Begin with the end in mind

In this moment of in-between, I feel there is an opportunity. Some kind of calling. Its like I need to move into uncertainty and murkiness all over again. 

I have created a podcast. I have a breath mint business launching in 3 months. I have pushed myself to get them going, and now they have momentum. I will keep working on them, but they don't need as much from me.

I am wrestling with ideas about speaking, writing a book, consulting to small businesses, coaching, and even going back to full-time work.

I am reminded of Stephen Covey's 2nd of 7 habits: Begin with the end in mind.

What is the end I envisage? When I imagine myself in 10 years time, as a 48 year-old, what do I see?

I see a healthy man, working out of city building. He has a few businesses of his own, and he is actively involved in helping and investing to develop three businesses owned by people. He talks occasionally, writes regularly, and never seems rushed.

With this end in mind, the following make sense:

- a slow build with the podcast where I write a detailed blog post

- focusing on the breath mint business to find a way to earn a livelihood from it

- finding a way to consult to small businesses

- learning about public speaking and coaching

- continue to challenge myself in personal development

Something is still not ringing true as I type this. Something to ponder today.

Of habits

Right now I am bringing a few new habits into my life. One of them is a dramatic change to the way I eat. Another is adding movement exercise back into my life.  

I have found a couple of things useful as I develop these additions and enhancements to my life.

The first, ironically, is not to think of them as new habits. For me the word habit implies that something is a chore; I am not going to have fun incorporating this into my life. It also implies that it is something I can gain, but also something I can lose.

The things I am now building into my life are not negotiables. They are my new 'MO'; the way I am going to live from this point onwards. These will then becoming building blocks for other things. They may change and grow, but they are so important that losing them as a habit is no longer an option.

The second is that I do not have to nail these new habits (or perhaps I should say practises or something else instead of habit!) right from week 1. Changing my eating means changing my shopping, how I cook, where I eat out. Learning new movements involves different coordination and new daily routines. These are not insignificant changes, and especially early on I will not be able to incorporate all the change I want to.

The important thing is that I start pointing myself in the direction I want to go. Small changes are key at this point, and all the incremental changes will be of benefit and move me closer towards the new state of being. Mistakes and failures do not mean I should give up on my 'habits'. They do not mean I am never going to make it. It means that I am in the process of learning and incorporating, and they are to be celebrated.

Expectations short and long

People usually overestimate what they can do in the short-term, and underestimate what they can do in the long term -- Chris Judd

In terms of key lessons learnt, this was right up there with those I learnt last year: that daily, incremental action will have a much bigger impact than what I expect. Conversely, big one-off benefits will have much less of long-term impact than I will expect.

It is unlikely that I will change my life by the end of the week. But by the end of next year, I may have a business that is earning me a livelihood, a podcast that has an audience in the thousands, and be in the best physical, mental and emotional shape of my life.

Or I could have something else completely.

There is no need to change it all at once

I read a blog post today about how to feel better about life. One of the suggestions was to make the bed in the morning - get those small wins on the board!

When I think about improving my life I sometimes do the opposite, almost rushing to make every change I think I should make. 

A better approach I think is to change a one, or maybe a few, things at a time. This way you can feel encouraged as you are successful, and can also get a good gauge on whether the change you are introducing is actually improving your life. 

At the moment I am trying to change my entire exercise routine at once. I know that I want to do some strength work (like cross fit), some flexibility and mindfulness work (like yoga), and a social/team sport (like park soccer or basketball. I can't work out a way to do all of these things at the moment, so I have decided to get cross fit happening once a week, gauge whether it is of benefit, and then try to incorporate a weekly yoga session. 

Small wins.