Why do I struggle with consistency?
There are various reasons why we might not have cracked the code of consistency yet. As in some of us might have. Or some tasks turn into habits whereas others simply don't stick.
Let's find out why and see if this knowledge might help us to do something about it.
Not clear on your goals and objectives
The most common reason why we struggle with consistency is the lack of clarity. We simply are not too sure what we are after.
We might have some ideas, but they are not defined enough for us to stay consistently motivated.
Hence, after a while, it becomes a chore to start from the beginning every time you want to work on your goals.
Take a blogger as an example. If she does not know what her niche is or who her audience is, every time she opens her website, she needs to think about what to write. It's labour-intensive and exhausting.
Concentration on the destination rather than the journey
Another reason why we might struggle with consistency is because we concentrate on the outcome, neglecting or even rejecting the process.
Whatever our goals and dreams are, we won't be able to achieve them overnight. Magic happens in fairy tales and Holywood films.
In real life, even if you win the lottery, you still need to take certain steps to get from point A to point B.
If we go back to our blogger as an example, imagine she wants to start ranking on the first page of Google. It's a solid goal for any blogger - to get noticed and valued. However, if she sets this dream and then, the next day, does not see herself on page one, she might become discouraged.
She might start lamenting the journey and delay writing and posting content. Can you ever reach the number 1 ranking if you don't put in any effort? I don't think so.
Converting inconsistency into a habit
Everything can become a habit. Good or bad. If we put off things often enough, they turn into something we do automatically.
Our blogger would open a word editor, get discouraged and stop halfway without finishing her post.
She will suffer with regret, tell herself she will finish it tomorrow and give a pinky promise to do it differently next time. But surprise, surprise, next time comes, and she does exactly the same thing - leaves her article unfinished.
Because, unfortunately, now it's a habit. And now it's easier for her to do it. The voice of regret is so quiet now that she can ignore it.
How can I improve my consistency?
So how do you stay consistent and achieve your dreams? There are many tips and I wrote about the 12 of them before. But not to get to overwhelmed, let's look into 3 relatively easy ones.
Apply the beginner's mindset
Whenever we start a new hobby, habit, or activity, we are like children - pure beginners. And it does not matter if we already have a PhD in another subject.
It's important to forgive ourselves for not knowing something, especially as we make our first steps. Of course, you are an amazing cook, but knitting is something else.
Remind yourself that it's ok not to know something. And try to enjoy it. It's such a joy to look at something with a fresh pair of eyes.
It might be easier to stay consistent at the beginning if you turn every activity into a game, like a child:
Find something new to learn or to do
Try and find something enjoyable about the experience or pretend you enjoy every minute of it
Talk about it (or teach someone else about it)
Apply this learning to other spheres of your life
If we go back to our friend, the blogger, she might need to learn about SEO. It's a complex topic, and to avoid getting overwhelmed and using it as yet another excuse to be inconsistent with progressing with her blog, she might see it as an opportunity to write about.
She could find one easy and fun thing about SEO and implement it straight away. By doing that her motivation should go up as she's rewarding herself by applying newly acquired knowledge. She could also only concentrate on SEO bits that interest her and leave everything else out for now, until she mastered the fun and easy part.
Lower your expectations
As with the beginners mindselt, expectations play a vital role in our struggles with consistency.
If we do not expect amazing ground-breaking results straight away we stand a chance of continuing with the task beyond the novelty stage.
If our blogger promises to herself that it's ok to publish not a great quality article, to begin with, she might turn blogging into a consistent routine.
When you begin a new activity there is no way to know if what you do is good or not. So, there is no point in striving for perfection. It's better to do something and create a habit out of the new activity.
Stick with one thing at a time
It might sound too easy and obvious, but sticking with one thing only might help greatly improve our consistency.
Decide what is important to you at this moment in time. It might be for a week or for a month. But continue working on this one thing only until you've created a habit.
There is this myth about 21 days - if you stick with something for 21 days it will become a habit. The science suggests it's actually between 60 and 66 days or something. But doing something for 21 days is a good start. As we all are unique it might become a habit for you, who knows?
Final Thoughts on Cracking the Code of Consistency by Overcoming Common Struggles in Achieving Goals
Consistency is a muscle we need to train like everything else. But if we know those stumbling blocks that trip us over we might be able to avoid them.
Our dear blogger that we used as an example in this article will surely show more consistency and apply all that we've learned to better her blogging career and achieve her writing dreams. She has the answers that she needs now:
Why do we struggle with inconsistency?
Not clear on your goals and objectives
Concentration on the destination rather than the journey
Converting inconsistency into a habit
How can you improve your consistency?
Apply the beginner's mindset
Lower your expectations
Stick with one thing only to begin with
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