Unveiling the Deeper Dimensions of Consistency: Myths, Meaning, and Mastery
We often hear a lot about consistency. Yes, it is a critical driver for success. Yes, it means dedicating yourself to goals and pursuing them with all your resources. Yes, it means that you are required to have a long-term commitment along with some sort of sustained and regular effort. That’s all good. Yet, consistency has a much more profound meaning.
As I often ask my private coaching clients, let me pose this question to you — “What does consistency mean to you?” Take a moment and answer this question for yourself. What does it mean to you? On your work front, does it mean having daily and meaningful work assignments? On your financial front, does it mean having a steady monthly income? On your business front, does it mean having new clients knocking on your door every week?
Before I delve deeper into this topic, let me clarify three myths I usually see flying around:
Consistency equals Perfection
More often than not we associate consistency with doing things perfectly — that perfect work assignment, that perfect number of reviews for my business, that perfect strategy to achieve my health goal, that perfect daily schedule, and so on. Perfection is a global epidemic and we all have it in us, at least to some degree. It is rooted in fear of rejection or disapproval and a sense of insecurity about the unknown. The pervasive presence of Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook in our lives further complicates this situation. Consistency involves making mistakes, failing a few times, and taking imperfect actions. There are 3 components for consistency: focus on starting, focus on getting things done, and the entire hodgepodge of internal thoughts and environmental stimuli in between.
Consistency is Head vs Heart
Often when it comes to consistency, we feel that it is all about our head, all about strategizing and doing. We tend to ignore our hearts and the tiny whispers it speaks to us. Consistency is not an “all in the head” thing. It is not one over the other. Consistency requires a careful amalgamation of data and intuition. It is about marrying all the rationality and practicality with your gut reactions. Consistency is all about listening to your heart while engaging your head.
Consistency requires a detailed Plan
This is a fallout of the previous myth. When we associate consistency with “all in the head,” we often believe that we need to supplement it with a detailed and fail-proof plan. We need to have all the answers upfront. One tiny glitch or one small deviation from the plan, and we feel that we are inconsistent. Because of this, we come down hard on ourselves. Let’s take a very popular example of waking up early. If you are used to waking up at 7 in the morning, you may suddenly want to set up an ambitious plan of waking up at 5 from the next week onwards. And so, you will diligently plan out every small aspect of your day to support your ambitious goal. That would include altering your evening routines, meal times, and even your meal plans. You may suddenly want to cut off watching television during dinner and go to bed by 9 PM. Do you realize what is happening here? You are trying to alter too many parameters in your life, all at once, hoping that you will achieve your goal and stay consistent with it. Heck, it might even work on Monday and Tuesday, the next week. Kudos. But what happens if you end up working on a crucial work deadline on Tuesday or if you have unexpected guests over for dinner on Wednesday?
Consistency is not about spasmodic herculean changes. With consistency, you do need a plan, but it has to only be a workable draft that helps you get started and that allows you to course-correct along the way. Consistency is all about making small, tiny commitments to yourself. Coming back to my previous example, if you just alter your waking up time by 10 minutes, continue this for 10 days, and repeat, by the end of one month you would be waking up 30 minutes earlier. By the end of four months, you will be up at 5 AM. This would be a healthier and more sustainable way of achieving your goal.
Having highlighted these myths, the bottom line is that nobody is 100% consistent all their lives, in anything. Life is dynamic, and will often throw you a curveball. So when your streak breaks, you don’t have to break. You simply forgive yourself and restart. The real power of consistency lies in these two areas:
Consistency creates the Belief that you are capable of Changing your Behavior
When you are consistent something magical begins to unfold. You begin to reframe your beliefs about behavior and change into believing that you are capable of changing your behavior. And, behavior is what ultimately drives results. Does not matter if it is walking for 20 minutes 3 times a week, waking up 10 minutes earlier each week, or sitting down to write 1000 words a day, consistency creates momentum. It creates a habit of showing up each day and trying. And through these little things done, you subconsciously rewire your identity.
You build Self-Trust, a By-product of Staying Consistent
Reading everything above, you would have by now arrived at your definition of consistency. If not yet, this is your second chance — go it for now. Whatever your definition of consistency is, it is the act of committing to yourself and living up to it. And this process builds self-trust. Over a period of time, you start trusting yourself even more, your self-talk changes, and your lack of self-assurance begins to decline. Along the journey, you begin to explore your values and even absorb new values, create boundaries, and ultimately start living a more authentic life.
