5 Steps To An “Easy Does It” Approach For Your Life

“Start by doing what’s necessary, then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” --St. Francis of Assisi

Hurricanes. Flooding. War. Budget cuts. Escalating gas prices. The world feels like a very hard place to be these days. More and more the people I talk to are just weary. They’re tired of running faster and getting further behind. I know that at times like this, it’s hard to make changes in your life to pursue your own goals or take time out for your own self care. There’s always something else that seems more pressing to do now.

When I was a kid and I would get wound up in a frenzy or something seemed overwhelming to me, my parents would calm me with a little cliché: “Easy does it.” At that time, I understood that phrase to mean that if I would settle down and focus, I would be able to get past the drama (or trauma!) of that moment. And that did work. Certainly the more agitated or overwhelmed I am, the less creative and resourceful I am. However, I think that phrase “Easy does it” has even more meanings than just settle down and focus.

People tell me the biggest reason people they don’t pursue their passion or seek the life they really want is because there’s no time or energy left. There’s no more time in the day to squeeze in anything else, especially something as big as changing their lives! And yet, the people who are most successful at changing their lives do it the “easy” way. Rather than trying to change their lives through big effort, they pick one or two easy things to do to start on the path. Maybe it’s something as easy as taking a class, or reading a book, or introducing a new healthy habit. The key is that it is “easy” to do. We don’t earn extra points in life for degree of difficulty like the ice skating or diving worlds. Instead, “EASY does it” in our complex, fast-paced world.

Another secret to changing your life is to change your thinking or behavior and then stick with it long enough to make the change last. Doing something once typically doesn’t change your life (unless it’s buying that winning lottery ticket!). Where real change happens is like forming a diamond – the consistent application of pressure over time. Luckily it doesn’t take tons of pressure or hundreds of years for us to change. Consistently taking even small action for just a few weeks can create an amazing shift in our lives. The real key is choosing something and DOING it. When the action is easy, we’re more likely to take that consistent action. So to create change, “easy DOES it.”

The last aspect of “easy does it” for changing your life is creating momentum. Many of us have tried and failed at some change we wanted to make. I used to set enormous goals that required “do-or-die” action. For years I would periodically take on the big exercise and weight loss goal: exercise daily, eat only fruits and vegetables, or other unrealistic (for my lifestyle) expectations. I set myself up for failure because when I didn’t take the big action, I lost all of my momentum. Rather than doing SOMETHING toward my goal, I gave up and did NOTHING. And then I didn’t try again until I took on yet another heroic goal. What I have found that works for me is to achieve little successes, celebrate those successes, then leverage that momentum for the next action. So for example, I promise myself that for today I’ll get some form of exercise. For today I’ll skip the bread and have vegetables instead. Each day that the “easy does it” approach is successful, I build on that success and keep creating bigger and bigger action. In other words, I set myself up for success rather than failure.

Living in today’s world can seem hard enough without creating our own additional challenges and struggles. If there’s something that’s important for our quality of life, we need a way to deal with the realities of our lives, while still taking the steps to create that important change. An “easy does it” approach to working toward your goals and dreams can set you up for success . . . without the struggle!

Plan of Action:
Here are some suggestions for how to put the “easy does it” approach to work for you:

First, be realistic about the time and energy you have to create the desired change. At the same time, remember there is ALWAYS time for what is most important for you. It’s truly a matter of focus and choice.

Second, identify some small action, or variety of actions, you can take daily to gain some momentum. Keep it easy, fun, and focused on something attainable every day.

Third, be consistent with it for at least 3 weeks, preferably more like 6 weeks. Even if you can’t do all of what you planned, do something. If you lose momentum for several days, just start again to create the consistency.

Fourth, celebrate the fact that you are taking this action – no matter how small or how inconsistently. Enjoy progress and success in whatever way is meaningful for you.

Last, as that first “easy” item becomes habitual, think about what you can do next to build on that success. What will help you move, even in small increments, closer to your dream? Repeat all of these steps, and whenever life starts to get overwhelming, just remember, “Easy Does It.”

Copyright 2007 Karen Van Cleve, All rights reserved.