Food for Thought #17 - Sometimes starting is the hardest part.

We often sit in one place. Sort of stuck. Lacking the ability to move forward. Coming up with great excuses to not just do something. We all know what I’m talking about. Loosing weight, changing your diet, quoting smoking, drinking, changing your job or role, learning a new skill, asking for help. You name it, we all have the desire to change things. To step it up or move in some new direction. But we work against ourselves. We actually find ways to not start or if we do start, we tend to have a harsh failure based approach which gives us an easy out, or way to quit.

Now you might be saying, fuck you Joe! I’m not like that! I have it all sorted out. I don’t suffer from motivation. And I will say back to you, great, but I am sure at one point you had to question this motivation. Ask yourself why you are doing it. Feel a sense of defeat. However, my argument is not that we lack the ability to to achieve things. My argument is that the simple act of starting something is the hardest part.

Once you get moving. You find that “Why”. You are mostly set. The issue lies in the expectation that it will just happen. That if you buy running shoes you will automagically become a regular runner. That if you join a gym you will somehow loose weight. So while this is partially true, the deciding factor is your ability to persevere. To be agile in your approach. To measure yourself for success, not failure. Your view of what you want to become is like this romanticised thing. As an example, we would all love to join the gym and in a few month get the body of your idolised insta personality. The harsh truth is that there is shit tone of sacrifice to do this. Time, diet, lifestyle choices. You name it and it would ultimately have to be on the chopping block.

The reality is that we all want something. We have goals we tell our selves. The ideas that will unlock the door and let us become the latest version of ourselves. We just don’t want to accept, nor put the work in to getting there. So my challenge for you is to remove all expectations in your pursuits. Set goals, yes! But engage in act of simply starting. Dance in the thought that the game is about moving forward in time. That the time required is liquid and you’ll know once you get there that the destination has been met. That once you get there, you recalibrate and set a new destination. Because at the end of the day, life is about the journey and not destination. It is only by being present in the journey that you will find your way, learn new things, see your achievements and set yourself up for success.

So thats the deal humans! Get started and stick with it. You’ll do it in time. But be realistic about the amount of time it will take to get there. Because the more you get after what ever it is you want to start, the more the feeling of doing will happen. The better you will get at it. Because that the trick we want isn’t it? To feel like we did something? That while we here, we did more than we thought we were capable of.

Thanks everyone for listening! I am keen to get questions from you so that I can adjust and do more with the show. So you can reach out to me via email (podcast@unplugyourself.net) Instagram (@unplug_your_self) or twitter (@unplugyour_self). I’d really like to hear what you think, topics you want covered and if that’s not your bag, just some general feedback. Also make sure you go to iTunes and give the show some stars and feedback. It all helps.

Just remember, by leveraging your self awareness, managing your mindset, having mindfulness and building your emotional intelligence you can unlock your negativity and be the person you want to be!