EP 74 | Maintaining Momentum: Navigating the Challenges 30 Days into the New Year

Zach Arend welcomes you to a reflective episode of Being in the Arena, addressing the common challenge of losing momentum on New Year's resolutions or goals as the initial enthusiasm wanes. As the podcast arrives around February, he delves into why many fall back into the familiar routine and comfort zones, neglecting the aspirations set at the beginning of the year. Zach provides three crucial reflections to regain focus and maintain momentum, emphasizing the importance of resilience and persistence in achieving meaningful results. Tune in for practical insights to align your actions with your goals and aspirations.

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TRANSCRIPT BELOW:

Because life happens in the saddle. And the better you can get at just getting back on the horse without all the drama and all the beating yourself up, the faster you're going to achieve your goals this year.

Zach Arend: Welcome to Being in the Arena. A podcast all about putting you back into the Arena of your life and your leadership.

Today I want to talk about where our new year's resolutions lose traction or our goals or our visions for our businesses, you know, because you turn the corner into the new year and there's all this talk about new year's resolutions.

What are your goals? And workshops on setting goals and having the best year ever. And I'm kind of glad that I am sharing this now, 30 days into the new year. By the time you listen to this, it's probably February. And so this is about the time where we forget that there was a new year and we're kind of back to the same old song and dance of, you know, "I'm pretty busy, pretty overwhelmed. Oh my God. Things are crazy."

And we almost forget that we started the year with these grand intentions to have a great year, you know, and we've, we've kind of just fallen back into the status quo and our comfort zone and the way things have always been, you know? And a powerful question is, " is this year going to look differently than last year?"

Is it really? And being 30 days into the year, you have enough evidence now to kind of start to play with, to see " well, where has my time, energy and attention been?" Because that's ultimately how you create the results in your life. Is your time, your energy, your attention congruent with what you say you want most? And so today I want to talk to you about how to maintain that momentum that we always start the year with. Because this year is different. This year we're not going to lose focus. We're not going to fall back into how things have always been.

We're going to stay true to what we said we want most this year. And here's how we're going to do that. I wrote down three things and these are three things I'm reflecting on personally, because look this 30 days in the new year, and I'm already noticing how, you know, I'm off track. I'm not consistently aligned with what I say I want.

And now it was the time to clean that up. For me and for you. Because if we don't clean it up, the entire year will have gone by. And then we'll look back and be like, well, I guess I didn't get that done, you know? And no, not this year. So three things, three things that I'm reminding myself of that I think will also support you.

Number one is knowing and keeping what's primary. Knowing what is primary and keeping what is primary. What do I mean by that? So, I am taking a different approach. Because what's normal is for people to sit down in the new year and they do their goal planning. And there's nothing wrong with this if you do it, if it works for you. If it works for you. It's never worked well for me. And I would write out my goals for my family and my faith and my health and my business and my passions and my hobbies.

And my it's oh my God. And I'd end up with eight pages. And then it's " okay, yeah. Now I'm going to, I need to read these goals every morning. I need to..." And it was just like, this is a lot of work. Just like remembering what my goals even are. Frankly, that doesn't work for me. I want to take 'less is more' to the extreme this year.

And what if you were to do that? And maybe this is an opportunity to clean some stuff up. Maybe you're you're noticing like, "yeah, I totally started the year with 10 too many goals. And yeah, I think I would benefit from 'less is more' to the extreme." 'Less is more' to the extreme. I am wanting to make one thing primary this year.

And I shared with my group, I'm in a coaching group, a group coaching cohort. And I shared with them that what I would love to create this year is a thriving coaching and speaking business while creating more time and energy for, for my girls and being with them on their dreams and their pursuits of their goals and just being there for them, for my wife, being there for them, like it's a both and. And it's primary. Thriving coaching and speaking business and being the best dad and husband, I can be. And, you know, I have some, some objective measures of that. And yet that's it.

That's primary. And it's one thing I can look at on a given day and be like, "well, am I doing that? Am I doing that? Is that been primary today?" And if not, I have an opportunity to, to right the ship, you know? And so, knowing what's primary. And that's one thing, knowing what's primary. Do you? Can you get it down to like a sentence or two and then make that a place to come from, day in, day out?

It's not a place to get to. It's a place to be. And the second reflection around that is " okay, looking back over the last 30 days, has where I've been spending my time, energy, attention, is it consistent with what I say is primary?" Because now's the time to clean it up if not. And that's number one.

It's just getting honest with yourself. And then staying true to what is primary.

Number two is. Something that I have found that's really supported me and many of my clients have said the same thing. And it's having some sort of a morning ritual morning routine. Self cultivation practice. I made the decision, my wife and I to buy a new home and move into a new home right before Christmas.

And so, with all of that's been going on, I have just allowed myself to get a little outside of my routine and my mornings I've been going to bed later and I've been getting up, you know, later, naturally. And I've just kind of been getting into work and I'm seeing there's a lot of opportunity to slow down in my morning time. Because I used to, I did that a lot last year and it's always supported me.

And so, what about you? Do you have a morning, which ritual something that centers you back in and get you back in touch with what's primary in your life? Are you checking in with who you are being and deciding, kind of looking at, is that who you want to be? And having a routine to do that, you know, for me, it's journaling and it's, I have a, uh, a series of declarations that are read out loud about who I am that really guide who I be on a given day and who I'm being ultimately determines how I show up and what I do.

