Goals. Walk into any bookstore and ask an employee if they have any books on goals or goal-setting, then be prepared to be directed to more books than one could read in a few years. We have been told all of our lives that we must have a goal or goals. Likewise we have been implored to work on and toward our goals. Why do so many not reach their goals? Instead of reaching and achieving the goals they want to accomplish, many just go through the motions and then become pressed by the demands of the urgent. Many have traded the important for the urgent. Only to find out that the urgent is rarely all that important.
Another reason that many fail to set goals is that the entire process seems overwhelming. How does one lose 50 pounds? How does one save for the future? How does one read through the Bible? How does one start tithing? How does one go to back to school and earn a degree? Just thinking about it seems so daunting that the natural tendency is to say I can never do that, I will never reach that goal.
The problem is not setting a goal, it is the steps toward reaching the goal that is the problem. Take any of the examples that I mentioned earlier, not one of them is going to be accomplished in a day. Are you up for trying a different approach?
Set a goal. Then break it down it to small pieces and work on it daily. The secret to accomplishing the desired goal is to incorporate small actions into your daily, weekly and monthly routine. For the sake of example let us use the goal of losing weight. What simple actions can I take to reach this goal. How about drinking 8 glasses of water a day? How about walking for 20 minutes a day every day? How about cutting out sweets for the next…you name the period of time? Start small and begin to implement the practices into your routine. The secret is not how much or even in some cases what you do, the key is consistency. Make the actions a habit. Doing these things day in and day out will begin to make changes in your mind, habits and attitudes. Then you will start to feel better and begin to add more items, more nutritional choices as well as a more strenuous exercise.
Because we want results and we want them now, we have a tendency to start off with a bang! I am going to the gym for 5 hours a day, and walk four miles each afternoon. We start off strong, but because it unrealistic, when we fail we give up believing that it is just impossible for us to lose weight. You are better off making small changes and doing so with consistency every day.
Try and see if it will work for you. It does not matter what your stated goal is, just begin taking some baby steps and build consistent action into your daily routine.
I found a quote from Darren Hardy that I think fits this topic ““You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.”
I will be praying that you will find the grace and courage to make small changes in your life. You will be amazed at what will happen when you add small positive actions into your daily routine. I know with God’s help you can do it. I believe in God and I believe in you!
