How many times have you heard someone say “I’m trying” when given a compliment on something they’ve accomplished? Now, I’m not talking about the response “I will try” given when you ask someone to do something or if they’ve done it. For example, “I will try to start working out tomorrow.” Or, “I will try to get to that later.” I’m talking about the progress that’s not given credit where credit is due.
Let me try to explain myself.
Recently I was in a wellness coaching session where my client was re-capping everything she did that week to meet her wellness goal. All I kept hearing were all of the amazing things she had done that week. Yet, at the end of the re-cap when I said to her, “WOW! Girl. You have really made some big strides this week!” she replied with a coy smile, and “I’m trying”.
But, she’s not trying. She’s DOING! When we began the coaching sessions, this client did not see that all of the small steps she was taking to reach the goal were actually actions themselves, i.e. doing. She saw these steps as trying. However, by the end of the 4 sessions, she realized that the steps deserved a more important title, that of doing. By just switching this one word, she was able to harness the confidence she always had inside her to better see she is meeting and surpassing her goals.
I have a poster up on my office wall that says, “Focus on the destination, not the journey”. Having a big goal is important, but equally as important are these steps you are taking along the way. If you try to start working out tomorrow and you did 45 minutes instead of 1 hour, is that doing? Is 45 minutes more than 0 minutes?
So, I would like to challenge all of you…millions of readers…to celebrate your trying and call it by its real name…doing. Really celebrate them! The small steps count. The mere fact that you have set a goal, decided to work on an obstacle or thought about making a change qualifies as doing in my book. Anything after that is the icing on the journey cake.
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**This post was written with full permission from the coaching client. Please note all sessions are completely confidential and no information is ever posted without permission.