Have you ever felt helpless and lost because it seemed that reaching your goals was just too hard? Nothing goes in your favor, you keep failing, procrastinating, prolonging, and getting distracted by things that are really not spending quality time alone
that important.
Do you know why people tend to get frustrated? It’s because they have big plans but want instant gratification.
Technology has created the need for it: we get frustrated when our smartphones won’t load; we form online relationships instantly instead of taking time to get to know each other; if we can’t fix something, then it’s broken forever, and we might not even want something if we can’t buy it right away.
Instead of using our heads for an analytical approach to our desires and problems, we let our instincts guide us.
If you want to make a difference and finish something instead of getting distracted by checking your Facebook account, organizing your sock drawer, or doing the dishes – learn how to break things down.
Here are the best ways that will show you how to make a difference by focusing on the little choices.
1. Break it down
When you face a task within a big project, it can really demotivate you at first. If you let it scare you and deny facing it, you let distractions creep in.
Instead, try breaking your tasks down into smaller tasks, just like the ones distracting you. The same thing can be applied to any situation in life.
By breaking the problem into smaller pieces, you get to see for yourself that each one of them is quite manageable, so the problem doesn’t seem to appear that big and is easier to work with.
What do we do when we face these, so to say, ‘monsters’? We take a moment to see what’s new on Instagram. Then we take a moment to browse through the news.
What we do is avoid thinking about the problem. The reality is that the longer we avoid it, the scarier it becomes. Soon, the problem becomes even more overwhelming than it was in the beginning.
So, take a few minutes to think quickly through that big problem. What are its main components? How much effort will it really require? Write everything down, and start with the easiest of those components first. A few quick wins are all you need to get the momentum rolling, and you’ll be better poised to tackle the next one.
2. The power of small, daily decisions
The technique of breaking things down has one thing at its core – proactivity. It is all in making decisions. We make hundreds of small decisions every day, without even knowing it.
When looked at individually, these decisions can seem insignificant, but collectively they affect our daily lives greatly. From our health to the relationships we make, these little decisions direct every aspect of our lives. Our finances, what we learn, where we work, what we do, where we are and who we are – everything is the outcome of our decisions.
Personal responsibility for our decisions can be avoided by putting the blame on others, but we’d just be deceiving ourselves. Once you’re completely honest with yourself, your life will be a mirror image of your decisions.
The positive side effects of making good decisions intentionally, no matter how small they may be, are feeling happy and satisfied with yourself, as well as with who you are becoming by making the right moves.
3. Small choices have an accumulative effect over time
This concept, that small daily decisions have a profound and accumulative effect over time, can be applied to every aspect of your life.
Many people happen to ‘get lost’, so to speak, when they’re all grown up, ready to jump out of college and into the work machine.
In the process, they put too much focus on their achievements and career-building, and forget about equally important things: spending quality time alone (doing the things you like), spending time with family and friends, our going out for a ride on a sunny day.
These smaller goals may not be beneficial for your career or finances, but are necessary for creating a balanced and fulfilling life, and have to be consciously acted upon.
4. Be proactive
Whether your goal is to save up for a house, lose 15 pounds, or finish a project on time – what you do with your time is what makes all the difference. Actions repeated daily will make all the difference in your life and will be the foundations of your success.
So, be proactive. If your goal is to lose 15 pounds, you’d be more likely to achieve it if you chose to eat salad and fish for dinner every night, have balanced breakfasts, along with healthy snacks and regular workouts, and these small actions and choices will accumulate.
After a few weeks, you will be more likely to have lost 2-3 pounds, bringing you closer to the final goal. What if, for example, your goal is to save up for a house down-payment? By making a conscious choice of saving $100 every week will lead to having $5200 on your account after one year.
You can create a corner in your house for thinking and to make decisions. Different people are stimulated by different environments, so decorate the corner the way you like it, add a few houseplants, choose the best air purifier, and bring in a pair of headphones for playing your favorite tunes.
Get everything in line for getting closer to your goals. Meditate, do whatever makes you happy, and make a choice to choose the right things.
5. Strategies for making positive daily choices
You can keep yourself focused by laying out your long-term goals by working backward. Where do you want to be in 5 years, and where do you want to be next year?
Then break your one-year goal into months, then break the month plans into individual goals and smaller actions, and you’ll make things easier and more achievable.
Look at the successful people around you, those who have managed to do or have what you don’t, but wish for yourself.
Realize that they didn’t get there overnight, but have spent time working hard. Invest more effort, get up earlier to go to the gym, spend quality time with your wife and kids, or make time for yourself. Have a vision and pursue it with faith.
The post How to Make a Difference by Focusing on the Little Choices appeared first on Calling Dreams.