A few weeks ago, you chose a goal for yourself. Maybe you wanted to get back in shape, or save more money, or finally start that big creative project.
At first, it went great! You made some initial headway, and success seemed within reach. But then, you lost focus. Maybe you struggled to find motivation, or you skipped a day and never started back up again. Or perhaps you had another problem come up, and by the time you’d solved it, it seemed too late to go back to your goal.
If this sounds like you, you’re not alone. It’s common for people to struggle to stay focused on their goals. But there’s good news – with the right strategies, anyone can stay focused on their goals.
Achieving Your Goals (One Bite At a Time)
There’s an old parable that goes like this:
A wise man asked, “How do you eat an elephant?” The answer: “One bite at a time.”
If you try to swallow an entire elephant, you’ll never succeed. But if you eat one bite at a time, eventually you’ll finish the whole thing.
Of course, elephants are endangered, and you shouldn’t try to eat them. But the principle stands. If your goal feels huge and imposing, all you need to do is shrink it down to bite sized steps. Then you don’t need to focus on the whole goal – just the next tiny step.
When it still feels too hard to take that step, don’t stress. Just shrink the step down further. If your goal is to save for a vacation but saving a hundred dollars feels too big, start by saving ten. If you can’t save ten, save one. If you can’t save one, find a penny on the ground and put it in your piggy bank.
You’re not going to get rich one penny at a time, of course. But taking a small step makes the big step easier. Shrink your goals until the next step is easy to achieve, and then as you start to build a habit you can focus on more and more each time.
Getting Help To Reach Your Goals
But what if you try this technique and you still feel stuck? That’s okay – because you don’t have to do it alone.
At Garrett Counseling, we help clients just like you break through their barriers and make real progress towards their goals.
If you’re tired of getting stuck and losing focus – if you’re ready to finally achieve your big goals – then it’s time to reach out. Get in touch today!