Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

From birth, you are trained to think in one-year increments. Each year, you have a birthday and "leave" one age to "enter" another. You go to school and each year, you "leave" one level and "enter" another. Each year, you are "rewarded" for finishing one year and you are told how wonderful that is. This continues until you leave school.

It is no surprise that many young adults find themselves disappointed and uncertain at some point in their 20's. This continues for decades. A year goes by, but there is no reward. Who cares if you are 26 or 27? 36 or 37? 46 or 47? And who cares if this is your second year working for the company or your third? Your tenth or eleventh?

Think for a moment. Did it take you a year to learn mathematics or science? To learn to read and write your language? When you chose a profession, did it take you a year to learn it? No, it took you much longer than a year or even two.

Most people understand this immediately when I mention it, but they don't always understand the unconscious impact the "one-year reward" has on their adult lives. I hear from people whose goal is to change their lives. When I ask them when they expect to reach their goal, many say "by this time next year". A few say "in the next two years", but that is the limit for 99% of us. They want the reward in a year, just like when they were young. By saying "two years", they think they're planning long-term.

Consider your life. Everything that's really important to you took years to obtain. If you are going to set a new goal now that is really important and a big change in your life, you need to give yourself enough time to get there. You already know that from experience.

When you set a new goal in life, you change paths to get to that goal. You have to assume the new path is not a short one. They rarely are. If you don't give yourself time to follow the new path to its goal, you will stop moving and guarantee failure.

When you choose a new path, give yourself at least five years to reach your goal. Why five years? To break the habit of looking at the future in one-year or two-year increments. If you reach the goal in a year or two, congratulations! But if you don't reach it, it's okay. You have three or four more years. There is no need to panic.

You have time, but only as much as you give yourself.

Be generous!