5 Ways To Accomplish Your Goals Sans Fairy Godmother

5 Ways To Accomplish Your Goals Sans Fairy Godmother Out of My Own Way by artsyville You’re looking for her, aren’t you? That high-pitched, British, giggly blonde in a sparkly ball gown who may or may not travel in a bubble? The one who has that magic wand and/or magic fairy dust (it’s magic either way!) to waive over your project, shop, and/or business, allowing you to take perfect photos, write copious copy, and ring up super big-time sales in the time it takes to sing a nice song about it? Well, it’s time to stop looking. Actually, scratch that. While I’d be shocked to see a Fairy Godmother anywhere outside a Cinderella book, here’s how you can make your own magic: •      Take baby steps. If I had to credit one single thing to The Secret of My Success (namely, quitting my day job after 2 years 7 months, during which I got my life coach certification built up my business / safety net), it would be baby steps. Because I concentrated on doing something every day, I ended up covering way more ground in way less time than if I waited for a free afternoon or when inspiration struck. So, break your project down into said baby steps by determining the smallest, tiniest step you can take right now. And the next. And the next. And the â€" you get my drift. You can even use my Goal Game to help you. Work within those steps, and yes, even 15 minutes counts. I have a client that knows she can only commit to working in 15 minute increments, and for just 15 minutes a day. After a week, though, she’s put almost 2 hours behind her project, which is certainly not chump change! She does often work more than that, but when she does, it’s the icing on the cake. •      Experiment. What works for your bestie or your Mom or your spouse won’t necessarily work for you. I’ve yet to find a time management program that I want to marry, and as a Renaissance Soul, I’ve embraced the fact that I work best in 45 minute increments before I have to move on to the next thing (which is hardly seen as “the norm” in traditional society). Every single one of my clients has had to find their own process, and they do that by trying something new for a short amount of time and then tweaking it ‘til they can write their personal roadmap to the finish line. •      Dont bite off more than you can chew. What is worse than dumping a big project on your lap and giving yourself a week to do it, or writing a page of To Dos in your calendar with the expectation of them being done in a day’s time? These are not hypothetical questions. The answer to both is, “Nothing. Nothing at all is worse than that.” As tough as it is for overachievers like us (You mean I can’t have a full-time job a healthy marriage the amount of sleep a human needs spend every other waking moment on my Etsy shop?), I beg, I plead, I implore (yes, implore!) you to be realistic. Why not limit your To Do list to a maximum of 2 tasks each day? Worse comes to worse, you have extra time and steal a To Do from the next day, or (gasp!) take yourself up on some down time. Best comes to best, you still get your work done while not beating yourself up and making your head explode. Exploding heads are seriously not good. •       Bribery isnt just for little kids and gangsters. One of my clients decided that she would have studio time at the same time every day â€" right after dinner. She was used to plopping herself in front of the TV for hours until bedtime, but now, she uses her TV time as a reward for going into the studio and working, even for “just” 30 minutes. Besides looking forward to her reward before she even starts her work, she’s made it a habit, and now going into her studio is just what she does after dinner each night. It’s automatic. •       Be nice to yourself. Seriously. Your work doesn’t have to be torture. In fact, if it is, then maybe it’s time to reassess what you’re doing (although that’s another post for another time). If you find you’re dreading a part of your process, how can you make it as painless as possible? A client of mine hates hates hates (hates hates) ironing, yet she knows that she has to do it in order to make her cloth napkins. When we were working together and she got to that part of the project, she stalled, and we focused on trying to make ironing somewhat enjoyable. She remembered that she had a few episodes of The Next Design Star, her favorite show, waiting to be watched on her DVR, and committed to ironing while getting caught up in the competition. The next week, she had more room in her DVR and a crisp, wrinkle-free piece of fabric. She’ll never iron and want to shoot herself in her face again! Well, look at that. Midnight’s fast approaching! Apply the tips above to achieve your goal piece by painless piece, baby step by realistic baby step, and you’ll never have to worry about turning into a pumpkin again. This article debuted in my September newsletter, along with a sneak peak at The Declaration of You. If you dont wanna be told a secret after the entire school knows about it, then sign up here for future editions youll immediately get Pounding (Your Head Against) the Pavement: a Super Free, Super Awesome Workbook Thatll Make the Swelling Go Down. The next edition is going out at 1p Eastern on the 4th! ************************************************************************************************************** The Declaration of You will help ya take your shoulds, cants impossibles kick em to the curb! 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