I began a 100-Day Challenge a few days ago, with a long list of things I wanted to do on a daily basis. I plan to mark off each one when it’s completed and then write a little more detail in my “challenge notebook” to record what exactly I did for certain categories.
I was telling a friend of mine about this and that it was interesting to see which columns had a consistent amount of hashmarks and which ones were blank. I could see why certain habits aren’t progressing and that I don’t spend time on some things I wished I would.
My wish list of to-dos includes things like “study Spanish and French,” “visualization,” “journaling,” and “finance management.” I realized I’d created this great big list of things to strive for, a gorgeous list of things that, in my ideal world, I would do and be. But, I never stopped to ask, why? Why this? Why these things?
Without a compelling “why,” well, I’m not compelled to truly prioritize any of my goals. And, by prioritize, I mean, honestly and truly commit time to them. If we can identify the true intention behind a goal, it provides the motivation for carrying out the steps it takes to get there. Goals are what you point your compass towards; the why is your driving force to realize them.
It’s awesome to have a huge list of things you want to accomplish in life. I know I do! I just think it’s high time we stop putting so much pressure on ourselves to be these ideal super people and identify our true priorities. Some things we thought we wanted, we may not want anymore, and it’s OK to set them aside for now. Other things, we know are essential to our life adventure and we should start dedicating more time to those things immediately.
The next time you set some goals for yourself, do this. Once you have your list, review it, this time asking yourself why you want each thing. Really drill down until you get to the compelling reason of each one. Jed McKenna put it like this: “Ask these questions often: What am I doing? Why am I doing it? Where is it going?”
Be sure that your goals and aspirations are aligned with your authentic self and they will become easy to take action on. If they’re not part of your authenticity, then let them go, you don’t need to waste time trying to prioritize something that isn’t right for you right now.
Don’t ignore the crossroads, those opportunities to tweak your approach to life. Don’t continue like a robot on a single track, one that might not even be heading in the best direction for you. Set a course, yes, but remember to check in along the way and ask yourself, is this still serving a purpose? Is it still serving my purpose? If not, it might be time to change something.
Discover your whys. You might be surprised at your answers. You’ll definitely come away with some clarity on where and with what to begin.
Positively Tasha 