How to Challenge Your Limits

Have you ever woke up and made a mental list of all of the things that you needed to do that day?  Did you accomplish everything on that list?  What about a goal that you had in your mind?  Did you accomplish that?
It is quite amazing what we are capable of when we set our mind to something and more importantly when we are willing to come clean with ourselves when we are making excuses.
I am a “lister.”  I mentally list and/or physically take out a pen, paper, and list.  My fellow “listers” can relate to the great personal satisfaction it is to cross something off that list.  I even know people, and admittedly, I have done it myself, that go back and add something extra that they did to the list, just for the sheer satisfaction of crossing it off!
For those who are not physical listers, chances are very good that nearly everyone has at some point, if not regularly made a mental list of what needed to be accomplished.  It feels great to accomplish what we set out to do.
Why is it that the majority does not do this with something that we greatly desire?  Why is it that we look at the big things different from the little operational tasks?  This is what I have found in working one on one with my clients and in my seminars to be a key factor between people achieving success and reaching their goals or not.
In his book, The 4 Disciplines of Execution (2012), Sean Covey explains why most organizations fail to meet their objectives and stated goals.  They have their sites affixed on the wrong thing.  This translates well into us reaching personal success.
For every goal and every dream, there are steps along the way.  If you want to be a pro basketball player, there are hours and hours of practice and dedication, honing your talent.  And for a CPA, much studying, practice, and diligence to pass the exam.  There are steps along the way that we must cross off our list, but instead, we just focus on the end-result.  We want to keep our eye on the prize, but we also must focus on being present, and what we can do today to keep things going in the direction we want them to go.
Of course there will be set backs.  Giving up on your goal is like slashing your other three tires because you have one flat.  Do not limit your challenges, challenge your limits.  If it does not challenge you, it will not change you.  This takes knowing what your next step is and ensuring that the next step is crossed off the list.  This is where shift happens.
As you take on each challenge, getting one step closer to the prize, you become motivated and with your eyes affixed on the prize more and more.  The exhilaration of crossing the item off the list is incredible!
Another roadblock seems to be experienced by those who have achieved or come very close to huge success, enough to have a good taste of it and know they really like it.  It seems that these people want to try to replicate their past list, as if they just erased the cross out and had the original item back on the list.  It does not work that way.
Circumstances change and because something worked in the past one way, there is no guarantee of it working in the future.  Develop your list with fresh reflection and insight taking into account the circumstances that exist today.
The power to change your future is alive and thriving now.  Never let waiting become your habit.  Live your dreams and take risks.  Life is happening now.