Sunday, February 2, 2020

Big day, big goals.



Today is Superbowl Sunday, the day that most Americans spend sitting on the couch, eating chicken wings, pizza, and guacamole. We spend our evening watching the biggest football game of the year showcasing the excellence of the players on the field and the musical talent of the halftime show.  Ironically, we are one month into the new year and many of us are struggling to keep our New Year’s resolutions and 2020 goals.   I certainly am.

The comparison can be depressing.  We feel tired, overwhelmed, and frustrated because we don’t see the results that we expected from our hard work over the past four weeks.  We set some big goals at the beginning of the year, and then we got busy putting those goals into action.  Trouble is that in the past thirty plus days, we have not seen the expected big results. 

This is how new accomplishments and big goals are supposed to go. 

The progress is never as easy or as fast as we would like it to be.   When we don’t see fast or obvious results, our negative brain starts working against us thinking thing like: maybe I should give up, maybe this goal is too much for me, or this is too hard for someone like me.

The players in the Super Bowl did not just wake up one day with a Super Bowl spot.  Shakira and Jennifer Lopez did not stumble out of bed onto the half time stage.  To arrive on the world’s biggest stage, it takes many many hours of intense practice, training, and work. So why should it be any different for me and my goals?

How do we stick with our goals when the plan gets difficult?
 
Push through discomfort.  Part of being successful is learning how to deal with the uncomfortable feelings that come along with doing something new and working towards goals. 

Celebrate the small victories.  Each step towards a goal is one inch closer to your dreams.  If you can see the small steps as victories, you will be less likely to want to give up when the going gets tough.

Realize that your brain is a liar.  When negative thoughts arise for you, understand that they are your worst enemy.  You have the ability to use your higher brain to spot the lies and not fall for them. Be prepared to feel negative emotion around your goals and just accept them.

When your brain begins to doubt and pull you off of your goal, try just committing. You have the ability to completely ignore your brain's need to "see progress" in order to continue.  The small day to day progress is insignificant and irrelevant.  The day you quit could be just the day that things break for you.  Once you quit, there is NO chance that you will succeed.

You have decided to accomplish your goal -- decide and just do it.

Dr. Julie Cappel

"The great danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark." –Michelangelo


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