Ella maneja una carro!
Yes I know that means absolutely nothing to you, even if you speak Spanish. You see, I decided to add Spanish to my language bank and have invested in Rosetta Stone®, which has promised me that I don’t have to worry about useless memorizations. I am guaranteed to start speaking my language of choice in a few short sessions.
I’d say the folks at Rosetta Stone® are right…there are no useless memorizations, though I’m not quite sure learning how to say “She is driving a car” before I learn how to count in Spanish is particularly useful, but hey, I’m with this program..no problemo!
The part they leave out, is that regardless of how good a program is, consistency is absolutely important to be successful. When I started with my Spanish lessons, I dedicated about 30 minutes daily to it. This was soon cut down to 20 min, then 15 min, and well I haven’t opened up the software in at least 3 months, maybe more. I still remember ella maneja una carro and that los gatos means cats, but I can’t string any words to make any sense. I’m still quite Spanish illiterate.
I’ve found in my world as a 30 something year old, the need for constant consistencies in order to see something happen/change. The most simplified example has been working towards my weight loss and fitness goals. It’s required consistent effort and when I’ve strayed have immediately seen my hard work poof into thin air!
Even with my blog entries, I have been inconsistent in the last few weeks. I learned from other bloggers to set a schedule that included specific time for blogging and had been keeping up. Then, life happened and then more life happened, and before I realize, hello July!
For me, it’s generally a vicious cycle…when I achieve a mark towards my goal, I feel completely empowered and “reward” myself by not being so disciplined and soon enough, I erase my achievement. If, on the other hand, I don’t get anywhere after trying for "some time", I get discouraged and give it up, determining it wasn’t mine to begin with. In either case, the consistent effort dissipates and we’re right back where we started.
Career & Financial stability
30 something year olds often find themselves defining their
careers and taking steps towards it. For those in the arts such as actors,
consistency is the key to success and working towards a career really means
consistently acting, or painting or drawing etc. For other careers consistency
means going back to school, or finishing school. In all cases, creating our
brand as hardworking achieving go-getters requires that we are consistent in
the excellence we produce at our workplaces.
Family life
Many 30 something year olds have fairly new marriage life
and sometimes children. Consistency for them means working daily with a partner
towards common goals, creating consistent habits for children such as teaching
them to sleep in their own beds, potty training, mealtime habits, homework etc.
For others, consistency means building/sustaining relationships and finding ways
to connect with new people.
Spiritual life
As we seek growth, many of us work on strengthening our
spiritual walk and aligning ourselves with a specific religion. Many of them
require consistent efforts in prayer, reading, or attending services.
Health & Fitness
We are all acutely aware of our health and what role we play
in achieving optimal health. Many of us have set goals to healthy eating, which
might mean cooking healthy meals, or learning how to cook, and avoiding junk
food. Many of us also have weight loss
goals, increasing physical activity and adding a sustainable exercise regimen
to our daily lives.
We all need to be able to consistently move towards what we want…until our goal is met, no matter how many tries it takes and how often we fail.
Here are some tips to stay consistent
1. Set realistic goals. Getting to the gym 5 days a week is not a big deal for me…I just have me to take care of. For you parents and people that take care of other people, this might not particularly be realistic.
2. Set baby goals. Maybe the goal is to make a big purchase. Start with saving a set amount per week ($5) and work your way up to a bigger amount per week ($20)
3. Don’t let yourself off the hook. I’ll do it tomorrow is a statement that's as useful for a goal as “5 more minutes”. I know for a fact that if my plan is to do it tomorrow, somehow and quite magically tomorrow never shows up or when he does its usually in about 3 months or a year.
4. Forgive yourself for slip ups. Consistency does require every something. Be it every day, every week, every hour…whatever the case, if you do slip up, let it go and keep going. Don’t beat yourself up for a simple human behavior. Keep pushing.
5. Just do it...now! Nike® had the right idea with this tag line. Consistency means nothing if you don’t actually start working towards your goal. So just do it..whatever you’ve been waiting to do, just do it. Do you want to go back to school, learn something new, make new friends, get a new job, learn a new sport, have children? Just do whatever it takes to get you there.
She's still half-stepping!
Half-stepping Diva
