FIVE WAYS TO GET GOING

BY KAYA SINGER

It’s Sunday morning and I am sitting at my computer. I glance out my window and see a small patch of sunshine peeking through the usual grey, overcast Portland sky. Being a sunshine girl, I think about jumping up, throwing on my jeans, and going for a morning bike ride, but it’s a cold 40º out there and windy. This doesn’t sound inviting, so I keep my bum snuggled in my desk chair and nestle a bit deeper into my jimmies.

I’m fine until guilt begins to creak the hinges on the door of my mind a bit wider, and I hear my inner dialogue, “You should do your 30 minutes of daily exercise. You’ll feel so much more creative and energized afterward.” My mind goes back and forth and another hour goes by.

I have a similar conversation with myself almost every day. Like many Portlanders, I own a business and I work from home. What this means is that everyday could be a workday and I always have deadlines and work to do.

I really enjoy my business, and yet I am crystal clear that my business is designed to support my life, not the other way around. The issue is clearly around exercise.

When I am organized, I schedule my exercise time in my calendar. It takes discipline and self-reminders about the importance of keeping this personal appointment. I’m unable walk for more than 15 minutes at a time because of knee problems, so I do most of my walking in the pool. To be honest, sometimes it’s boring to me, but the real issue is getting past my own self-created obstacles.

I could go on complaining, but no one is making me have these goals. I want to feel good and be healthy. Obstacles are tricky because they tap into habits and limiting beliefs. Drawing from my business model, I’ve come up with a five part formula to get you out the door. To start, you need to know what you want.

Let’s say you want to walk at least 30 minutes per day or three and a half hours a week. You could just throw on your walking shoes, go out your front door and walk around your neighborhood everyday, but somehow you don’t do it. There are always excuses.

Imagine how you would feel at the end of one month if you were able to keep to your goal. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to get past the obstacles that keep you from succeeding?

If you think you are too old or too disabled, that’s still a mindset. I’m 61 and my knees ache, and today I still managed to write this article and get dressed, go for a 20-minute bike ride and then take a 10-minute walk in the cold wind. If I can do it, you can too.

Kaya Singer owns Awakening Business Solutions and offers tools, training, and coaching programs to small business owners. She helps people sharpen their focus and grow their business. For more information visit www.awakeningbusiness.com.