Take Small Steps

Those of you who know us, know that we believe deeply that change occurs in small steps made consistently over time.  As much as we all wish we could make one big leap into a new life, greater success, more money, etc., for most of us, true change is about taking small steps consistently over time toward creating a life and work that matters to you.

Today we are celebrating 6 years of the Monday Morning Business Coach!

That’s three hundred and twelve weeks of small steps
and nuggets to support you moving forward in your life and work.

To celebrate, we’d like to offer you a simple exercise to get you thinking about your vision for your life and your life as it is now.

As you look at how your vision for your life and your actual life differ, this can be a helpful framework for identifying the small steps you can take to bring your vision and your actual life into greater alignment. 

We encourage you to print out this exercise and explore. It’s simple and it’s powerful.

If you’ve done this exercise with us before don’t hesitate to do it again – it’s well worth seeing how you and your life have changed!

Spend a few minutes thinking about the following areas of your life, Self, Systems, Spirit, Communication, and Leadership (if there are other areas you want to address, be sure to add them at the end).

Write some notes about what a 10 (your highest aspiration) looks like, feels like, and lives like for each of these areas that are central to creating a life and work you love.

If my Self (my personal growth, intellectual stimulation, and health/well being) is at a 10, I will look, feel, and live like this:

If my Systems (my satisfaction in my work, connection with family/relationships, and sense of community) are at a 10, they will look, feel, and live like this:

If my Spirit (my sense of meaning and purpose, time in reflection or spiritual practice, and feeling that I matter in the world) is at a 10, it will look, feel, and live like this:

If my Communication (my ability to articulate my thoughts, listen deeply, and stay in dialogue through times of difference) is at a 10, it will look, feel, and live like this:

If my Leadership (my willingness to influence my world, my willingness to be influenced by my world, and my ability to inspire others) is at a 10, it will look, feel, and live like this:

Other:
 If my _______________ is at a 10, it will look, feel, and live like this:

Now that you’ve described your life at a 10 in these areas, on the wheel below, draw a line indicating where you would rate your current life in these areas.

Use a scale of 1-10, with 1 being totally unsatisfied and 10 being completely satisfied (your highest aspiration as you just described above):

We’d be surprised if you rated all aspects of your life on this wheel at a 10, but if you did . . . congratulations!

Most of us have a number of areas where the gap between what we want our lives to look like and how they actually look is considerable. Look at the areas where you have lower scores and circle the 2-3 areas you most want to focus on this upcoming year.

Spend some time considering what small steps you can take in these 2 – 3 areas that will truly move the needle . . . or in this case, the line on your circle.