In my childhood home, when you made a mistake—whether it was spilling milk or answering a math question wrong—you would be screamed at, with expletives for emphasis. So what my psyche learned from that is: either you do something perfect or don’t do it.
As a result, for most of my life I’ve either almost killed myself making things perfect or I’ve shut down and withdrawn from life for days or weeks at a time. And even though I rock at doing big things for others, I suck at motivating myself to achieve my personal goals.
But I’m not beating myself up about it because I know why it’s a problem, and I’m taking steps to solve it.
Our internal programming is set by the time we’re 10 years old. The lucky ones among us had primary caregivers who helped develop that “planning and perseverance” muscle, by teaching the importance of creating a plan, following that plan, persevering when things got hard, and celebrating progress over perfection. They also provided support, creating a safe environment for healthy self-discipline to grow.
Most of us weren’t that lucky. If you were, that’s awesome…you probably don’t need to read this blog post. But if you weren’t, don’t worry. It’s never too late to learn.
After a lifetime of studying the psyche + a couple decades of daily meditation + a ton of other inner work, I’ve become amazing at helping other people live their highest potential. And yet I’m still just a baby learning to crawl when it comes to getting the basic, everyday, unsexy stuff done that will move my own business, and my bigger goals and dreams, forward.
So don’t feel bad if you haven’t tried most of the valuable free exercises I’ve provided over the past few weeks to help you build your own Goal Mastery System. But don’t just forget about it, either.
Crawling may not look pretty, but it eventually leads to walking and the next thing you know you’re there.
I’ll bet you’ve got something you’d like to share with the world too. Something that you know would feel good for you, and maybe even make a difference for others, if you would just consistently take action toward moving forward on it.
There will never be a “right time”.
Your psyche is a traitor; it will always whisper “Tomorrow…let’s start tomorrow.” And tomorrow will never come.
If you want to be one of the few people on Earth who is actually living your dreams, you’re going to have to ignore that voice in your head that’s telling you that you have more important things to do, or that it’s a waste of time.
You’re going to have to get fierce about it.
Dreaming is a beautiful thing. But you know what’s even more beautiful?
Making a plan for that dream and taking small daily actions toward making it your reality.
I challenge you to take a small but powerful step in that direction right now.
Go back and do just one of the exercises in my previous posts (and if you’ve already done one, great! Do one more). And if that feels good, keep going. Make a plan. Check things off. Review. Adjust. Improve. Grow those beautiful self-discipline muscles and live your potential.
Then tell me how it went. I’m interested. And I care. And I’m crawling forward right beside you.
Here they are again:
- 3 Steps to Create a Goal Mastery System That Works for You (Finally!)
- 4 Exercises to Set the Right Goals to Create a Life You’ll Love
- 6 Systems That Will Help you Set & Meet Goals
- The 6 Components of an Effective Goal Mastery System
- 7 Apps That Will Help you Master Your Goals
And if you know someone else who’s struggling to move forward on their dreams, please share this post with them!
Yours, with fierce love for you and for all those gifts inside you that want to be shared with the world.
Rise up and shine as your True Self,
Shawn xo
- It taps you into your purpose + life's calling.
- This gives you focus + motivation + momentum.
- It comes with a video tutorial + mini-course.
- + 6 days of life-changing secrets on harnessing the power of your subconscious mind to do bigger things faster + happier.
