As we inch our way to the end of the year, I cannot help but notice the number of people who have fallen off the wagon. The motivation train doesn’t make any stops at the complacency station. I understand that it is a challenge to give your best every day, but that is where planning becomes so important. The next three months are a time for family and relaxation. The Holidays are upon us, and so is the lazy spirit! We have the best excuses for 2020 for many reasons, and I already see people waiting for 2021 to roll around the corner for them to get a “new start.” In this blog, I want to share how easy it can be to start something but how it can be difficult to see it through to completion.

Taking a look at our relationships first, we can see how easy it is to start one. Perhaps you find someone you like, and they like you, and the relationship starts to blossom. Those first three months are filled with great moments and an intense feeling of love and passion. However, once the honeymoon phase ends, you start to see the person for all their flaws and bad habits. What happened to all that love? Well, this is where many relationships hit rock bottom, and they part ways. True, dating has evolved over the years and has become so easy and convenient to the point where someone may think that their partner is expendable. Well, if you or your partner believe the other is expendable, then they are not for. You should find someone who has a vision of their future with you by their side.

Taking a look further into the relationship realm, there is the point of marriage. With roughly around 40% of marriages ending in divorce today, we have to look at some of the factors that took place leading to that decision. Though some divorces are warranted, one of the leading reasons for divorce is the lack of “love” in the relationship. I am a firm believer in “death do us part.” That phrase is not in marriage vows to sound and look good. They are there to show the severity of the choice you are about to make. This is not something you can start and stop when you want to, like a diet. This is a life choice that you are making. I know marriage is not easy. I have seen firsthand the fights and separations between married couples caused by a lack of communication or different values/beliefs. Whatever the cause, you have to look at this challenge as an opportunity to make yourself stronger. Just like a broken bone that heals, it becomes stronger at the fracture point.

Easy to start and hard to finish is not only true in our relationships. It can also be true in our health and fitness. The new year’s resolution mentality might be my favorite example of why you need a coach/trainer in your life. What was your resolution last year? Were you able to keep it? Did you get the body you said you would or have the career that you had planned to have? Well, whether you did or didn’t accomplish your resolution, it comes down to your resolve. It is easy to go to the gym and sign up and be filled with hopeful thoughts of getting in shape. The hard part is the work that is needed on a consistent basis to achieve your goals. That means having a proper diet and constantly changing your workout routine to be challenging and fun.

I can already see the gym filled in 2021. From January to March, the gym will be at capacity with a bunch of new faces. Some of those people will make it through and achieve their desired results. However, the majority of people who attempt will fail and give up. It is easy to start and hard to finish indeed. From the early mornings of feeling sore from your workouts to conscious eating can have a mental effect on you. Can you see the easy path again? Staying out of the fitness world and living life as it comes to you. There is no treadmill or weights that need you to suffer, and that is the jump that many people make each year. They start with a goal and end with a dream. You say you are going to do it and choose not to complete it once it becomes more challenging. Working out, in the beginning, is tough. I know this from having to start over several times in my life. Once you can build the momentum to get over that first hurdle, then you can see your fitness goals to completion.

Looking at the breakdown of the two previous two examples, we can pinpoint where our mindset is in the whole scheme of things. Our mind loves two things more than anything else, and that is: 1. does it feel good/fun/etc.? 2. Is it easy/challenging, that is, our mind at work? What would you give for an easy job, perfect relationship, or dream body? No matter what it is, if it comes easy, then you should look for the challenges. Those challenges are what will help you to grow and experience the wholeness of life. Now, there is nothing necessarily wrong with choosing an easy life, but I am talking about the fulfillment of your highest potential. You can start anything right now and if it is easy, then reconsider a more challenging aspect to maximize your growth.

Our minds can be trained to look at the good or the bad in our life. If you are a person who starts something and sees it through all the challenges and hardships, then you have an optimistic mindset. You believed that you could and that you would be better once you reached the goal. If you didn’t believe that, then you would not have reached your desired place. Yes, you can have doubts and still be optimistic. The difference is the intensity of the two spectrums. A pessimistic person might start but not give their best effort. They might not push themselves to the point where change and growth will occur. They sum up their attempt with a good try and say, “It is not possible.” If you are at this point, then you must find your purpose for being alive. That will help to motivate you to challenge yourself each day. That feeling of being more than you are today is always a thought that will resonate in your mind.

This is where we have the New Years’ resolution idea turned upside down. We set resolutions that are optional for ourselves. What we choose to devote ourselves to for the coming year looks great on paper and in our mind, but once we have to do the work to get there, it becomes a chore. Our brain fights us each day, and eventually, we give in to our lesser selves. We are quick to start something new like a relationship, commitment to getting in shape, diet, or even start a new career because we enjoy the newness and ease initially, You might convince yourself that this time is the right one, but it ends in disappointment nonetheless. How can we ensure that we are not constantly let down with each of our attempts? How can we overcome the shouts in our heads to give up instead of following the whispers that want us to be great? The answer is to believe in yourself.

No matter where you are on your journey from start to finish, it is imperative that you have a relentless desire to achieve what you set out to achieve. Whether you run into a relationship, work, or health problems, that should not be enough to stop you. Many of the things you will have in your life will require constant effort towards achieving and then maintaining them. Being physically in shape requires time and effort. The same is true for your relationships. You either need to be able to communicate or plan out the areas where you feel you are stuck. It might just be a temporary slump that you are going through, and you have to ride it out. Even though I have those in my life, I have created a certain pattern in my entire year where I push more than typical and take time to rest when it is needed. The body and mind need scheduled time to take rest and recover. If you can learn to do that, then you will be one step closer to seeing your goals to completion.

Easy to start and start to finish is something we experience each year, from the New Years’ resolution, summer body, and snuggle season to end-of-the-year bonuses and promotions. Our life is somewhat structured, but we come about it as if we were lost each day. Though m\life may not be as structured the same for you as it is for me, I am sure there is a pattern for you to find.  That pattern will help you realize how to make the most of your weeks/months/years. Though things change and people grow together/apart, it is important that you do not become complacent in what you have in your life. Cherish your body, your family/loved ones, and your place of work, and cherish where you are today because it will be the stepping stone for you to reach your better tomorrow. From an easy start, the challenges you will face will help you to achieve all you have set your mind to. All it takes from you is not to give up/in and see things through to the finish line.

Until then,

Michael Rearden

Founder of Reven Concepts