Take the Next Step

Which of these three things do you feel like trips you up the most?  I know that all of them have tripped me up at some point but the one I struggle with the most is celebrating my accomplishments.  My personality as a helper (yes, Enneagram 2 for those interested) often pushes up against my ability to focus on myself.  However, this weekend after completing a fitness goal, I realized that to reach any goal requires us to enact these three components: Set a Goal, Be Flexible and Celebrate the Accomplishment. 

SET A GOAL

To get something done, especially something that is challenging, setting a goal is usually required.  Why?  When we set a goal we are giving ourselves something to look forward to and work toward.  Without setting the goal it is easy to become distracted or lost along the way.  This can leave us feeling despondent and hopeless.  It also helps to have the goals be specific so that they feel attainable.  The fitness goal I was working toward was completing a program that was 80 days.  It is one that has a specific schedule laid out, taking the guesswork out of the equation of what I would do each day.

BE FLEXIBLE

This is one that I believe trips A LOT of people up.  In case you haven’t experienced this or no one has told you - life is unpredictable!  We are not able to fully dictate what happens in a day to us or even within us.  If we do not understand the need to hold our plans loosely we can end up allowing frustration to overwhelm us to the point of quitting.  As I embarked on my 80 day goal I had to make adjustments.  One week I was visiting family.  Because I needed particular equipment, I decided for this week to do a different program and resume upon my return home.  One week before the end of the program I got sick and was resigned to my bed for the larger part of a week.  I had to pivot once again and decided to resume the following week with a different, less strenuous program to ease my way back to the final week of the program.  I chose to be kind and listen to my body in order to finish without further (perceived) setbacks.

CELEBRATE THE ACCOMPLISHMENT

As I reflected in the beginning, for those of us that are not accustomed to doing this, celebrating our accomplishments may not come naturally.  Do it anyway!  Even if it means no one else knows about it or will recognize it.  You know and God knows.  Recognizing your ability to move forward despite obstacles to keep you from shying away from future challenges.  My completion of the 80 day workout program was not done for others so their recognition of the accomplishment is not the point!  I was able to show myself once again that I can do hard things in one area of life that inevitably bleeds over to other areas of life. 

- Katie Rivera