Success Thought of the Day – 1/15/19: Consistency and behavior

Taking first things first often reduces the most complex human problem to a manageable proportion.  – Dwight D. Eisenhower

The early part of the year can be awe-inspiring as you can feel the energy around you.   Many have set new goals to conquer and are getting after them.  New business goals, new life goals, new fitness goals and more!

As an example, one of the things I am getting after in support of one of my life goals is “fewer screens and more scenes.”  This is about spending less of my time watching history and more of my time creating history.  I’m not divorcing devices, just finding a better balance.  A key step was no longer using the phone as an alarm, pulling out the old alarm clock and banning the phone from the bedroom!  Back to reading and journaling in the evening with no distractions or temptations :).

This past weekend I had an opportunity to spend time at a retreat with a special group of folks.  Shout out to Chris West for organizing, as well as Steve Napolitan and Mark LeBlanc for their training.  Mark reminded us of one of the greatest words that matter most in our success … consistency.   Simply stated, “consistency beats commitment.”

There have been various forms of research done on this, but on average, a new behavior becomes automatic after 2 months.  That said, it is less about the volume of things you do to achieve your goals and more about choosing a few right things and doing them consistently.  Consider one or two things that matter most to achieving your goals.  One or two things that you will do consistently until it becomes automatic.

Have a great day!
James