To make progress on your life goals, focus on them one at a time.
When you were little you started dreaming of all of the great things you would do in your lifetime. You thought of the great jobs you would have. You imagined the feats that would make you famous. You pictured the amazing things you would someday own. Like the pony, the monster truck, and the free candy vending machine in your bedroom closet that was also encrusted in candy. Because you were extra.
The Reality
As an adult, you have these ideas too. But you also have the ability to make these ideas a reality. You can start that business, take that epic trip, buy that vacation home, or create your own Hamilton. (By this I mean your own Lin-Manuel Miranda-type masterpiece. Not your own ill-fated duel to the death on the Jersey shore, Snooki.)
Dreaming Vs. Doing
My list of imagined successes is long like Duk Dong, and growing every day. The dreaming is easy. The doing is the hard part. But it’s not as hard as you might think.
To make progress towards your life goals approach them the way I approach writing this blog.
Blog Jam
Throughout each day I accumulate ideas to write about and I add them to my list of posts to create. Today, there are several hundred topics on the list.
Pick One
However, when I sit down each morning to write I have to pick one idea to focus on. That idea is in the spotlight. It gets all of my time and attention.
I do all of the work I need to do in order to transform that idea into a real post. I invest my time and my energy. I mind all the details.
I create a headline, write the body copy, and add a key takeaway. I tag the post, list a category, then add a cover photo. I proofread it. Then I hit the publish button. (Fun Fact: When proofreading this post I found that the word ‘proofread’ was misspelled.)
Another One (#DJKhaled)
Through this process, I convert ideas into real posts, one at a time. In fact, this will be my 657th post. Tomorrow morning at 6:10 am I will be writing number 658.
Key Takeaway
You can make each of your hopes, dreams, and wishes a reality by concentrating on them one at a time. Give one idea your total focus and energy. Sweat the details. Take it all the way to completion. Then take on the next idea. Don’t take on more than one thing at a time. But make sure you always have one of your goals in the spotlight. That way you are always making progress. And you are transforming the things you want to do into the things you did.
Originally published at http://adamalbrecht.blog on October 24, 2021.