When I saw this title in my inbox, I immediately thought of those spammy emails that threaten 25 years of bad luck if you don't pass them along to 200 of your closest friends. What I didn't expect was to get a great motivation tip that helps you overcome inertia and build a habit of accomplishment!
Billed as "Jerry Seinfeld's Productivity Secret," the strategy involves getting one of those 'year-at-a-glance' wall calendars and a big red marker (or if you prefer to do it online, go here). Post the calendar in a prominent place, and for each day that you take action towards your goal (Seinfeld's was to write every day to create better jokes, but you could also use this for exercise, learning a language, or launching your career reinvention search!), cross off that date with a big red "X". After a few days you'll have a chain going and, day by day, it'll grow longer. Your only job is to not break the chain.
This is a great tip because combats the myth that in order to have 'real' movement, you have to take huge steps towards your goal every day (come up with your life vision on Monday, write your reinvention resume on Tuesday, reach out to 17 networking contacts on Wednesday, and so on...). The truth is that when working towards a big goal, your everyday progress will look quite ordinary. Jeff Keller, in his book Attitude is Everything, talks about this phenomena:
When you look back at the accomplishment of most "unrealistic" goals, you're going to find that they were achieved by harnessing the power of cumulative efforts. Thus, if we view a snapshot of each day along the way, no single day's accomplishments would look extraordinary or monumental. However, by making these efforts day after day, you will create a momentum that will propel you to your desired destination. Remember, you don't climb a mountain with one giant leap.
What's going to be your 'unbroken chain' goal? Post on the blog and let us know!
P.S. A technical glitch caused a duplicate article to be sent out last week-- sorry about that!
I *love* babysteps for goal achievement! They have truly made the difference in reaching them (as does a fairly regular analysis to see where I am in the process). I just blogged about this myself, since it was my "check in" time...
http://www.sixredheads.com/2008/02/18/living-deliberately-new-years-resolution-check-in/
Posted by: Tia | February 18, 2008 at 04:26 PM