Here’s the truth about achieving goals that change your life, small steps matter.
Reaching big goals takes dedication, focus, a good plan and hard work which often stops us from even getting started. Sometimes we start off strong in our effort to reach that big goal and we quickly become overwhelmed because we are missing some vital pieces. Then we get derailed and we give up.
This approach to goal setting leads to overwhelm and procrastination because it’s not sustainable. So consider a completely different approach. Think about the story of the tortoise and the hare. The moral of that story is you can be more successful by doing things slowly and steadily than by acting quickly and carelessly.
And when it comes to goal setting, don’t separate your personal and business goals. They need to be aligned and your plan needs to incorporate them both.
Most of us create big bold goals WITHOUT taking the time to create a plan and we don’t understand the steps that go into each phase of the journey to achieve that goal. But you should plan to take small steps and iron out small yet extremely important details so that you can take those small steps without being overwhelmed.
If you would like to know my three step process for picking goals and creating a simple plan with small steps, then be sure to check out this blog post.
Now let’s talk about how small steps matter when trying to reach those big goals!
Identify Small Steps That Will Move You Closer to Your Big Goal
This is going to require you to change your mindset. We tend to think we either have to go after big things OR we have to take small steps. Stop thinking either or because the two go hand in hand. When you focus on taking small steps every day you end up making a considerable amount of progress.
This was a mindset shift that I had to make when it comes to health and fitness. I talked about this with Jennifer Nagel of Figured Out Fitness. Click here for the details.
“Sometimes we have this all or nothing mentality where if we can’t do it perfectly then we can’t do it at all.”
So I started with focusing on making sure I increased my movement throughout the day. So with the help of my Apple Watch I made sure I got up once every hour and did one minute walk breaks. Then I increased my activity by using hand weights during my breaks and started to increase my water intake. After focusing on being consistent with these habits, I get in over 5k steps every day and I drink 90-128 ounces of water almost every day and I feel great because I see my progress!
My big goal is to set a good example for my family so that we all live a healthier lifestyle. Now I’m four months into this journey and my family is starting to get on board. We take walks together outside when weather permits and we all drink more water and we like it!
To see my progress I track my daily habits in my paper planner and with a fitness app. So each day I look at my numbers in my planner and my goal is to beat myself! And no matter what, this helps me see that the small steps matter.
Celebrate Your Small Wins
A small win is anything you successfully accomplish even though you weren’t sure you could do it.
The best part is that you get to define what a small win is for you. Someone else may look at what you’ve accomplished and think it’s no big deal but that small win has changed your life.
If you feel happy because you were finally able to do that small thing that you have struggled with for a long time, then get excited about it!
One of my mentors encouraged me to create a wall of wins in my office. You should do the same thing!
Every time I complete something that moves my business forward, I write it on a sticky note and put it on my wall. Some of the notes say I published 25 podcast episodes, I published 50 episodes, I have 1,000 downloads, I planned my social media content one month in advance.
Now these may not be wins to someone else because they measure success differently. I know my struggles behind the mic and behind the laptop…so they are wins to me and I made sure I shared them online. They make me feel good and no one can take that away from me.
Looking for other women that will celebrate your small wins with you?
Find Your Tribe Online
Behind every successful woman is a tribe of women who choose collaboration over competition. And that’s exactly how I view the ladies inside of my Facebook community! I brainstorm with them and bounce ideas off of them which helps me get clarity. With their support, I feel empowered and excited as I grow my business and become a better woman, business owner and podcaster. If you would like to join, there is a link in the show notes.
This simple mindset shift will help you be more confident in yourself so you can reach your goals in your personal life and in your business. Slow progress is better than no progress. So move forward at your own pace and don’t forget to celebrate along the way!
If you would like to hear the expanded audio version of these tips, be sure to check out episode 55 of the podcast. Tune in on your favorite platform by clicking one of the links below.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | iheart Radio | Stitcher | Spotify
