5 Reasons to "Start Where You Are" (Even If It's The Middle Of A Cycle!)

This time of the year is interesting, because so many of us get caught up in New Year's Resolutions. I even wrote about the topic of New Year's Resolutions back in November, foolishly thinking myself above the "New Year's Resolution." (I'll have to revisit this topic later in the year!)

Oh, what I didn't know then!

Having done this, I then proceeded to create a "plan of action" for the coming year. It was all to start on January 1st. Somehow I believed that my life would miraculously be different on that arbitrary date. For the first time in my life, I would be capable of organizing information! Le Gasp!

Let's be real: I flopped, hard. While I've kept up with this blog and my morning journaling, I've run into some road blocks along the way.

The biggest has been picking up, dusting myself off, and trying again.

I've always had trouble "starting where I am." I like to start on certain dates!
(Source CC BY 2.0)

See, I've told you about my struggles with pre-planning. I've written about how I've battled to stay motivated by daily tarot draws. Every week I discuss what worked that week and what didn't. (Most weeks "what didn't work this week" is longer and more detailed than what did!)

This is all part of the learning process. MOST of it doesn't bother me, but there's one thing that does.

Success at some of these tasks will make other tasks easier. Many of the "booster" tasks (the ones which, doing, help organize my time so I have more of it for the things I love) are routine tasks which should be accomplished in a particular order.

The best example is pre-planning my blogs.

I can fly by the seat of my pants: That's how I've always blogged, after all. Eventually, however, I run out of ideas and out of motivation. This is partially solved by my journal, where I jot down the ideas I have and index them for reference later. Then, on days I'm not sure what to write about, I can reference the index and find a topic about which to write.

All in all, this is not practical.

So I learned something. Something IMPORTANT. 

I don't have to wait until the next week, or even the next DAY, to catch up on what I missed. 

Pretty neat, huh?

So here are some reasons to start where you are and not give up:

1. You'll feel better about the accomplishment.

I cannot think of a single time in nearly forty years when I have felt bad about following through on a commitment.

On the contrary, I've shed real tears over having failed to follow through on a commitment.

The commitments we're talking about here are among the most important type: This blog is about the commitments that we make to ourselves, to our Dreams (with a capital D!) and to Making Magic Happen. 

You'll feel better about following through on a commitment you made to yourself because it puts you in a position of priority in your own life. It reminds you that you are important, and that you deserve great things! 

2. You'll create a habit sooner.

It won't happen any more QUICKLY, but you will create a habit SOONER if you start from the point where you are now instead of waiting for the next arbitrary date to come along. Even if you've missed gratitude logging for the first five days of a week, there is no reason not to write down your gratitude log the last two days.

This is me, true story.

The formation of a new habit takes practice, but practice can be achieved even without consistency, provided that you continue to try again. Even the most disciplined people sometimes have an off day. Forgive yourself and try again the next day. Don't wait for the next week!

3. You'll find it easier to forgive yourself for the mistake.

Guilt and forgiveness is a topic I will eventually write about at length. It occupies a lot of the space in my journal at the moment, and it's important for a number of reasons. I'll give you the basic premise right now, though: If you want to manifest something powerful, you have to let go of guilt and shame first.

Failure, if not addressed, can create guilt and shame, which can become a cycle.

There is nothing inherently wrong with failure, provided that we learn from it. The important thing is that you pick yourself up and try again.

4. You'll save time.

This has been one of the most important lessons that I've learned about picking up where I left off, regardless of the date on the calendar. 

The things I DON'T do waste more time than the things I DO do. I spend more time worrying about whether or not I'll remember to pre-plan next week than I will if I stop what I'm doing mid-week and do it RIGHT NOW. (Whether I plan the current week or pre-plan the next week is irrelevant. The point is that doing it stops the mental cycle of thinking about what I MIGHT forget to do.)

So whatever it is that you missed or skipped, do it NOW (or later tonight, or tomorrow morning). Don't wait until some pre-designated time that is "right" for this activity. You'll save the time you would have spent worrying and feeling guilty for breaking your new habits!

5. You'll save MONEY.

Well, at least if you're like me, you will. I tend to buy a LOT of tools for my work. In the past six months I've purchased three Leuchtturm 1917s (only one of which I've actually used and two of which I "ruined" by writing one thing in it and then abandoning it. Not to worry, they're finding a recycled use now!), two Erin Condren Life Planners (neither of which I've kept up with) and the Rituals for Living Dreambook.

I am... not going to add up how much money all of that cost me, but trust me, with my income it is a LOT. 

Here's the real problem. If I don't at least make a concerted effort to use these tools, I will become frustrated and (because I am just that sort of person) buy them again next year!

Let me make sure I'm understood: I will replace an empty planner with a new empty planner with next year's dates because I'm not sure whether or not I could have succeeded if I'd just tried harder.

So for people like me, it is useful to start where you are because at least then you'll know whether this tool works for you and be able to make an educated decision about whether you want to purchase it again next year.

Don't wait to try again! The road may be long, but that doesn't mean you stop before you reach your destiation!
(Source CC BY 2.0)

Do you have reasons that you believe it's best to start where you are? Or do you prefer to stick to the arbitrary dates method, like I've done until now? Join in the discussion on our Facebook Page!