Most People Do This And It’s Killing Them

I should have invested earlier.I should be further along on this project than I am.I should known an emergency might happen.

Have you heard yourself talk like this before?

It’s known as “shoulding all over yourself.”Unless there is a lesson you can learn and apply to the future, this kind of thinking is useless.In fact, it’s counter productive.It pulls your valuable attention away from the reality of where you are right now (and what you CAN do) and puts it on what you cannot change.There is a 0% ROI on ruminating.

It’s normal to have this thought pattern, so it’s okay.

It’s your job to catch this and make the adjustment, regulate, and choose to put your attention somewhere more useful.It’s not a light switch. Be patient. It’s one of those things that just takes a lifetime to master.Hang in there.Do your best with what you have, where you are.

2 Minute Action

Name 3 things you haven’t let go of or things you haven’t forgiven yourself for.You can also just name some things that are on your “worry list” that don’t really need to be because there’s not much you can control about them.Pick one and take 2 minutes to focus only on that and let yourself off the hook.Feels kinda good to be nice to yourself, right?This will come up again later, so be patient with yourself as you build this habit.

A Little Hack To Jumpstart Your "Someday Maybe" List

Almost everyone has a "Someday Maybe List"

On it, you have . . .

• The non-profit you want to start.
• The album you want to record.
• The backpacking trip you want to take.

Sometimes these things are so big and important that they paralyze us from taking action. Maybe we don't know where to start. Maybe the road is so long we are afraid we won't make it. Maybe it's not urgent so we hit the snooze button for later.

Here's a super easy way to start:

All you have to do is ask: is it actionable?Can you do something about it right now? Why or why not? If it's not actionable, you'll either need more information or you'll need to break down the goal into smaller, actionable pieces.For example, "write a novel" is a big, hairy goal. You can't just bang that out today. It takes time, persistence, and a LOT of patience.Most people think: I'll write a book and then maybe I'll start a blog to tell people about it.They've got it backward. By starting with the blog, you're not only writing out the novel in small, digestible chunks (some publishers call these: chapters), but you're also building an audience of people who are going to be the most likely group of people on the planet to care when you publish it.

Is it actionable?

No. You can't publish a novel today.Fine. So what CAN you do?

• You CAN write a chapter today.
• You CAN call 5 publishers every day for a week.
• You CAN start a blog, today.

Life is going to be a lot harder (and procrastination will be a lot easier) if the tasks on your to-do list turn out to NOT be actionable.It's an easy question.You've got this.Small, daily, relentless.

2 Minute Action

What's one thing that's been sitting on your to-do list for a while?What's holding you back from checking the box?Okay, now what's the real reason?What's a small step that you can take towards making it happen?