Consistency and Your Goal Setting

Last year, around this time of year, we came to you with OrangeBall Insight’s 100th blog post. We challenged you then to name which small habits you’d be willing to repeat one hundred times over.

What you’re reading today represents blog post number 152. One year later, we’re proud to say that we’ve continued to share our thoughts and insights throughout all of 2021. We’ve been repeating our small habit, even when it has been tough, inconvenient, and we wanted to skip it. We’ve stepped in to help one another. Last week’s post focused on celebrating the past year’s wins, losses, and the people. Today’s post is focused on celebrating the importance of consistency – connecting the small, individual dots to create something greater.

As you’re preparing to set your goals for the coming year, how you approach consistency will make or break you. Consistently do the small things, and you will get where you want to go or at least ensure you come very close. On the other hand, let inconsistency slip in, and reaching your goals will take you longer… or won’t happen at all. You get to decide. Will you do the little things, over and over again, to make your goals a reality? Or, will you allow inconsistency to hijack your results?

If you choose consistency as your go-to, then here are three things you’ll need…

Desire – When you’re setting your goals, focus hard on the “why” behind what you want to achieve. Understanding your true desire will help you build an emotional connection to your goals, which will help you stay consistent when you’re tired, busy, or “don’t feel like it.” When there’s not a strong tie between desire and your goals, inconsistency will sneak in and slowly rob you.

Discipline – Consistency requires discipline, or in other words, a deep level of commitment. When combined with your desire, discipline is what will carry you through those moments where you’re not in the mood or don’t have the energy to keep showing up. We view discipline as a team sport… It’s essential to have other people help you stay disciplined in those moments that require hard work, especially when you’re not feeling it or you’re under water.

A Plan – When you set your goals for the coming year, you need to back them up with a plan. Author Alan Lakein put it this way. “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” Your plan helps guide your consistent actions. Stick with the plan, consistently repeating the actions you’re committed to, and you’ll move toward your goals. Neglect the plan, and you’ll get off course. The plan also gives you a measuring stick you can look at to see if your consistency is moving you in the right direction.

Call-to-Action
As you’re considering your goals for the new year, look for ways to include consistency in your path to achieving those goals. Work in some specific actions you can take consistently to move you and your team toward what you want. Then, tie those actions back to your desire, include some discipline and accountability, and back it all up with a solid plan for how you’ll show up and the actions you’ll take. Good luck with your goal-setting!

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