Today’s post is a continuation of sorts from my last post.

I am an idea guy. I always have a multitude of thoughts jumping through my mind about things to do, places to go, how to make things better, etc., etc., etc. As my former manager used to say, I’m a “blue sky thinker”. The challenge that comes along with these ideas, at least for me, is following through.

You can ask my wife about this one. I can’t stop coming up with ideas of things I want to do. We’ll be out for a drive and I’ll come up with a “genius idea” for a project to undertake, or a new routine to implement, or for something I want to do. Things like:

• I want to rewatch every Marvel movie, in order. I could watch one movie per week.
• I want to get into a writing routine. I’m going to start putting aside time 3-4 times per week to write.
• I should really restart my DDP Yoga routine. Not just once in a while, but daily.
• I’m going to meditate more regularly. I should meditate at least 3-4 times per week.
• I want to start going for longer walks, or take 2 walks a day a few times a week.
• I have a huge pile of clipped recipes from years worth of magazines…all of which I’ve yet to make.

You get the drift. I’m great at coming up with the idea, or making the plan, but I fail at following through. Looking back on my life, there is a trail of unfinished or abandoned activities going back to my childhood. I started to play hockey as a kid, but quit when my friend did. Didn’t get past the first season. I bought a guitar many years ago so I could learn to play. When we had our yard sale before selling our house two years ago, it was sold, essentially unplayed. I have a pile of empty notebooks that I bought over the years so I could start writing.

I start something, or plan to start something, and don’t see it through. I’m not sure if I get bored or just scared of needing to actually put in the work and effort. Am I more afraid of failing or succeeding? Big questions.

I’m being more conscious of the things I’m saying that I want to do now. I’m trying to bring myself into a place of forward movement and growth, not stagnation and fear. So let’s start small. I’ve recently just completed a challenge that I gave myself a year ago. One that I saw through to the end.

Last October, I had the idea that I could watch all of the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Halloween episodes before Halloween this year. With these now readily available on Disney+, I left a reminder in my phone for October 1st of this year; the plan being to watch one episode a day for the entire month of October. I don’t know that I actually expected to go through with it, but when I got my notification I made a conscious choice to see it through. Every day for the entire month of October, I watched an episode (in reality, I had to watch a couple of episodes over the last few days as there are more than 31 Halloween episodes!). But I am proud to say that I did it. I know this will seem silly to most people, but I saw a long-term plan through to the end. I’ll take that victory.

Another example of following through this year came in the form of Noom. For a number of years, I’ve said that I need to become more mindful in my eating. It was to be one of the cornerstones of my healthy living. Earlier this year, I finally decided to give Noom a try (you can read about it here if you’re interested). I signed up for 9-months and saw it through to the end. I’ve now been done with Noom for a few weeks and while not following the program perfectly, I am largely still incorporating the basics into my life. Follow through. Small steps are better than no steps.

Let’s see where this journey takes us next.