The art of steady progress (part 1)

The art of steady progress (part 1)

I've been trying to practice what I call "The Art of Steady Progress" for quite some time.

And it's only been in the last year that I've felt that I finally get it.

It used to be that I'd have a huge goal and think that all I needed to do was set up projects and tasks related to that goal and I'd eventually get there.

But the thing is, it didn't work out that way for me.

It was more like...

  • two steps forward
  • one step back
  • beat myself up for the one step back
  • start over with a new plan
  • rinse. repeat. 

I don't know what that is, but it ain't steady progress.

To give you a real life example...

I've been on and off diets since I was 10-years old.

And here's what it pretty much looked like...

  • Set a huge goal like "Lose 40 pounds."
  • Start on the diet and have some success.
  • Have a bad day.
  • Beat myself up for that bad day.
  • Stop for a while.
  • Find a new diet. 
  • Repeat the same pattern with the new diet. 

I've also seen this happen in my business. Try some idea. Get a bit of momentum. Have a setback. Give up on that idea. Try something new. Repeat.

Maybe you can relate?

It's only been in the last year that I've finally gotten what the Art of Steady Progress actually entails...

... the missing but oh so important pieces.

I've got to tell you it was a bit of a "Duh" and "Aha" moment wrapped into one for me.

It was a "This is common sense. How in the world did it take me this long to figure out?" kind of a moment.

The idea behind the Art of Steady Progress is that you take each day as it's own unit. No big goals like 40 pounds to think about.

Those goals are good to set but not to think about daily. 

Because... if you do... it's like climbing a mountain every single day.

With the Art of Steady Progress, the only thing you have to worry about is how you're gonna think, feel, and act TODAY.

Here's what you do in a nutshell...

  • In the morning (or the night before if that's how you roll), put together a **REALISTIC** plan for the day. 
  • Follow that plan as best you can knowing that it won't be perfect
  • That evening or the next morning, assess how you did with the idea of learning and curiosity, not judgment. Make sure to start your assessment with what you did right. This is important because it helps you stay out of judgment. 
  • Based on what you learned, create a new realistic plan for the new day with the idea of making one small improvement. 
  • Repeat.

In part 2 and beyond of this series, I get into each of these bullet points and provide more detail and examples because...

I now believe that this process is all we need to reach our goals, and to make sure our clients do as well.

With love & joy,

Selena

P.S. Is there someone in your life who could benefit from reading this post? Why not share this with them?

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