Hard Work = Success? Mostly!

Do you ever find yourself wondering why you're working so dang hard and not getting anywhere?  I do. Here's why: hard work doesn't translate to success. 

Nope, sorry!  Being a hard worker is admirable, but unless you're busting your butt on a good plan, it's just nice to know.  I get that reminder at least every few months when I ask myself why I'm so tuckered out but have only inched toward my health goals.  It's not that I'm not working hard enough, it's that what I am working so hard on isn't a good plan to begin with.

I'm notorious for maxing out on my energy every single day. I'm a real martyr that way, I love ending the day feeling like I sucked out every bit of life it had to offer.  What I'm not good at is recovering from all of that work.  So I end the day exhausted, then I wake up uber early to get a strong start on doing it all again, then I end the next day exhausted, and the cycle continues until I hit the wall, crash and burn, and wake up to my husband telling me he told me so.  That is not a good plan.

I'm also really good at forgetting that what works for one person isn't necessarily going to work for me.  Namely, splurge food moderation. Eating decadent food in moderation is a very sound way for 99.99999% of people to get well-balanced nutrition and have satisfaction in their diet. But I'm not that kinda girl. I try to give in and indulge in rich foods from time to time, but I suck at it every single time. It's not a good plan.

I'm also impatient.  When I set a goal and begin working on it, I want to see results immediately. Who doesn't?  But that makes it easy to fall into the trap of a get-slim-quick plan like fasting, crash dieting, or excessive cardio.  I do not do this, just so you know, and want you and everyone you know to stay far, far away from anything that sounds too good to be true.  Not a good plan.

So what is a good plan, then?  It's different for everyone. But when I feel like I'm spinning my wheels, I stop in my tracks and ask myself these questions:

1. Is what I am doing healthy in the long run? Translation: can it be sustained? Can I still be doing this in six months without turning into an angry and manic she-devil?

2. Am I staying true to my personal truths? Translation: am I expecting someone else's tried-and-true to work for me? Or am I applying my own experiential knowledge and learning from my own mistakes and successes?

More often than not, if I'm worn out but not getting anywhere, I've violated one or both of those rules. When I re-center myself on sustainable activities that are developed based on my own personal success and failure lessons, things get better right away.

Which is awsome, cause I like things to happen right away.

Some things never change. :)
 

Good day!