And so this morning routine is really powerful. Do you have one? Are you, are you doing something to center yourself and check in with yourself? On a daily or at least weekly basis? What is your routine and your rituals for doing that? So that's the second thing. Like, if you want to maintain traction this year, get clear on what your routine is, what are some things you're going to be doing for yourself to keep yourself at your best?

Because I promise you. Doing doing, doing, doing, doing a bunch of work and trying to keep up with your to-do's and your inbox, that's going to leave you exhausted and burnt out and you're probably already there. And so this is you carving out time to work on yourself, on your business, on your life.

Just checking in and recentering before you dive into your day. And I think it is important that it's done in the morning. And look, we all have a morning. I don't care if you're not a morning person, you still get up at some point and therefore that's your morning. How are you starting your day? Are you starting it on purpose because here's, what's not on purpose.

Uh, I I fallen to the trap from time to time where I wake up. I reached for my phone, I check my email and then for some reason, somehow I accidentally ended up on Instagram. And before I know it, I'm scrolling through reels. 15, 20 minutes goes by. That's not a morning ritual.

I don't know that, that morning is running you. And that's not what we want. So the key here is, are you doing it on purpose? And this is you starting your day on purpose. Give yourself that gift. Start your day on purpose. Start with some sort of routine or ritual that is carved out for you. What might that be? Okay.

Number three, and this one's the most critical. Okay. Maybe you're starting to realize "uh-oh, yup, 30 days into the year and I'm, yep, I've already fallen back into my old way of being and if I'm being honest with myself this year, you know, I hope it looks different, but I can't really say that it's going to look any different than any prior year." Okay. Well, it's time to get back on the horse.

Simply put. Get back on the horse. You know, I rode rodeos, I rode saddle broncs growing up and, you know, you better believe I hit the ground a lot. A lot. For two years straight, I just hit the ground. That's all I did. I got back on the horse and that's how I ended up being two time state champion. And it's just a principle of life.

You keep getting back on the horse, you're going to get there.

So get back on the horse. Now, the way in which you get back on the horse is so important because there were times where I get bucked off and I'd get on my feet. And I reached down and I grabbed a big pile of dirt and I'd chuck it across the rain and I'd be pissed. And, you know, I'd be saying things to myself.

" God, I suck," you know, "I keep hitting the ground. When am I ever going to figure this out?" Like I just... and a lot of you are doing that too. Me too. We do that to ourselves. We beat ourselves up, we hit the ground and then we beat ourselves up. We hit the ground over and over again, like, we make it worse. And so when I say "get back on the horse," I'm not beating you over the head with that statement, " get back on the horse!"

Zach Arend: No, like it ain't bad, just is. Get back on the horse. Just get back on the horse. What's the opportunity here? How can I learn and grow from this? And then get back on the horse. None of this over evaluating and beating yourself up. That's not making this journey very enjoyable.

Just get back on the horse because when you're on the horse, it's always enjoyable. It's always exciting. We don't like being on the ground so get off the ground, get on the horse. And if you want to go deeper into this one, I recorded a podcast episode several months ago, episode 63. I've gotten a lot of feedback from it. We talk about this distinction of you being on the horse, in the saddle or on the ground. And this distinction is a powerful self-awareness tool for you to reflect at any given moment.

"Well, where am I right now?" And it gives you that opportunity to choose "is that where I want to be?"

Because life happens in the saddle. And the better you can get at just getting back on the horse without all the drama and all the beating yourself up, the faster you're going to achieve your goals this year.

So, are you able to just get back on the horse?

What does getting back on the horse look like for you? And I think start at the top of what's primary. What is it? What's the one thing that would make all the difference this year? Are you acting consistently, investing your time, energy, and attention on that on a consistent basis? Do you have time every day or at least every week where you're working on yourself and on your business, you're pulling yourself out of the minutia and the day-to-day busy-ness and you're checking in? And are you just getting back on the horse?

Are you willing to do that without all the storytelling and drama? So I hope these three things serve you to support you this year. These are simple, but sometimes simplicity is where it's at. Let's keep it simple this year and let's just keep getting back on the horse and stay true to what we're here to do. And if you'd like some support with that. Join me in February. You can go to www.zacharend.com/workshop to get all the details for my next Leading in the Arena session.

It's a free session. Two hours we're together. I'll offer it virtually and in-person. If you'd like some support on truly looking and getting clear on what's getting in the way of you having the best year ever, what's getting in the way, what's taking off course, what keeps happening to you?

Why are things the way they are? If you're curious as to how you might be creating that and how you could get free of it, then join me in Leading in the Arena, because that is a time carved out for you to really understand why things are the way they are, and to start to make some major shifts towards true transformation in who you're being,

because that's where it's at.

If you can transform who you're being, the results take care of themselves. Because who you're being determines how you show up. Who you're being decides on the action you take or don't take. And when you can get clear on who you're being and start to cultivate that in the Arena of your life, things can change very quickly.

So if that's interesting to you, if you'd like to do that, if you'd like to increase your influence and your impact on others this year and on yourself and your ability to achieve on your goals and your vision, then join me. We'll be hosting another event here in February. So, go to the website, www.zacharend.com/workshop.

Get all the details. That's www dot Z A C H A R E N D dot com, forward slash workshop. Hope to see you in the Arena.