Consistency: Small instead of Big Progress

You want to write a book this year. You’re really excited about it. Ideas keep floating. You decide to commit to writing 2000 words every day. The first 5 days, perfect. You even exceeded the amount. It looks like you're nailing consistency.

But, on the 6th day, you lack time, energy and inspiration. You failed. 0 words were written. On the 7th and 8th day you continue to pump the 2000 words. But, on the next days, you fail. Again, and Again. Till you give up.

The result? The misfortune of not having a great book published.

The problem? Lack of consistency.

If you did set up a daily-goal you could keep up with, the book would still be an ongoing project. Instead of writing 2000 daily-words, in the first 2 weeks, you would be writing 500 daily-words, for a whole year.

The result? A published book.

consistency is necessary for writing!

If you do commit to writing 200 words every day, you will still have the book finished. When committing to daily-goals you can’t keep up with, progress doesn't last long.

Writing

Regarding my blog, I did set a goal of writing 1500 words every day for the rest of the year. I kept this commitment for one month as I was on holidays.

When holidays ended, I realized I was struggling to write so many words. And instead of writing just a few, I gave up on writing completely. It was a wrong move, of course. I lost my consistency.

The result? I didn't publish a blog post for months.

If instead, I continued to write 100 or 200 words per day, I would still be able to publish 1 or 2 posts every week, which is great.

Setting the bar too high can be a mistake. If you can't keep up, have the courage and humility to lower it. Consistency is more important than trying to chew more than you can actually chew.

Setting ambitious goals is great for the soul and for the motivation levels. But they must be long-term goals. Overestimating what is possible to achieve in a day, and underestimating the achievement of yearly-goals, is rarely a good option.

Set ambitious goals for the future, but don't overwhelm yourself with dozens of daily tasks. It is better to make progress every day, for a year, than to make incredible progress every day, for 2 weeks.

You can write 2000 words or 3000 words in one day. If you’re inspired, go for it. But only commit if you’re sure you’ll keep up the pace for many months.

Exercising

If you’re not used to exercising, but still commit to exercise for 1 hour every day, it might not last long. Just develop the habit of showing up.

exercise requires consistency

Showing up = Consistency

Showing up is the most difficult part of every project you want to start. It takes discipline, and before making it a habit, it takes will-power.

But it’s totally worth it. You're dedicating your energy to something you want to start and finish!

Next time you pick a project, establish the commitment to make progress every day. Don't put too much pressure on your shoulders, as some days are worse than others.

The only thing you want is to keep doing it, every day. You want consistency.