wife- and imagine that person in a packed stadium where everyone is standing and clapping and whistling and cheering. The chant is go! Go! Go! Focus in on the face and voice of that one greatest fan. You can do it!
4- Review and repeat – Never let your head hit the pillow without first reading over your goals and recognizing your efforts. As you review nightly your commitments they become part of who you are. They will be on your mind and that powerful subconscious will spend the night (and the day) searching for solutions and ways to make it happen. Your goals are like a rollercoaster at the top of huge hill. All you have to do is make sure that coaster is on the track and gravity will take you through the routine.
5- Get an accountability partner – For nearly two years I have had an accountability partner. We have a 20 minute call first thing every Monday morning. On this call I have to account for my progress the previous week and stake my expectations for the current week. If I do not perform my partner lets me know. If my upcoming week isn’t transformative enough- he lets me know. Disappointment is a powerful motivator
6- Just Start – the hardest time for me to focus and get in the flow is the evenings. After a long day at work and then dinner and homework and the bedtime routine I sit on the couch and give myself the mental pep talk to focus and write or do some more work. I come up with every excuse in the book to not focus in tonight- push it off another day. But then (usually) I fight my way to the laptop and begin to work. A funny thing happens, within a few minutes, the temptation that I just overcame disappears and I find myself energized and steadily getting in the flow. Sometimes you just have to power through the fatigue and desire to quit and just start. The rest will flow.
7- Cheat Day – Finally, sometimes, you just need a little cheat. I have given myself permission to watch one movie a week (I love movies- I mean LOVE movies) but last week I just needed a cheat. I spent two nights movie watching. It made me feel so much better and recommitted and motivated. It was worth the break. On this point, I caution you about falling off the wagon. One cheat can lead to two cheats can lead to 30 days of Lost reruns. Know what your weakness is and employ safeguards to make sure you don’t abuse the cheat. You could limit cheats to one per month or quarter. You could substitute something else you enjoy for that cheat (like because I watched that extra movie this week I get zero next or I don’t get ice cream for a week (I love ice cream too)).
Employing the above 7 practices has helped me stay focused and accomplish more this year. Although I had the April “blahs” I am feeling better. I am reenergized and ready to tackle my BHAGs.
Question- How do overcome your waning enthusiasm and recommit to you goals? What secrets do use? Leave your thoughts below or by clicking here
If you like what you read you should subscribe to my newsletter and I will let you know when my next post is live.