“Let’s do the sky first. The sky is often the least fun; a bit overwhelming.” ~ Said by a character in a novel when sitting down to do a puzzle (Venetia Kelly’s Traveling Show, by Frank Delaney).
The hardest part of going for a goal is going for it!
I always do the sky first on a puzzle too, but I find myself straying to mini projects around the rest of the picture. You know… little, wildly recognizable pieces that are easy but totally satisfying to connect in the midst of the overwhelming sky. Before I know it, I’ve accomplished lots of the sky and gotten started on many of the fun parts. It all comes together.
Research in education tells us that students are more likely to get off their launchpad and start working on their goals if they have three assets:
One: Your goal must be desirable, an intrinsic fantasy. But this fantasy must be rooted in present circumstances and have a clear PATH from reality to fruition. How do you get from here to there? Further, you have to believe you don’t want to stay “here.”
Two: You must design the path ahead and dwell on it, nay, revel in it, daily. To stay on task you have to live it. You’re more likely to live it every day if you set an intention to do so with specificity; meaning sing, write or shout out loud, “I will do such-and-such at so-and-so time and place, in XYZ way.”
Three: Finally, you must set up your intentions with cues to succeed — i.e. do the sky first but sprinkle it with wild satisfaction and fun along the way. “If I find a piece that matches the other, I’ll do six more pieces of the sky” also works well. The idea is that I know I’ll finish the sky as long as I have those points of inspiration to keep me fired up. That’s my twisted version, but here’s the scientific version:
“It is the volitional strategy of creating strong links between anticipated opportunities and goal-directed behaviors (i.e., forming if-then statements) that transfers the control of one’s goal-directed actions to situational cues.” (G. Oettingen et al./ Int. J. Educ. Res. 33 (2000) 705–732)
Whew! That’s a lot of science. My puzzle sounds a little more reasonable now, doesn’t it?
So, to sum it up, if the sky is weighing you down and keeping you from getting going on your goals…
What’s the first, most desirable, doable step? Use that step as a little piece of the puzzle in the midst of the vast sky. Use it to ramp you up for designing your PATH Ahead. Then, stay connected to your PATH with those strong links to built-in opportunities and cues.
Ah, and one last piece of the research I found compelling… Practice makes perfect. Every launch gets easier. Knowing I’ve tackled that sky many times before and won helps me get the puzzle out of the box each time. Every design becomes faster to plan, the cues become more solid, and your confidence builds.
An old anonymous quote says, as long as your plan is worthwhile, “you become successful the moment you move in the direction of your desires.”
Trust me, once you see yourself “going for it” you’ll be inspired to “get there.”
See you on the PATH Ahead!