"The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and starting on the first one." — Mark Twain
Moving...
It's consistently ranked as one of the MOST stressful life events (though I'm not sure if researchers included "global pandemic" as an option in their previous research...🤔),
Because the amount of tiny details involved can make the whole event pretty overwhelming.
As I mentioned in my email last week, my husband and I are gearing up to move out of state in about a month and with each item that gets checked off of our to-do list, it feels like 5 more get added.
It's a BIG task.
And if we zoom out and think about ALL THE THINGS that need to be done...it can feel next to impossible to accomplish.
Which isn't very different than when someone decides to improve their health,
And they realize that the GAP between where they are now and where they want to be is pretty large.
"Oh, you want to get healthy? ALL you need to do is..."
Sleep 8 hours a night
Take at least 7,500 steps a day
Plan and/or cook your own meals
Eat 5-8 servings of fruits and vegetables daily
Eat a full serving of protein at every meal
Exercise at least 4 days per week
Drink at least 80 oz of water per day
Practice gratitude, self-reflection and mindfulness daily
Ok, boss...I'll get right on that. 🙄
The reality is that picking up and moving to another state isn't easy...but it IS possible.
Just like changing unhealthy habits that have been part of your life for 20, 30, or 40+ years...
Easy? Not very.
Possible? Most definitely.
But only with patience, perseverance AND planning.
And part of a winning plan is being able to take your BIG SCARY goal and break it down into small actionable steps.
Maybe you've heard the old adage,
"How do you eat an elephant?"
But you can't just start with any bite...
It needs to be a small, appetizing, and easy to chew bite.
Because when you can break a big goal down into small steps that are SO EASY,
Steps that you WANT to do and that you are ABLE to do,
👉 You're likelihood of doing them becomes exponentially greater.
What does that look like in practice?
Drawing from the list above, identify ONE habit that would help close the gap between where you're at now and where you want to be.
And then think of ALL the mini steps you could take that would help you build that one habit.
From there, choose the EASIEST, most DESIRABLE one that you can take action on TODAY,
Not on Monday,
Not after you buy a new heart rate monitor,
And not after you spend countless hours googling the "best abs" exercises...
Choose ONE thing that you can execute on with the resources, knowledge and skills that you already have available to you.
After a few weeks of doing that ONE thing consistently, move on the the next mini step.
Keep your blinders on and simply focus on the ONE step that's in front of you.
Once you build up some momentum, you'll feel more capable of sinking your teeth into those less tender cuts of meat...
And before you know it, you'll find yourself sitting in front of an empty plate (or, an empty apartment), ready to take on whatever BIG SCARY goal you set for yourself next.
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