In the beginning, I would keep it simple and choose measurable goals. For example, if you want to learn a language, read about finance, and meditate, you could commit to 30 minutes of language study, 30 minutes of reading, and 15 minutes of meditation every day. Plan a time of day that you consistently reserve for working on each goal. (I love writing at 4:30am, for instance.) Make a chart with a column for each day of the month and another column for each goal. Keep that chart in view, either a file on your computer that you keep open or on a piece of paper posted somewhere you spend a lot of time. Record your progress.
After 30 days, see how you did. What worked? What didn't? What can you change so that accomplishing your goals is even easier and more fun?
For me, deciding to write something (anything) 3-5 times per week didn't work well, but committing to doing the Morning Pages daily was easy. (See Julia Cameron's book The Artist's Way for more details on the Morning Pages.) Basically, being specific about what I wanted to do and why made a big difference. Another example: I had some trouble with daily meditation because I wasn't sure what I wanted to get from it. I'm still working on this one, but as I refine the goal and the purpose behind it, I'm having an easier time keeping my commitment to it.
Also, don't attempt too much at first. In June and July I decided to make sure I played horn at least 5 minutes per day. Suddenly, practicing daily was easy, most days I played for at least an hour, and even those times when I only played for 5-10 minutes could be counted as successes. Feeling successful made it easy to want to continue being successful.  |