Success With The Hoods

It seems that everyone these days is talking about baby steps. What are they?

A couple of months ago I wrote about developing a plan and following it. I like many people started the article with the thought of developing a blog or minimally a dialogue with readers about what it takes to set one’s life in motion. Yes, there are the elements of choice, commitment and consistency. Again, one must know what the goal is then commit to that goal and follow through everyday. At the time I had the goal of getting to the gym everyday and getting back into shape, but like most people, my existing life interfered. I did not get to the gym, but you knew that.

Now, that has set into motion plan B or plan Baby Steps. But before embarking on a journey down the road of self pity and remorse I have to ask did I fail and what did I fail at? Well, the truth is the plan didn’t fail; I just failed to follow the plan. Doesn’t this sound familiar? Today the new plan is not nearly so aggressive. It slowly transitions into a large plan, building bit by bit. The fact is that great chefs are not created in a day. Regardless of individual talent and there is plenty of that to go around, I’ve never heard of someone who just walks into a kitchen and is instantly a master chef. It takes years to develop not only the skills but the discerning palate necessary to be a great chef. How do they do it?

Simply, baby steps…it starts with crawling followed by standing or I should say wobbling, then a slow tenuous shuffle and eventually after a time running. But think of the work an Olympic runner puts into their training. Everyday is part of their continued effort to be the very best and it is always in baby steps. Taking this one step further, consider the fact that as a runner comes closer to the top of his or her field, the field becomes smaller, more competitive and ultimately success is determined by increasingly smaller increments of time, or fractions of a step, resembling baby’s step.

For those of us who are not so gifted as the master chefs of Gourmet Magazine or world-class runners, what can we do? First, when starting, only compete with youself. Avoid comparing your time running a mile or even a portion of a mile to a world class runner’s time since doing so will result in certain disappointment. Set realistic goals. Choose goals which are attainable. In looking at these goals consider what you may or may not have to trade to attain these goals. This requires both introspection as well as an honest evaluation of your situation. For me the challenge of going to the gym is hugely difficult since I leave home for work at 4:30am and don’t return till 6:00 or 6:30pm on an average day. I may have the goal of going to the gym, but is this a realistic goal? No, so I have had to re-evaluate my situation and consider baby steps.

I have had to back off my grandiose plan and now instead of going to the gym I do some yoga at home before going to work. I use baby steps here. It started with going to the book store and buying a book on yoga, written by an expert who spells the practice of yoga out in baby steps. First the practice was only breathing and now it’s growing one position at a time. My plan is not to be a master yogi, but to practice the examples in the book and to complete it, all in baby steps.

Now what do you need to do? First, take a deep breath and image your goal. If you can visualize it, chances are that it is realistic and attainable. This includes knowing how something feels, what it taste like if applicable and how it sounds. Imagine the smells associated with your goal if it is a place. Then consider everything (i.e.: all your excuses) that might prevent you from reaching that goal. Then structure a plan around these limitations as you plan a trip around obstacles. Avoid everything that will interfere with your success. Follow this with baby steps, plotting each step…starting with crawling and success will be yours.

Mahalo,

Greg