Turn Goals into Daily Routines

We all want to be a better person. Better for society, better for our family, better for ourselves. The kind of people like you who are reading this article are the kind of people who care and have an innate desire to constantly seek personal change to be that better kind of person.

I had an idea! I thought I’d write a few short articles on practical ways to make some positive changes to ourselves. Short, so that you could take the article and run with it. Practical, so you could (hopefully) take that bit of information and immediately start to apply it.

Then the next morning rolls around and that idea seems too big to handle. You begin to make excuses why this won’t work or that won’t work and before you know it, that awesome, wonderful, life-changing goal is just a dream on a piece of paper (yes, hopefully you wrote it down).

First we need to start with WHAT you want to change. Do you have some change-goals? That’s a good place to start. Many people have these great goals but never seem to get started on them because they seem huge and a little overwhelming. Perfect!

1. Let’s first break them down into daily habits.
2. Then let’s develop a daily routine to make these real, consistent habits.
3. Finally, when you hit the old proverbial ceiling, let’s learn to push through and break that barrier.

Epiphany!!!!! You just had an idea, a change-goal to strive toward, that will absolutely change your life forever! In that moment you’re going to DO IT! This is so good, nothing can stop you!

The reason this happens is because we look at the change-goal as one big picture and it is overwhelming to us.

As the title suggests it’s ‘the little things’ that add up to change. Little things are easier to digest than some sudden grand, overwhelming vision of change.

That’s where little daily habits come into play. Change, REAL change, is in and of itself the mechanics of time and behavior working together. In other words, any behavior done consistently over time becomes...you guessed it, habit. Once habit has taken hold, you have birthed a change (whether that is a good one or bad one is up to you).

So you have your change-goal, now turn it into a small, daily routine you can, over time, turn into a habit, a change.

For example, let’s say you want to change your diet and get healthy. Anyone reading this that has ever been on the diet roller-coaster KNOWS that to change your entire diet overnight is a direct set-up for failure, right? So instead, change one thing at a time. Let’s switch those chocolate chip cookies after dinner to a sliced apple and tablespoon of natural peanut butter.

That’s no big deal, you say? That’s the point. Keep doing it. Over time I promise there will be a difference. You just traded 200+ calories for a little over 100 calories. Remember, it’s the little things done consistently over time.

Another example; let's say you have an idea to write a book. You begin to think about chapters and content. You think and think some more but never really get started on actually writing. That's because the idea of an entire book is overwhelming. Start with a basic outline. Then outline the first chapter. Then take the first portion of the first chapter and set a goal of writing 200 or 300 words a day. Determine a time and place and DO IT every day.

(If this example of writing a book is a real goal of yours, a great resource is from Pat Flynn. Watch his video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWoYHAwzcpY)

In the next article we will dive into step number 2: Develop a routine you can do consistently. This is where it gets fun because you will begin to see change happen.

See you next time!