Instead of keeping the same pattern for every day, I have been trying to change it. But, as it turns out, bad habits are hard to break.

Well previous to this effort, my day consisted of waking up lathargic, spending a little time with Brady, running off to work, getting home somewhat in a sour mood (because of crazy traffic), not starting out right with Alison when I got home, then letting my mind freak out about all of the stuff I needed to do.

In other words, even though I was physically present with my family, my mind was not. Even though my day may have gone well, I would find things wrong with it. Then when I would sit down to work, I would feel overwhelmed, because I had been letting all of the tasks I needed to do stew in my mind.

Not good.

I want to change that.

I want to get better.

But it is and has been hard.

One great phrase I have learned from Dave Ramsey is “How do you eat an elephant? … One bite at a time.”

I know I have many habits I need to change, but I have leaned that I need to focus primarily on one and then move to the others.

Focusing on one issue at a time can help prevent the feeling of becoming overwhelmed and also provide some quicker wins. I have learned that In order to keep momentum for going after your goals, you need successes.

Attacking everything at once is a great way to become overwhelmed and fail.

It is always better to focus on one thing and overcome it, then move on to the next issue and so on and so forth. Approaching the mountain of issues that you may have this way, will insure that you build on the momentum of small wins keeping you motivated to reach the ultimate goal.

For me, I know that my first habit to attack is my attitude in the morning. I need to quit letting it go to waste and make the most of it. We will see how it turns out.

What are the habits you want to overcome?

Thanks to Pillip Crewe who reminded me of this in his comment recently.

Tomorrow, I will be running a 5k.

I’m a little nervous as I have only done one since a year ago. Another factor that makes me a little nervous is running a 5k in a barefoot shoe. It is a somewhat bold thing to do, but I have been practicing a little.

I have not been perfect in my practicing, but I am excited to see where this will lead tomorrow. No doubt there will be some lessons learned that I will share.

Right now, I just know I need to get some rest.

Seriously!

Once again I have found myself struggling to move forward with the work I wanted to catch up on.

Many of you know I took a break with doing a podcast, due to the fact I wanted to clean up some of a mess on my site, however just because I took a break from podcasting, does not mean that it actually will get cleaned up.

I still have to do the work.

And that’s what I am trying to do, but I am experiencing some significant resistance. Today I blocked off a good chunk of time in the afternoon to clean things up and yet progress seems to be slow.

First I went to a coffee shop where the internet was spotty, and then I went to another coffee shop where the music is blaring into my ear. And I can’t go home due to not having the house keys.

Uuuggghhh.

I just want to find that perfect setting. But since I started really caring I have come to realize 11 important truths when it comes to doing the work:

• Thinking about the work doesn’t get it done.
• There is never the perfect setting for getting work done.
• Even when you really want to watch that last episode of Arrow, you need to push through. Love that show.
• Even when you think you have writers block, you need to still write (even if you erase most of it).
• Tipping Baristas is always a good thing as they don’t look at you as a freeloader wen you stay in one place for 4 hrs.
• YouTube and Hulu can be the Kiss of Death for getting work done.
• Using timers can be a great way to help you move forward.
• Setting a deadline of when you need to be done, always, always helps.
• Be sure that if you work remotely, you are in a good position to go to another place, if your preferred work area is taken.
• A lot of “cool” ideas distract you, when you actually need to get stuff done.
• Fear always tries to prevent you from moving forward.

Personally, I know that fear is always trying to tell me it’s too late.

“Look 5mns went by, you ruined the next 4 hours of designated work time.”

Sadly, unless I truly take the think about what it is telling, I begin to believe it. True I may have become distracted for 5 mns (that Corrs song was awesome), but it did not run the rest of my work time.

Stupid Fear. Oh how you seek to stall me.

But sometimes, you just need to really think about what fear is truly telling you. Instead of letting it find ways to make you procrastinate, attack it. Do not let it stall you anymore.

More than likely, common sense can refute it.

Ever since I decided I want to win, I have immediately felt the resistance come onto me.

It is always there telling me to do something else before I take the time to sit down and write. Sometimes, I have to laugh as I stand there doing some task that I never really wanted to do, because sitting down and actually pursuing your dream is incredibly hard.

But like most things in life, anything that is worth achieving will be difficult. There will be great resistance and feelings of stopping and doing something else consistently.

I have identified 3 areas you will feel push back from and what you can do to help move on. Continue Reading…