The Power of Taking Tiny Steps

Change can be challenging, especially if you aren’t sure where to begin. Sometimes it seems impossible to reach a major goal because it seems too daunting. Taking small steps may seem insignificant, but when taken together, they can create a huge shift in your life. Each step might not seem helpful or dramatic at first, but just remember that you are now moving toward your goal. Here are some helpful tips to change your life through tiny steps.

Start Small

Everyone who has dramatically changed their lives started with one action that led them to make that change. Even if the step is as small as doing one push-up, you have moved from thinking about doing something to doing it. For example, if you want to change your eating habits, you could try a program such as GoEatRightNow.com and promise to complete one recommended action each day. If you take the time to break your goal down into manageable, achievable pieces, you may realize that your goal isn’t as difficult as it seems.

Act Daily

If you have a goal to do push-ups every day, then one push-up each day still completes that goal and can give you that feeling of completion. It’s also much easier to keep going on a goal if you start that action each day. It may help to add a daily reminder to your phone to do your new action, so it’s easier to remember. If you do it before or after something you are already doing, you could connect your new action to your current habit. Do your push-up or check into your web app right before eating breakfast.

Build Momentum

After doing your action every day for some time, it may become easier to remember to complete it each day. You have turned your action into a daily habit that becomes a part of your routine. Once you are performing your action each day and it seems easy, then allow yourself to add a little more each day. Allowing yourself to take very slow, small steps may keep you from feeling too intimidated by the changes you are making. Even if you just add one pushup a month, you are still moving toward your goal.

Be Positive

Focusing on positive actions, no matter how small, can help us feel better about making changes to our lives. Focus on adding one small productive action each day that can help you achieve your larger goal. Be gentle with yourself if you find you are overwhelmed. You may find that not putting too much pressure on yourself to spend a long time on your new habit each day makes you feel less resistant to performing it.

You may believe that you can’t make a big change in your life. Sometimes, all you need is a little inspiration and to take one step at a time that can lead to significant achievements. You don’t have to change everything at once, just take one tiny step at a time.

Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash