One Day at a Time – What’s your mantra?
(3^rd in series of working towards achieving New Year’s resolutions. Future additions to this series will be posted the last week of each month as we work our way through 2020 all together.)

We have come to the end of January and moving right along into February and beyond.

How’s it going? Are you on track for your goal? Great!

Off track? Then it’s time to get back on. The great thing is that every time we fall, we have the opportunity to get back up again.

A few years ago, I wanted to improve my skiing abilities and I took a ski lesson. I ended up on a slope that was beyond my level. I became frozen in fear. Steep, off-piste, trees, powder, and a long way to the bottom, everything scary. I became filled with doubt; how would I manage? My instructor sensed my hesitation and the others in the group had already begun to tackle the challenge. She asked me, “Can you do 3 turns?” I thought about it, assessed the terrain immediately in front of me, and replied, “Ok, I think I can manage that.” After successfully completing those three turns, she said, “Now do three more.” And that’s how I did it, three turns at a time. Once I recovered from a fall, I got right back to it. Three turns, then three more turns. I kept that mantra with me for the rest of the day and throughout the week. Then, interestingly and to my great satisfaction, a few days later, I no longer needed that mantra and became more comfortable on the more advanced terrain.

I was able to overcome what felt insurmountable because a well-knowing instructor helped me to break it down into chunks that were possible. It is said that anxiety is rooted in feelings about the future. Most goals are too big to deal with all at once, they have to be made into manageable pieces. We must proceed one day, one hour, one minute, on step, three turns at a time all while facing in direction of the goal and moving forward in confidence. My friend Sarah Miller Histand, an online trainer from Anchorage, Alaska, encourages participants with the mantra Moving is winning. No matter the pace; when you are moving you are winning. Because what’s the alternative? Not moving; staying the same place you have been and making no progress. Sometimes, we have slow way down until we feel more comfortable and are more able to stay on course. A baby starts to stand, then toddle, then walk, and finally accelerate to run. Many times it’s simply the case of wanting too much too fast. Whether you are learning to play a musical instrument, starting a fitness routine, learning a new language, or consuming less sugar we will make progress by showing up every day, even the days when it’s clumsy and messy and we miss the mark. Remember that moving is winning.

In the book The Slight Edge, Jeff Olsen discusses how it comes down to the small choices that we make each day. We can choose to work out or not work out in one day and in that singular moment it won’t really change anything. But remember that a habit is established by doing the same thing repeatedly over and over again. So each day we have the opportunity to establish foundations for “good” or “bad” habits. Really, it’s just a gift to be able to pay attention and to hit the reset button every single day if necessary.

Olsen also elaborates on the power of time. We live in a world that values speed at all costs. Our lives are filled with hi-speed trains, wifi, express delivery, quick fixes, rapid recovery, accelerated programs, non-stop action, and it goes on and on. He uses the geological creation of the Grand Canyon as the ultimate example of the potential of time in one of his many success equations:

Consistently repeated daily actions + time = inconquerable results

It’s true. If you do the same thing every day, over time, there will be some results.

Olsen suggests to aim for a 1% improvement each day from the day before towards a specific outcome in a targeted area of your life. At the end of the week, you can expect a 7% improvement from where you started. Then the next week you start again from that new place and with the potential to increase exponentially in a way similar to compounding interest.

One month down, and 11 more to go in this big and exciting year 2020. It’s a great time to evaluate what has worked and what hasn’t so far. What’s you’re mantra? What are you aiming for this week to get closer to the goal?

Stay focused. Time is on your side and you are on your way one day and one step at a time.