My last blog dealt with self-sabotage, overwhelm and backtracking. In my enthusiasm for moving forward, I had overloaded myself with unrealistic goals that caused me to temporarily derail and fall back on old habits.
Do I consider these missteps as failures? Absolutely not! To fail would mean I gave in. To fail would mean I gave up. To fail would mean that I didn’t learn from my misdirection.
Although I am still finding my way back from my temporary detour, I have learned a lot about myself and what works best for me. I have learned that there are going to be bumps in the road and uphill battles when you are seeking a different direction in your life. And I have become more determined than ever to find the route that will lead me to accomplish and sustain my goals.
When I met with Marielle to discuss the recent challenges on my journey, I discovered that I had actually accomplished much more than I had realized. I had worked toward every single action that I had set out for myself, even if I hadn’t completed the entire action (are we ever really finished?).
Of course, that led to two revelations: Firstly, I was over-reaching my boundaries by confusing ongoing process with singular measures. Rather than breaking down what should become consistent practice into workable steps, I was attempting to do everything at once. Also, as a writer, I knew that the words I was using were important to me, and yet my to do list used words like “begin” and “attempt”. I needed to find verbs that led me toward my goals – quite literally, my actions require action words.
Further, I discovered that my weekly scheduling, while an improvement, was still not enough. I needed to become even more specific than I had been previously. This non-scheduler had to write a timed schedule that would lay out my daily plan. Even if I didn’t accomplish everything on this plan, I was moving toward those all-important goals.
And so, as I get back on track, you might ask, “Are we there yet?” And I would answer, “Not yet, but soon.” And where there is hope and commitment, there will be success.
About the Author:
The above entry is part of a guest blog series titled “A Coaching Journey” written by my friend, client, and talented writer, Linda Epstein. She has graciously agreed to write on her experience with the coaching process as she navigates it, to give a first-hand view of what the journey is like. Visit weekly to find out more!
Read the rest of “A Coaching Journey” by clicking below:
Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – Part 4 – Part 5 – Part 6 – Part 7 – Part 8 – Part 9 – Part 10 – Part 11 – Part 12 – Part 13