Consistency. My word for 2017.
The first quarter of 2017 is done and dusted and I’m curious to know where you’re at with your goals, your dreams, your day to day life. Are you living intentionally and enjoying every moment? Are you working to achieving the life of your dreams? Or are you still stuck in a spiral of failure that’s your own doing?
I hope it’s the former.
We’re well into 2017 but I feel like I still haven’t gotten my bearings. The past few months have been everything but consistent.
I make plans. They turn to shit.
I set goals. Obstacles emerge.
It’s frustrating as fuck and driving me crazy.
Consistency is a key to success in anything whether you’re trying to run a marathon, write a novel, grow a business, maintain an awesome relationship, lose weight or save for a house deposit.
Life doesn’t always go according to plan and it’s easy to give up on your dreams arguing that it’s just too hard or not meant to be. Bullshit. It’s you.
Yes, sometimes we draw the shit card. So what? That’s not a reason to fall into a cycle of a zombie like state and waste our life away by living groundhog day and ignoring the fire that burns inside.
HOW TO STAY CONSISTENT?
1. Quit the excuses
Excuses are too easy and too often we let them get in our way of achieving our goals and dreams faster.
Almost anything is possible, if we are willing to put in the effort to get it.
But excuses are debilitating. They lead to unhappiness. Dissatisfaction. Regret. Blame.
None of these are conducive to creating the life of your dreams.
If you don’t feel like doing something, do it anyway, even if it’s just for ten minutes.
Chances are that you’re going to keep going.
And remember, you’re always going to feel better having ticked off the item from your ‘to do’ list then if you made an excuse and put it off for tomorrow.
Just do it. It’ll help keep you consistent.
2. Figure out what you want
What is that you really want out of life? Is it to spend the majority of your life stuck in a cubicle making someone else rich?
Or maybe you’d prefer to travel the world, get up early or stay up late, spend more time with the kids, or just your dog without having someone else dictate your worth?
Maybe you like working but have always wanted a different career that offers flexibility and allows you to look forward to Mondays?
Once you can clearly see what it is that tickles you fancy, it’s going to be much easier to stay consistent and turn your dream life into reality.
3. Set clear goals with an action plan
Consistency requires that you have goals and action steps in place.
It’s easy to say, ‘I want so and so, but much harder to achieve if you don’t have a plan.
So many people say, I’m going to write a book or I’m going to lose fifteen kilograms or I want to travel the world.
The problem is they don’t make it a goal, they don’t create action steps that will ensure they will meet their objectives.
Writing a book for example is simple.
It’s not easy.
Once you’ve come up with your story kernel you have to keep your reader entertained for about 80,000 words through conversations, action scenes, recoveries, ups and downs before drawing them to a satisfying conclusion.
It’s tough.
But you can do it.
How?
“When asked, “How do you write?” I invariably answer, “One word at a time,” and the answer is invariably dismissed. But that is all it is. It sounds too simple to be true, but consider the Great Wall of China, if you will: one stone at a time, man. That’s all. One stone at a time. But I’ve read you can see that motherfucker from space without a telescope.”
― Stephen King
One word at a time as Stephen King would put it.
Start with one word. One sentence. One paragraph. One page.
Write a page a day and you’ll have a novel by the end of the year.
Write 2500 words a day and you’ll have a book by the end of the month.
Simple, isn’t it?
And it all comes down to consistency.
4. Make it a habit
Do anything for long enough and it’ll be come a habit.
Through consistent behaviour humans are capable of transforming themselves from fat slobs to fitness fanatics, from bankruptcies to riches, from dreamers to individuals living out the ‘impossible’.
But habits and consistency take effort.
Most of us are more likely to sway towards taking the easy route. Humans don’t like pain. Pain hurts.
But there are a few of us who are willing to push through. Push past the barriers. Jump over the hurdles, and achieve our wildest dreams.
We’re all capable of it, but we’re not all going to do it.
Which group are you going to fall into?
5. Don’t rush
Success in life isn’t a sprint. It’s a marathon.
If we rush certain things, we increase the chances of mistakes that can hinder our progress and results.
You’re not going to train for a marathon in a week if you’ve never run more than 100m chasing the bus of a morning.
You’ll start slow. Aim for running 1km. Then 5km. Then 10km. Then 20k. Finally you might consider the long one.
It might take you six months, it might take you two years.
It doesn’t matter.
The journey matters as much as the destination, sometimes even more so.
Stay consistent and you’ll enjoy the journey and reach a much sweeter destination.
6. Take responsibility
Your life. Your doing.
We get to a point in our lives where our choice have long-term consequences. It’s when we start blaming others for our problems that shit hits the fan and life doesn’t go to plan.
To be successful in whatever you’re doing is to take responsibility for the good and the bad. That means owning up not just to your success but also to your failures and then working towards self improvement every single day.
The only person responsible for not having the life you want is you.
You make consistent choices every day. These choices come with ramifications.
If you’re consistent with turning up late for work every day, well it shouldn’t be a surprise if your boss gives you a final warning.
If you’re consistent with sitting on the couch watching three hours of television each night whilst binging on a box of biscuits, it’s no wonder you can’t do up the top button of your jeans.
If you’re consistent with picking up after yourself then you know that your home is always going to be clean.
If you’re consistent with your savings, it shouldn’t be a surprise when your bank account hits six figures.
Work towards your goals, whatever they may be, with consistent effort and you will get there sooner rather than later. One day you will wake up and realise you have created your own success. Go out and celebrate.
HOW AM I GOING TO STAY CONSISTENT IN 2017?
So this year I’m focusing on consistency. There are three things that are important to me and I want to continue to improve on:
Books
Blogging
Training (Running, Cycling, Swimming)
The only way to be successful at anything is to be consistent with your efforts.
My goal is to eventually be a full-time author. Consistency means working on my books every day. This includes writing, editing, research and brainstorming.
I enjoy blogging. Maybe it’s the instant gratification thing. I’m going to aim for two blog posts per week. Stay tuned!
Training is important to me. I love taking part in triathlons and running events. This year I’m aiming to compete in a few. So, in order to achieve this I need to be consistent with my training. That means 5-10 hours of training per week. No excuses.
Consistency is key.
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