Why you’re not following your plan
You know what you want to do, you write out your plan, but when it comes time to do it, you don't follow through.
Here's why: Your plan is:
1. Too vague
2. Not prioritized (you're trying to do too many things)
&/or
3. You're adding pressure
No matter how much you want to do the things you've planned, if your plans are vague, not prioritized, or filled with pressure - you won't follow through.
Because, when it comes to doing new things, your brain can only handle a little bit of newness at time. And it really needs that newness to be crystal clear. Think about the last time you started a challenging new job. You probably felt overwhelmed and like you were trying to learn and absorb information faster than your brain could handle, right? And then at the end of the day you felt absolutely exhausted. This is why. Too much newness.
Now that we've covered planning, let's talk about the second part of this equation: pressue.
If your plans are clear and well-prioritized but you find yourself still not following through, it's because you've added pressure. Pressure comes from telling yourself you have to, or you need to do it right, or that you can't mess this up. Contrary to popular belief, this kind of pressure shuts you down.
Here's the solution: Plan significantly fewer things, clearly. And have fun with this process! Fun is the opposite of pressure; it speeds you up. You will want to think that one thing isn't enough and in order to make progress you have to take things seriously. No.
If you take nothing else away from this post, please hear this:
Fun (or joy, lightness, ease - pick the flavor that works for you) is the number one fast-action emotion. If you can tap into fun, you will get things done easily.
This is a skill you're building. Once you know how to do one new thing, with joy, you will know how to do ANY new thing, consistently. You can rinse and repeat until you have your entire morning routine, workout habit, or goal. It IS that simple.
Be willing to tap into fun first, slow down, and do less, well. It WILL pay dividends. If you want to learn how to do this, I want to invite you to schedule a consult.
