Ever since I was a little girl, I can remember my dad always repeating to me “Calos can do anything.” In case you didn’t know, Calo is my maiden name, and my dad made sure that my sister and I knew that we were Calos and that we could do anything we wanted to. Hearing this affirmation repeated and saying it to myself every day allowed me to believe it could be true. Although it is possible for me to do anything, one of my greatest learning lessons in this life is distinguishing what is meant for me to do and what is meant for me to leave, although all of it is possible. 

I’ve found that this lesson applies quite well when it comes to setting goals. We often think of our health when it comes to setting goals and it’s easy to feel a lot of pressure around the ones we set. There is a tendency to wait until a day that feels special to start a new goal, like the first of the month, first of the year, or even a Monday. While I don’t think it’s necessary to wait for a special moment to begin working on a goal, I do think it’s important to evaluate our goals and take an intentional approach to achieve them, no matter what day we decide to begin. 

If you have a new goal in mind, I want you to consider whether your motivation to achieve that goal is coming from inspiration or obligation. An inspired goal feels like a no-brainer. A thought popped up one day and it seems obvious that you will achieve it. Inspiration makes deciding to go for it easy, and we usually feel excited about getting started.

A goal based around obligation feels much different. This type of goal can feel heavy and overwhelming. Obligation can come in the form of us requiring ourselves to do something because we believe it’s what’s best for us based on outside conditioning, or it can come from pressure from other people or societal standards. This type of goal doesn’t come from deep inside of us and rather stems from our brains telling us we “should” achieve this thing, that, if we’re honest, probably doesn’t mean much to us.

It’s time we free ourselves from the belief that just because we can do anything, we must do it all. While it’s possible to achieve any goal we set our minds to, it’s not necessary or beneficial. If the new goal you’ve set for yourself doesn’t feel exciting, reevaluate it. Ask yourself why you feel the need to accomplish it and see where the pressure surrounding it is coming from. It’s okay to let it go. 

Giving ourselves permission to be excited about our goals and about the process is the first step to actually achieving them. The joy and peace we are searching for and attaching to the end result of our goals actually come from the process itself. Choose a goal that feels exciting, break down what you need to do each day to get there, and commit to showing up every single day. If your goal is to lose weight, commit to showing up for your workout. If your goal is to read more, commit to reading at least one page every day. Consistent imperfection will always get us farther than inconsistent perfection.