small steps – James Osborn

The trick to getting better at something is to take those small steps forwards. Over time, they can build up to big improvements. It’s a theme that I’ll often return to, as it really is a powerful way to significant progress.

The real trick is getting comfortable with the small steps, and the fact that each one might not feel a lot like progress in isolation. It might even feel like things are getting worse, a super common feeling when you are doing as much DIY as I am at the moment.

So, once you’ve set your big goal, you know the general direction. Then you need to figure out a small step. Think about the time you have, the tools you have, your motivation and current skills. Pull it all together and claim that first step. Visualise what it’ll look like, then do it. Then keep going.

I’ve been repainting the under stairs cupboard, which is something that definitely needed to be broken down into steps, timed around all sorts of commitments, and with a certain amount of skills missing!

Buy the tools, clean up the space. Strip the old paint, and again in the stubborn bits. Clean up again. Final prep and taping round the edges. Actual putting on a coat of paint! Then another. Cleaning up for the final time.

The door still needs to be repaired, but that’s a job for the future.

Each of the steps is approachable, you know what you need to do for each one. Some of them are discovered as you go. They weren’t in an initial ‘plan’, but they we the logical next step from the current position. Some took hours and some a few minutes. There was a stopping point that didn’t involve rehanging a door.

As a big goal it’s a bit overwhelming, it’s not a one day job with all the stages. Each step was much more tractable, it was fitted in when there was time and it was always making progress.

By having regular stopping points I could take satisfaction that each step was progress. Even if some of those early ones didn’t feel like it a the time, I could put them in context of a big goal.

So break down the big goal, pick a small step, do it, stop and reassess, then go again!

Set yourself a big, scary goal. Something that’s truly transformative and impactful. Go big, shoot for the Moon, change the world. Say it out loud.

Now pause. Examine the statement you’ve just made. What are you feeling?

It’s probably a mix of things. Scared. Uncertain. Overwhelmed? All of these feelings are natural, by stating a goal you’ve built some commitment towards it, invested yourself in it.

We have a dozen different sayings around tackling tough challenges, because it’s a constant enduring theme of the human condition. Pick your favourite, whether it’s eating Elephants (one bite at a time!) or going on the longest journey, starting with that single step.

These ideas boil down to the same basic premise. Break down the goal. Find a small initial action to take. Reward yourself for this achievement, then do it again. Keep going, keep improving and eventually you’ll look back on a great success.

What’s your big scary goal? What’s the first small step you are going to take to achieve it?