Addressing the slips

 

Meeting goals can be a challenge.

It is easy when you start off, before the motivation wanes.

Somewhere along the way, if you are like me, you struggle to be consistent.

You begin to wonder what the problem is, why can’t you meet those elusive goals.

Habit Forming

There are competing theories on how long it takes to create a habit.

Most give you anywhere between 30 to 90 days.

Presumably, after this time frame, you should pretty much have accomplished the goal, especially if it is in the vein of a habit change.

If you are like me, sometimes you struggle to make it that far. You get 15 to 21 days in and then lose momentum. From that point, it’s not that you stop working at it, but you become inconsistent, so the goal is never really solidified.

Or sometimes you do make it to those proscribed 30 or 90 days and you wipe the sweat off your brow with the hope of resting a little easier because you held on, assured you have formed your new habit.

Then one day you wake up after some 100 or 120 days, and you slip and find that what you thought you built has crumbled to the ground.

You don’t understand.

You may believe that all that advice about goal setting is really rubbish.

It’s not.

Habit-forming is not that easy and there are many reasons why the proscribed method may not work for you.

1. your goal is not set on a firm foundation

You don’t have a real purpose driving the change. So, you will not be willing to do what it takes to see it through.

Your purpose must be intrinsic. Your goal must be your goal, not anyone else’s, or for anyone else.

2. Your goals are not SMART or objective.

SMART is an acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. You must make sure that you are not unreasonable with what you can achieve in the time you wish to achieve it. You must start off small.

3. You are not ready for change

When you really want to change you will find the impetus to do what is necessary. Excuses of any kind are tell-tale signs that usually indicate that you are not quite ready for change.

4. What you want is not for you

There are certain things in life that we want to achieve but, we are not equipped to do.  No matter how hard you try, you simply will not achieve it.

5. The process is not enjoyable

The process itself needs to be fun or enjoyable. Find methods that you enjoy to keep you motivated. No matter how much you want something if you dread the work it takes to get you there it will be twice as hard.

Many of my goals never came into fruition and for most of them, I found that one of these reasons above was the actual cause.

When you are ready for change you will commit to the process of change. You will be smart and reasonable.  You will employ the Kaizen method and make small and measurable steps towards improvement.  What you want will be achievable. You will have the right skill sets, education, and resources to achieve it, or at least access to those things.