How many times have you started something and then failed? You have the best intentions and you set it all up right, but you just couldn’t stay the course. Maybe it was a diet, sticking to an exercise plan, learning a new language, paying off debt, etc. When you don’t succeed, you question your willpower and think you are a failure. Is it really your fault or are you just falling into believing that willpower is sustainable? The reality is that willpower is not sustainable. It is a faulty concept that we convince ourselves we should all be able to access when we want to achieve a goal. So what does work instead when we want to succeed if we can’t rely on willpower alone?
When you set a goal it is crucial to analyze the reality of that goal. You could set your sights on running a 5K, but you have no running history and weak knees, you may want to ask yourself if you are being realistic. Take inventory of your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to setting a goal that you want to achieve. You can modify it to your own capabilities without having to cross it off completely, thereby increasing the likelihood that you will be successful.
It has been proven that there is no such thing as multitasking with success. The brain is not designed to be able to optimally focus on more than one task at a time. If you are not focusing on The One Thing that you want to be successful at, then your chance at success diminishes. This means that every day until you reach your goal, you prioritize the goal and do not allow distractions in.
You are uniquely you. You will not perform the same way that someone else will, but that does not mean that you don’t know how to be successful at achieving a goal. Let’s say that you have picked a role model and you compare yourself to them daily. What is this doing for your mental strength? You can implement similar strategies and use a recommended action plan, but it should be modified to fit you. If you do not do this, then you risk disappointment or failure and are more likely to give up.
You set a goal. You collected all the data and created an action plan that is right for you. Now what? Now you create a no-fail system. If your goal is to start an exercise routine, then you do everything you can to make sure that ONE thing happens. You join a gym that is located on the way to work so you have no excuse not to stop. If that is not affordable, then you find a park and log in steps daily…it doesn’t matter how you make it happen, as long as you do…the key is that you are creating a system that supports success for your goal. Convenience, accessibility, and affordability all need to be considered when you make a system that is not going to fail so that you never have an excuse as to why you can’t achieve your goal.
There couldn’t be any one thing more important than this. You need to visualize your success daily. Close your eyes and see yourself where you want to be, living as you want to live, doing what it is you want to do. The mind is a powerful thing and it drives an motivates us to do all the things that we do. If we can see the end result daily, we are motivated to create the path to get there daily too. When the vision gets blurry or we lose sight of the end result, then this could mean two things; Number one being that you need to revisit your goal and check to see if you need to modify your action plan, or Two that you are allowing distractions to blur your vision of the One Thing you are working to achieve.
Willpower gets you only so far. White knuckling any goal never proves to be the path to long-term success. With the steps above, you can start to see results. By using a life coach in Orlando, or attending counseling in Orlando at Orlando Thrive Therapy, Coaching and Counseling, you gain accountability and professional support. Give us a call today at 407-592-8997 to start achieving your goals now. We will show you what it takes to get there.
Heather Oller is the owner and founder of Orlando Thrive Therapy, Coaching, and Counseling. She is a licensed counselor and a family mediator who has over 23 years of dedicated work as a professional in the mental health field. Through her company's mission, she continues to pave the way for future therapists, and their clients, who want a higher quality of life....and who want to thrive, rather than just survive. You can contact Orlando Thrive Therapy at (407) 592-8997 for more information.