The Power of Consistency

“We become what we want to be by consistently being what we want to become each day.”

-Richard G. Scott

The sun is scorching at 10AM. My car’s air conditioner is doing its job laboriously to assist me in centering myself. 

I was on the street before entering my neighbourhood when I saw a guy -in a sport tee and shorts with headphones in- running tenaciously. 

What a sight it was. In awe I watched this chubby guy -seemingly college-aged- running adamantly though he visibly looked drawn and sapped of energy. At 10 o’ clock in the morning, the heat is merciless. Though it may have been easier to run before the sun rises or maybe later in the evening, this man chose to run at 10AM.

I’ve never seen him running when I drove home in the morning, so I can’t say for sure if he runs daily at that time. However, I couldn’t help but wonder, “Would he be here running tomorrow also? Or even the next day?”

One key aspect of creating the lifestyle you want to have is what you do each and every day that contributes to making your dreams and goals a reality. Everyone pictures in their mind the ideal routine and habits they want to form to develop themselves and their business.

You want to get up early everyday, eat healthy meals, exercise in the morning, write in your journal and read. You want to send out and reply to emails, take orders, send package all while responding to customer complaints. 

Know yourself, Know What You Can Commit To

It’s almost October, the year’s last quarter.

Susan wants to do Facebook lives everyday at 12PM. She’s going to push this from October to December. She can do this.

She hasn’t done it everyday before, but there’s no reason she can’t, right?

Monday is completed.

Tuesday she had a late breakfast so maybe at 1PM?

Wednesday, “My gosh, today was so hectic I forgot.”

Thursday she realizes the difficulty in doing this practice routinely.

Now she thinks maybe everyday is too often, she should try every other day.

Do you recognize this feeling?

Do you ever enthusiastically start a new habit but underestimate the effort required to keep at it everyday?

We’re always showing up for the first couple days present and ready, but then if you ask us six months later, if we’re there. Some of us would even forget that they were trying to keep a habit- they forget what they were even working toward.

If you’re anything like our friend, Susan, I usually recommend to my clients starting with a Facebook live maybe once a week. Show up every WEEK on that day you’ve chosen and devote yourself to making that habit. The next day could possibly be your blog writing day. 

Even so, I won’t advise that you do everything each day- focus on doing one task a day. When you do this, you build consistency and the quality of what you produce will improve because it’s the only thing you’d be focusing on that day.

You’d have set in your mind a schedule you can realistically keep and you’re prepared for the task you’ve assigned for that day. On days I’ve set to write blogs, more often than not, the bulk of the content is already developed in my mind because I’ve been thinking about it in preparation for the day I’ve assigned to write it.

This is why I stress so much on knowing what we’re capable of doing consistently and committing to it. 

This also doesn’t mean to try doing ten things each day, when in actuality you end up only doing two things of the ten. Being able to only get two tasks done isn’t bad, this just shows what you can realistically commit to. 

Define your goal and set your sight on what you’re going to focus on consistently.

 Planning Helps Commitment

Let’s say you’re a busy mom- a super mom- performing all the tasks that keep your household aligned while also maintaining a full-time job.

 Working hard at the grind, getting home at 6 o’ clock to then take care of the house. You’ve got to prepare dinner, take care of the kids – feed them, bathe them or even make them a bottle if they’re at that age- and the super duties don’t stop there.

After working at your job and doing all the household activities it’s probably 9PM, you’ve now got an hour or less to settle in and continue building your business before catching some z’s.

Given that you only have an hour, you’ve got to know and plan everything that you’re going to do in that time you have to build your business. It’s no use waiting until then to decide what you’re going to work on.

When you sit down to work at 9pm at night to work on your dreams you better know what you’re going to be working on. I’ve got a system for you that may help with that.

Consistency Requires A System

Consistency is a system. Let’s remember that gentleman I saw running in the blazing heat. The reality is, he maybe took notice of the consistent rainfall after 1PM in the area. He could have adjusted his routine to accommodate the weather but the time in which he chose to run would have made being consistent a challenge.

I’ve tried running in the morning period a few times, but quickly realized that there was no way I can effectively ran once the sun had risen. After these runs, I was drained of all my energy, the sun sapped every last bit of energy out of me. Not even vitamins or drinking beet juice revitalized me after the sun’s beating.

You’ve got to figure out what times are best for you to perform which activities. Ask yourself, “When should I do this and when is the best time?”, “When is this going to serve me best?” and “When is it going to serve others?”

As moms, even when we want to fit a workout into our day, we need to consider what is the best time, not only for us, but for our family as well.

If you go running at 10 o’ clock in the morning, knowing you’re going to be tired for the rest of the day, how are you going to serve your family?

You need to find that balance.

You’ve got to figure out what times are best for you to perform which activities. 

Learn your strong suits and your weaknesses to help create a system for yourself that serves you best..

Conclusion

You can’t do it all when you just get started, especially in online marketing. You’ve got to choose one thing, focus on it and get it done.

I can’t stress the importance of choosing to do what you can do consistently because that is going to lay the real foundation for your business. What you choose should be realistic, actionable, serves you and others well.

If not, soon enough you’d be burned out and become overwhelmed if you don’t effectively sort out these tasks, prioritize and devote time to perform them consistently. 

To learn more about how you can work with me in helping you create that balance in your own business schedule a strategy session with me today.