When Learning Anything, Go For The Small Wins
Posted: Thu Jul 07, 2016 11:00 pmI’ve been thinking a lot about what it takes to make a change in life for the better. Whether it's learning to surf or something else altogether, changes in your day-to-day will lead to a monumental impact on you and even those around you. These changes do not need to be complex or some “grand scheme”. Small, consistent changes now will lead to massive changes in your future.
Everyone has something that they want to do/change in life, but they are not doing it. MYSELF INCLUDED.
-Some people want to start reading more or others want to break a bad habit.
-Let’s relate it to your surfing: Some want to throw more powerful turns. Others want to surf better than their friends. Many simple want to surf better and feel comfortable in crowded line-ups. Some want to surf a legitimate “big wave” in their life.
We all have our own excuses. A common excuse for many things is that I am “too tired” or “I don’t have enough time”. But this mindset is thinking about the end goal and not the small steps taken to get there. Thinking about the big win at the end can make it seem like you will never get there. It’s mentally debilitating and kills motivation needed to get there.
Let’s face it, significant changes in life (whatever they are) do not happen in one day, one week, or one month. People excel in certain areas because they have made deliberate decisions. Small, deliberate decisions to improve over a long period of time. These are decisions made regardless of their personal setbacks.
Some common answers are to “Try harder!”, “You have to want it.”, “I just don’t have what it takes.”
Truth is, even if you try harder and have what it takes does not mean that you will get there. You must take small, deliberate steps and make conscious decisions toward your goal now. These small wins provide the satisfaction and motivation you need to continue. Whatever your “end game” is, overtime these small decisions lead to a massive shift in your favor.
So if your goal is as simple as reading more, start reading a chapter in a book a day. If that’s too much, start smaller with 5 pages a day.
If your personal goal is to kick a bad habit, start simple. At first, only work to recognize the habit every time you do it for a day.
If your goal is to surf better, start with small deliberate steps to improve your fitness and balance. Work on your fitness one day a week. The next week work on it two days a week. Progress slow and win small. Fitness has a huge impact on how quickly you can progress with your surfing.
Whatever your goal, start small, start today, and build on these small wins. With small consistent wins you’ll set yourself up for the big wins later on.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading. Go for the small wins!
I give away free fitness ebooks on my new blog (very beginning stages)Surf Shape in hopes of helping beginner and intermediate surfers improve their game. Check it out!
Cheers!
-Garrett
Everyone has something that they want to do/change in life, but they are not doing it. MYSELF INCLUDED.
-Some people want to start reading more or others want to break a bad habit.
-Let’s relate it to your surfing: Some want to throw more powerful turns. Others want to surf better than their friends. Many simple want to surf better and feel comfortable in crowded line-ups. Some want to surf a legitimate “big wave” in their life.
We all have our own excuses. A common excuse for many things is that I am “too tired” or “I don’t have enough time”. But this mindset is thinking about the end goal and not the small steps taken to get there. Thinking about the big win at the end can make it seem like you will never get there. It’s mentally debilitating and kills motivation needed to get there.
Let’s face it, significant changes in life (whatever they are) do not happen in one day, one week, or one month. People excel in certain areas because they have made deliberate decisions. Small, deliberate decisions to improve over a long period of time. These are decisions made regardless of their personal setbacks.
Some common answers are to “Try harder!”, “You have to want it.”, “I just don’t have what it takes.”
Truth is, even if you try harder and have what it takes does not mean that you will get there. You must take small, deliberate steps and make conscious decisions toward your goal now. These small wins provide the satisfaction and motivation you need to continue. Whatever your “end game” is, overtime these small decisions lead to a massive shift in your favor.
So if your goal is as simple as reading more, start reading a chapter in a book a day. If that’s too much, start smaller with 5 pages a day.
If your personal goal is to kick a bad habit, start simple. At first, only work to recognize the habit every time you do it for a day.
If your goal is to surf better, start with small deliberate steps to improve your fitness and balance. Work on your fitness one day a week. The next week work on it two days a week. Progress slow and win small. Fitness has a huge impact on how quickly you can progress with your surfing.
Whatever your goal, start small, start today, and build on these small wins. With small consistent wins you’ll set yourself up for the big wins later on.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading. Go for the small wins!
I give away free fitness ebooks on my new blog (very beginning stages)Surf Shape in hopes of helping beginner and intermediate surfers improve their game. Check it out!
Cheers!
-Garrett
I am just happy to be surfing.
