How much energy and time have you given to that next big thing you want to do? How much time have you wasted instead of starting? Did you already talk yourself out of your work? Relax, you’re not alone. One of the reasons our biggest things we want to achieve fail us is we spend to much time looking at the big picture. We think ourselves out of ever getting there. Before you know it, you are part of the 90% that don’t make it past 30 days of your New Year’s resolution.
We need to chunk it out. We need to look at today. Because the steps along the way matter more than the ones you’re trying to overthink that haven’t even happened yet. Start with today. Today matters. Sometimes you can connect the dots better as you look at today and backwards. It’s just not possible to connect them moving forward. To many possibilities. Here’s a great quote from Steve Jobs:
You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.
There is enough on your plate today, get focused on that. Not something that hasn’t happened yet. If you’re zoomed in enough to look at what the past has taught you and what today holds for next, the dots will connect.
Three things to think about with today: Wake up, shed the baggage, and suit up.
You may feel you’re not ready for today. You’re paralyzed by what it may bring. However, you’ve already taken a great positive step forward. You woke up. I always make the bed as soon as I get up, even when I’m not staying at home and in a hotel, to take a positive step towards my day. Do something that gets you moving in the right direction as soon as possible. Just getting out of bed and making coffee is a great start. Get moving.
As you mill around getting ready for the rest of the day, reflect on today. Only today. You can look backwards on yesterday, but for only a little while to bring context to today. Don’t let yesterday’s disappointments stop you from moving forward today. Use yesterday’s wins and accelerate the next step you want to take today. Write it down somewhere. Doesn’t matter the medium, just write it down. Make it stick. When you write something down you want to go after, you’re 80% more likely to achieve it.
Use your reflections and thoughts you just wrote down as a tool through out your day. Use it as fuel for the rest of the day. A few times along the way, pull it out, review it, and check in. How do those dots for today look? They connecting as you look backwards in the day? You can take 5 minutes every couple of hours to do this, really, give yourself permission. You’ll thank yourself for it. Be mindful and present in your day.
Looking at 365 days ahead of where you will be tomorrow is daunting and incredibly discouraging. It’s to much to bite off. Chunk it out. Today matters. What can you do today? If you can do this, the future will take care of itself.
I want to wish everyone a safe and happy New Year. I’ll see you all in 2018!
✌🏻 Shawn
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