"Rome was not built in a day"

We all want to move mountains when we set a goal, when we set ANY goal. We have the desire and the fire within us to change.

Setting your goal is GREAT. In fact it’s the first step in accomplishing said goal. Just because you set that goal does not guarantee you will meet it. The difference between setting your goal and accomplishing your goal is the amount consistency, discipline, and patience you use.

The problem is we ALL tend to ‘bite off more than we can chew’. We focus on the end instead of the beginning. We don’t realize that the journey can and will be long. It will have hills and valleys. It will have highlights and setbacks. It will be difficult, but it will be worth it!

Sometimes it makes it more tangible and more reachable if we break it down in to smaller pieces.

For example, let’s say you want to lose 50 lbs. Instead of focusing on such a large number, and becoming intimidated by vastness. Why not break it down into smaller pieces?

How about losing 5 lbs in the next 2 weeks? Heck if you’re really motivated start weekly. I want to lose 3lbs this week.

All of a sudden that ominous and invisible goal of 50 lbs seems more attainable.

Instead of being intimidated and down right scared of the long journey ahead. You’re motivated and more determined to break through that first barrier.

And there is an added bonus to this breakdown.

You will build your confidence along the way.

Once you can prove to yourself you can accomplish the small goal, and feel that feeling of achievement. You want more of it. So it pushes and motivates you to push forward towards that initial goal.

So, what if you don’t make it to the first small goal?

Then you re-evaluate and create a new plan of attack. You keep trudging through until you see that difference.

This too is a bonus. Yes, I said that. There is a bonus when failing.

Failing teaches you what not to do. It teaches you what didn’t work. It better prepares you for the second time around.

According to folk lore Thomas Edison once said,""I have not failed 1,000 times. I have successfully discovered 1,000 ways to NOT make a light bulb."

The take home message being, you will probably fail at least once during those initial small pieces. But I guarantee you it will be much easier and more reachable to achieve those smaller goals than grasping for straws at that original ominous goal.

How do you think we learned to walk? Have you watched a baby when they are learning to walk?

Watch how many times they fall. And watch how many times they get up.

I’m willing to bet they only needed to get up once more than the total number of falls. No matter how many times they fall, it only takes one more try.

Baby steps forward are better than no steps at all.

Carpe Diem