A journey of a thousand miles, begins with a single step
Lao Tzu
This quote was one of my favorite quotes when I was in high school. But I will be transparent, I did not understand the full meaning of it, until now. And it is that we have to take things one step at a time.
In my personal development journey, I have learned that everything we do in life is a journey.
Everything that we wanted to achieve in life is a journey.
Life in itself is a journey.
In today’s time though we see that it is easy to get what we wanted to have. It is what they call ‘instant gratification’.
We are shown how easy it easy to make money online, to find out that it takes hard work to truly make it. Save it. And grow it.
Seeing how easy it is to make money through cryptocurrency, NFTs, etc. And yes it is easy to make that money. But if and only if you make the educated decision, like the people who succeeded in it. Because if you do not, then it is easy to lose that money as well.
Nowadays it is easy to get food. It is easy to go from one place to another. It is easy to have access to the information that you wanted to read about.
The majority of information that we see on any social media platform says and shows us that it is ‘easy’.
I hate to break it to you gorgeous, but as the quote says, “Nothing worthwhile comes easy”.
As I have written in my previous blog post, “5 Reasons why it is important to invest in yourself”. It takes work to become the best version of yourself and it needs to start with you. You need to start investing in yourself.
The journey of improving yourself needs to start somewhere. The journey of starting a relationship needs to start somewhere. The journey of becoming a success needs to start somewhere. And that is to start with a single step, then another step, and then another.
This is why I am sharing this post with you.
Importance of taking things one step at a time:
- It keeps you on the right track
Taking things one step at a time keeps you on the right track. Instead of focusing on the end goal. Focus on the next step and make that your next goal.
Taking things one step at a time keeps you on the right track because you’re breaking it down into bit-size steps that are achievable.
And if it is achievable then you will procrastinate less and take more action.
- It avoids feeling overwhelmed
Taking things one step at a time will avoid feeling overwhelmed. When I had clarity of my purpose in life, I honestly felt overwhelmed.
I did not realize that my calling is for something bigger. Something that I was so scared to see if it was something I can handle.
If your dreams don’t scare you, they are too small.
Richard Branson
As Richard Branson’s quote, “If your dreams don’t scare you, they are too small” resonates with my purpose. And how uplifting it can be, I will be honest that it is overwhelming and scary.
And when we feel overwhelmed, we tend to overthink. Overthinking can paralyze us into taking action. Overthinking causes procrastination.
So, instead of thinking of the end goal, look at the next step as mentioned in the step above. Take it one step at a time which makes it less scary and achievable.
- Avoid taking the wrong path
Taking things one step at a time helps you avoid taking the wrong path.
Have you heard of ‘shiny objects’? Shiny objects are opportunities that come along your journey. These are outside of what you had planned or set out to do.
Let me give you a few examples:
- You started your own business in the financial industry and you are doing really well. Making an impact and helping others. Then your business reached a plateau, and it is not making progress. All of a sudden, you see a business idea called, “Affiliate Marketing”. And people are raving about the money they are making through that. That is called a shiny object.
- You have been in a relationship for a long time. And all of a sudden, you and your partner started arguing and it feels like, your relationship is falling apart. Then you meet another woman. That is a shiny object.
- You are currently working for a company and you love what you do. A friend of yours said that he or she is planning to quit and move to a different company. That friend wants you to do the same as the salary is higher. That is a shiny object.
Now, shiny objects are not always bad, it is not as always good either.
You will hit challenges in your journey. You will come across problems that may look challenging at that time to solve. Shiny objects can serve as an eye-opener to you or they can cause you to lose sight of the journey that you wanted to take.
It is up to you to make that decision because sadly shiny objects can make you feel lost and stuck. The good thing is, you can start over again.
My advice, make sure you know what you truly want to achieve. Focus on it. Take things one step at a time and see them through.
In any journey you choose. Starting a business. Changing careers. Personal development journey. Focus on that. And see it through.
Like what the mindset mentor, Rob Dial did for his business. He started his podcast and it took 3 years for him to see growth in his business. Three years! He stayed focused. And took it one step at a time. By creating one podcast after another. Now he is reaping the rewards of that success.
- It gives you a better result
Taking things one step at a time gives you a better result.
Yes, gorgeous. Taking one step at a time is like one milestone at a time. If you take one step and finish it, then that’s progress.
And guess what, when you see progress, then you will be more inclined to do the next step. Again, once done, that is another milestone. Then the cycle continues.
So, to summarize this post, again “Nothing worth doing comes easy.” But it is possible if we take one action or one step at a time.
You cannot think your way through anything you desire. You cannot wish your way through anything you desire. You cannot say you are trying yet not take the first step.
The key is, to take the step, then the next step, and the next.
I love what Damian Johnson said, “Let’s not fight invisible dragons” meaning do not let your fears, limiting beliefs, and planning hinders you from taking action. Because those fears, limiting beliefs, and problems that you’ve thought of that is all they are… invisible. They do not exist.
But action is apparent. It gives you progress. It moves the needle. It creates impact. And guess what? It will give you confidence. So again, just take it one step at a time.
I hope you are found value in this blog post gorgeous and I ask for you to spread and share it with others who may benefit from it as well.