Stacking Small Wins; Your Path to Achievement
Have you ever looked at a goal, massive or not, and felt overwhelmed? You’re not alone! Overwhelming tasks, such as a substantial school project, a work deadline, or preparing for an important tournament, can sometimes lead to procrastination or even giving up altogether. But what if I told you that achieving those goals could be as simple as stacking small wins?
What is Stacking Small Wins?
Stacking Small Wins is a strategy where you break down a large goal into smaller, more manageable steps. By focusing on completing these smaller tasks, you gradually build momentum and confidence, ultimately leading to the achievement of your larger objective. Large goals can sometimes seem daunting. In fact, I can think of several examples in my own life when I felt this way! What helped me was breaking things down into smaller steps; they made the journey less intimidating, not to mention helped maintain clarity and direction.
The Power of Small Wins
Increased Motivation: Every small victory fuels your motivation, keeping you inspired to continue pushing forward.
Improved Confidence: Consistent success, even in small increments, boosts your self-belief and drive to tackle challenges.
Reduced Overwhelm: Breaking down larger goals eliminates the paralyzing feeling of being overwhelmed. When I feel overwhelmed, it’s often due to two things; it feels like too much, and I don’t know where to start. Separating goals into smaller tasks helps manage any overwhelming feelings and allows you to organize steps so you know where to start and where to go next.
Habit Formation: Small, consistent actions become habits, making it easier to maintain progress. By developing these positive, productive habits, you can focus more on the effort towards achieving your goals and less about the logistics.
Resilience Building: Learning to celebrate small wins helps you develop resilience in the face of setbacks. Every stage is an opportunity for growth, even the ones that don’t work out. Even small setbacks become less discouraging when progress is visible, and by taking this perspective, we develop resilience.
How to Stack Your Wins
Identify Your Big Goal: This is where you identify your end objective and clearly define what you want to achieve.
Break It Down Into Smaller Steps: Divide your goal into smaller, actionable steps. Start with your end objective in mind, and work backwards from there. What steps do you need to take monthly? Weekly? Daily? Within those steps, identify which one requires physical prep, mental/emotional prep, and/or task specific prep (i.e., running mileage, paragraphs on a paper due). Think of it like climbing Mt. Everest - the best way to make it to the top is by taking one step at a time.
Celebrate Small Victories: Each smaller goal along the way helps boost your self confidence. It is important to not only acknowledge, but also celebrate and even reward yourself for each accomplishment along the way.
Track Your Progress: Monitor your journey to stay motivated, visualize your growth, and make sure you are on the best path. This allows you to make adjustments if and when necessary, such as adjusting your training load based on the times you’re achieving and how your body is responding to the demand.
View Setbacks As Stepping Stones: Remember, setbacks aren’t setbacks unless you let them be. Setbacks are the stepping stones to achievement, and provide valuable information about what to do and where to go next. It’s all about your mindset towards setbacks.
Stay Consistent: Consistency is key to building momentum and achieving long-term success. Be deliberate with how and when you work towards your goals, while also maintaining flexibility. You can be consistent and flexible (switching training days, making adjustments based on current training results, etc.) at the same time, and doing so allows you to maintain your ‘every experience is one to learn from’ mentality.
Examples of Stacking Small Wins
Fitness: If your goal is to run a marathon, start with short runs and gradually increase distance and effort.
Personal Development: If your aim is to read more, start with short reading sessions and gradually increase time spent.
School: If you have a big project, break it down into smaller steps and work on it daily.
Remember: It’s not about perfection, but progress!
Everyone starts somewhere. Focus on building positive habits, viewing setbacks as stepping stones, and enjoying the journey along the way. By consistently stacking small wins, you’ll be amazed at how much more manageable your goals become!
If you want help along the way, I’m here for you! I’ve helped countless clients work towards achieving their goals by stacking small wins, and it would be my pleasure to support you too.
