I think often when we’re struggling, we feel like we’re failing.
But that honestly isn’t the case.
To succeed, you have to face struggles head on and keep on going.
If there are no struggles, you’re probably not making the changes you need. And you’re probably closer to failure than you realize.
Because change is hard. Doing what you “should” isn’t always fun.
Success IS struggle.
Life will always do its best to try to get in the way and we’re constantly going to be fighting those excuses.
Learning something new too is a process. We’re going to have to embrace being bad at something, at making mistakes if we want to grow and improve.
Because often the only way to fully learn is by doing and making those mistakes.
I mention all of this because often at that first sign of push back, at us being bad at something, we climb back into the habits we are comfortable with.
Especially if results aren’t immediate, which often they won’t be.
If you’ve found yourself wanting to go back to what is easy and instinctual and COMFORTABLE, it may be time to give yourself a little wake up love tap aka a SLAP.
If you want a new and better result, get ready for things to be challenging and uncomfortable.
Get ready to embrace the struggle.
Here are 3 tips to help…
Tip #1: Take Time Each Day To Celebrate The Wins – No Matter How Small
It’s easy to focus on the negative. To let it even “consume” you. But the best way to keep yourself moving forward is to remind yourself of the positives.
Create a more positive mindset to help you keep on driving forward by recognizing even a small win each and every day.
Even say it out loud to yourself to really make sure your brain HEARS the positive.
What our mind believes, our body achieves.
Allow yourself to see your hard work paying off by recognizing those habit wins as you go through the learning process.
Even give yourself a mini challenge for the first week you’re doing something new to BRAG about a positive each day…even if that positive isn’t even really related. It will still improve your mindset!
Tip #2: Break Things Down
If you feel like you’re hitting that overwhelmed tipping point, that point of feeling super negative, take a step back.
Remove one challenge to focus on making a smaller change.
Don’t be afraid to admit you’re doing too much at once.
The most sustainable habits are the ones that require less willpower to replicate. And sometimes that means doing less to start so ultimately you can do more!
Tip #3: Get Help.
There is nothing wrong with asking for that outside perspective. Sure could you do it on your own? Yup!
But why not get a cheat sheet to help you do it faster?
Why not use someone else’s knowledge and experience to your advantage?
Why make mistakes you could avoid?
Why not have support to keep pushing forward while also having someone there to teach you the WHY behind things?!
When we’re struggling it can be nice to have that person to give us perspective and even help us focus on the positives and embrace the process.
SUMMARY:
Just remember…just because you’re struggling doesn’t mean you’re failing…actually it means the exact opposite.
Change requires change!
Keep on going this week despite the bumps in the road and challenges you’ve faced.
YOU’VE GOT THIS!
AND shameless plug for my One On One Coaching if you need that extra support and accountability!
–> LEARN MORE
I wish your videos were actual dvd’s that I could play on my computer.
Sorry no DVDs but I do have great training programs in my app now! 🙂
Hey Cori I read your posts often and enjoyed listening to your podcast.
Much of what you talk about in your coaching is familiar to me from the coaching I receive in my corporate life.
The current buzzword seems to be responsibility- giving people greater responsibility for the desired outcomes will yield higher performance. What’s your take on that? I find it pretty natural to to accountability at work, why does it sometimes seem so hard to apply that to my training! I wonder if it has to do with integrity… to yourself. I wouldn’t dream of letting my boss down but I seem prepared to let myself down by not sticking to my personal (fitness, eating) goals.
I love helping teach clients how to take ownership of their own journey. But I think it can be something we have to learn. It is easy to let ourselves off the hook at times when it is just for us while feeling “responsible” to do something for someone else. So often starting out with an outside accountability factor can help us then LEARN how to hold ourselves responsible. And sometimes, we also just have to know ourselves enough to know we need that outside accountability there to keep us pressing forward. It’s personally why I have coaches for specific areas I know I’m not good at holding myself accountable whereas in others I take full ownership and responsibility on my own.
hi Cori,
what else can be statemented in here ?!!
just be guided and beloved dear Corieooooo
Glad it helps!
You’ve helped me so much
Thank you
hi Cori,
Your words of encouragement really warm my heart. I’ve been trying to get my first pull-up for over 6 months. I struggled, I improved, I even got injured, and then finally unlocked my first unassisted pull-up about a month ago. When I succeeded I felt like I’m in heaven. But over the last few weeks, I just couldn’t pull myself up again. I’m back to the struggle and the disappointment is overwhelming. I doubt if I’m just not built to do pull-ups and I should just give up the struggle. Then I saw your message: ‘struggling doesn’t mean you’re failing’, ‘we only get good at what we consistently do’, yea, thanks for the timely encouragement, I’ll keep doing it.
PY
Glad it helps!
Glad it helps! And remember progress is never linear and we can never stop doing what makes us better. There will always be ebbs and flows, but the fact that you got there means you can again!
I’ve started to end each day with reflecting on my wins, no matter how small: ie I got my workout in, I hit my protein target, I didn’t have that glass of wine, I hit my step goal, etc…. And I’m especially happy just to make each day better than the one before in some small way. I sleep better by not focusing on the negatives and I wake up ready to add more positives.
Your daily emails and clips are what I start my day with and I often incorporate at least one of the tips in my routine.
Thank you!
Love this attitude Cenza! Seeking to recognize those little wins and 1% improvements is key! Always a learning and growing process…part of the fun of life!