What’s Next? 5 Steps To Keep Focused and Motivated

You know what it’s like…you set yourself a goal and you work your tail off to get there.

It doesn’t really matter if the goal is a business goal or if it is more personal.  Or even if it’s a long or short term goal.  For instance, maybe you decide to:

• Clear your workspace or your email inbox once and for all.
• Bring in a certain number of sales.
• Get your website up.
• Lose five pounds before a big event.

Or like me…train to run in a 5K.

You work towards your goal.  You wake up every day and move a little closer to that goal.  You find support.  You pull on your internal resources.  Maybe you even starve yourself or pull all nighters.  You put in time.  You put in energy.  You spend money.  You do whatever it takes to make it happen.  Ultimately you get there.

• Your space is clear and your inbox empty.
• You closed the sales you wanted to close.
• Your website is up.
• You wore the dress to the big event and looked great.

Or like me…I finished the 5K.

It feels great, doesn’t it?  But what happens next?

The paper and email starts piling up.

You had a boost in income but nothing else on the horizon.

You have a website but haven’t updated your blog in weeks.

You stop worrying about what you’re eating and your dress is snug again.

Or like me…”run” is no longer on my calendar.

When the idea or goal is new and exciting it is much easier to keep yourself motivated. It gets more difficult when you want to keep that momentum going for the long run, especially if you pushed yourself really hard to achieve your initial goal.

Here are five things that my clients and I use to keep ourselves interested and engaged with our goals in the long term. Try them to keep yourself going.

1. Consider why you went after the goal in the first place. What would happen if it was still your goal?
2. Think about what your results have been so far. Have you gotten what you expected?  More?  Less?  Have the results been worth the effort you’ve put in?
3. Does the goal still feel right to you? Would adjustments make it more approachable or more meaningful to you?
4. What more will you achieve by going further or staying the course? Would further results be worth additional effort?
5. What do you need to put in place to support yourself in order to make continual progress sustainable? Do you need a partner, mentor or coach?  Do you need to put another “deadline” or goal in place for the future?  Do you need to make appointments with yourself to continue moving forward?

So here is my plan. I feel an enormous sense of satisfaction from being able to run.  I will keep running, but don’t feel the need to run 5K (just over 3 miles) or run three times a week.  I will continue to run 2 miles twice a week.  I plan to run on Tuesdays and one morning each weekend (probably Saturdays).  I will revisit this plan over time to make sure that it is sustainable and continues to feel right for me.

In terms of accountability… hopefully I’ll get my daughter to keep running with me when she gets home in a few weeks, but in the meantime, I’ve just told you about what I will be doing and invite you to make sure I stick to my plan.

What’s your plan for sustainability going to be?  I’d love to know…won’t you please share it with me.