Just because you can’t do something all at once …

in Blog, Uncategorized | by admin | on June 26th, 2010 | 1 Comment

… doesn’t mean you can’t do it at all!

I’ve been living in this house for more than six years now, and ever since I moved in I’ve hated the carpet in the bedroom. Pulling it all out seemed too overwhelming a task for me, so I told myself I’d hire someone. However, because I knew I was quite capable of doing the job myself, I never got around to hiring someone else to do it. The result – six years later, I’ve still got that awful carpet!

Today, I realized that I could apply the advice I give to my clients to the task of removing the carpet: When a job seems overwhelming, break it into smaller tasks, then tackle what you can.

I don’t have to pull up all the carpet in one day. I worked at it for two hours, and then tidied up and put my tools away. Next time I have time and energy, I’ll work at it for another chunk of time. In the meantime, I have the satisfaction of knowing I have at last begun a job that has been oppressing me, I’ve got rid of about a quarter of the ugly carpet, and I’ve got a strong incentive to continue the job.  (Now that I’ve started, I really have to finish – eventually.)

Do you have a task that is oppressing you? Break it into smaller tasks, or find a way that you can do the job in stages. Then begin!  Getting started is always the hardest part, but once you have started, in however small a way, momentum will carry you through.  And believe, me, it feels really, really good to get past that block!