1) Write down a clear S.M.A.R.T. goal or thing you want to do on a piece of paper (OKR style), a clear definition of why you are trying to do the thing, and when you should have it accomplished by.
2) On a separate piece of paper, define your expectations around how chasing that thing will feel and what you expect to happen when you accomplish it
3) Put the second piece of paper about expectations in a paper shredder - destroy it
4) Create a google doc (or whatever) with large bold letters at the top: My goal is to do X by Z because Y. Make accessing this doc as low friction as possible (a bookmark icon on home screen, a bookmark in browser, etc)
5) Create a consistent schedule (1 hour every other day?) and use the doc to track. Treat this as your personal standup doc: make entries on the disciplined timeline, and plot out next steps at the end of each entry. Review weekly (Sunday night?), take notes on your progress, etc.
6) Finally, at the target date, reflect on where you are, and celebrate anything and everything that happened as a result of your feeling inspired by an idea or goal and making tangible progress in your life because of it. It's beautiful.
For the progress doc, viewing your progress makes it harder to give up on - think of it like “We’ve gone 100 days without a workplace accident” or “I haven’t had a X in the last 50 days” - you build up momentum and commitment to seeing something through for the sake of not letting down the older version of yourself i.e. You make quitting an increasingly bigger deal.
Regarding expectations - of course, I'm joking about steps 2 and 3. For me, living life chasing the vision for something gets in the way of actually getting after it, because by definition it's dreamy, and each step you take closer that doesn’t resonate with the dream is another kick in the pants. Soon, you give up and move on because the dream (expectation) is significantly different from the actual experiences you have while taking steps towards it.
For goal setting, I cannot stress the importance of setting S.M.A.R.T. goals and detaching from the dreamy stuff. If the vision is truly powerful and meaningful to you, it will be kept alive and supported by material success on the smaller milestones that you accomplish.
1) Write down a clear S.M.A.R.T. goal or thing you want to do on a piece of paper (OKR style), a clear definition of why you are trying to do the thing, and when you should have it accomplished by.
2) On a separate piece of paper, define your expectations around how chasing that thing will feel and what you expect to happen when you accomplish it
3) Put the second piece of paper about expectations in a paper shredder - destroy it
4) Create a google doc (or whatever) with large bold letters at the top: My goal is to do X by Z because Y. Make accessing this doc as low friction as possible (a bookmark icon on home screen, a bookmark in browser, etc)
5) Create a consistent schedule (1 hour every other day?) and use the doc to track. Treat this as your personal standup doc: make entries on the disciplined timeline, and plot out next steps at the end of each entry. Review weekly (Sunday night?), take notes on your progress, etc.
6) Finally, at the target date, reflect on where you are, and celebrate anything and everything that happened as a result of your feeling inspired by an idea or goal and making tangible progress in your life because of it. It's beautiful.
For the progress doc, viewing your progress makes it harder to give up on - think of it like “We’ve gone 100 days without a workplace accident” or “I haven’t had a X in the last 50 days” - you build up momentum and commitment to seeing something through for the sake of not letting down the older version of yourself i.e. You make quitting an increasingly bigger deal.
Regarding expectations - of course, I'm joking about steps 2 and 3. For me, living life chasing the vision for something gets in the way of actually getting after it, because by definition it's dreamy, and each step you take closer that doesn’t resonate with the dream is another kick in the pants. Soon, you give up and move on because the dream (expectation) is significantly different from the actual experiences you have while taking steps towards it.
For goal setting, I cannot stress the importance of setting S.M.A.R.T. goals and detaching from the dreamy stuff. If the vision is truly powerful and meaningful to you, it will be kept alive and supported by material success on the smaller milestones that you accomplish.