The Power of Small, Consistent Steps

Transcript

0:03
Oh it's a good day to be here, and I'd like to welcome you to the real Jeff Armstrong podcast where we're going to talk a bit today actually just about the power of small, incremental consistent steps. I'm really excited about this. I'm actually gonna have to go ahead and tell you, I this is like the first podcast episode. I've ever done on my new podcast right so if you're listening. I don't even know how podcasts work yet, subscribe, whatever, whatever you got to do share this I don't know something fun. That would be nice and helpful to get the word out. Now, I'm really, really, really passionate about being able to help you improve in a new way, not just in a not just an old way but a new way improve in take the next step in your life because I'm a firm believer that, you know, we are not meant to just waste our time, we are divinely meant to take the next step in serve those around us. So let's go ahead and jump into today's topic, which is, again, the power of small incremental steps. Okay so, Tony Robbins, and if you don't know who Tony Robbins is he's essentially a, like a life coach maybe you could call me he owns multiple very very valuable businesses, if you don't know who Tony Robbins is you can check them out very energetic charismatic individual.

1:31
Very interesting life story how he kind of came from nothing and now he's very much a multimillion dollar or probably I don't know he might be a multi billion dollar person at this point. So, I don't really listen to Tony Robbins a whole lot, but I have heard him speak a few times and one thing that he said that actually, I found very very, very interesting was, he was talking about how most people, and in this instance business owners, most business owners, what they do is they think in the very short term so if they want to make something happen, they're like okay, let's do it all right now. The problem with that is that you, you end up burning out really really quickly, and so most people he says, they don't look 10 years down the road or even five years down the road and so they end up in this sort of hustle hustle hustle without setting these long term visions that sort of carry them on and make it enjoyable. Okay, so the reason I want to talk about this is because small incremental consistent steps are that that is the method to actually achieving long term success. Now that doesn't mean we don't make big strides here and there, but it just means that we have a vision for the long run. And then we seek to achieve that. Right, so things like Fast Money don't fit into this right like get rich quick schemes don't fit into this.

2:56
But what does fit into this is having a vision, right so we are empowered to take small incremental steps. Whenever we have a big picture vision. That includes the motivation to actually make the tiny next steps consistently. Okay, so let me explain that a little bit if we if we just say oh I'm just going to do this thing.

3:20
Whatever it may be, whatever, you know, on a whim we have that we want to do this thing. The problem is is that we end up. When we're done with our quote unquote inspiration. That thing is also done. Okay. But if instead you learn how to create inspiration. Through keeping a vision, then your motivation. Will number one, you're not dependent upon quote unquote motivation, but also you end up having more motivation because you have a vision, a picture in your mind of where you're going, is worthy enough to drive you to achieve it. So, for example, my family. Right, I have a family. At one point in my life. I was a traveling musician and thought I was going to you know quote unquote be a rock star, and I was taking very legitimate steps to achieve that goal right like I was being paid to play music at the time. And I was traveling playing with a band, and I hit a hit a point where I was like, Are we really going to do this like this could actually be something that I end up doing with my life. But then I thought like maybe this isn't what I want to do with my life.

4:33
So, I started really thinking about what was the vision I had for my life and at this time I was probably like. Now I would say it was about 1718 years old, maybe going on 19. It was before I turned 20 for sure. And now, I realized like, no, I actually don't want to be a traveling musician like I love music, but that's not what I want to do with my life. What I really want most with my life is to have a family, not have to travel so much, believe it or not I know everybody's like travel, travel, travel, travel is great. I do enjoy traveling, so don't hear me, hear me wrong there but I really wanted to be able to have a family in raise kids, and have great relationships with those kids and like I had this vision of having this connection with my kids and just being very close, you know, to my wife and my children and being able to like teach them how to do things like teach him how to play guitar like teach like that was more exciting to me than being a traveling musician now you could say well you could do both, you could do both, but what I realized was that if I'm a traveling musician and Music is my life and I'm having to travel and like my paycheck is so dependent on it traveling. I didn't feel like it was going to allow me to settle down in the way that I wanted. Now again, that could have been completely wrong if you're musician, you know, you're like you're like well you could do both. I fully understand that, but the desire that I had was. Okay, I've got this vision, to be able to create a family, and not have to travel all the time. Okay.

6:04
Now, traveling on one great, but having it as part of my job that was something as just, I did not want to have to do that. And I experienced that as being a traveling musician so I started to develop that vision, right in that vision vastly changed everything. It took me from no longer playing in that band. And then, pursuing. Well, of course, I got married, right, which is a good step towards getting a family started having kids, and then started seeking. Okay, how can I break this nine to five, because, like, the nine to five really takes me and I'm gonna say nine to five I mean like having to work for someone else right so like I was, I was in a position where I was having to work for someone else work this strict schedule, and I just felt that I was capable of so so much more.

6:53
All right. And so, that's where I was like, Okay, I've got to do something else. Okay I'm working, you know, working the job. Need more freedom, want to spend more time with my family got to do something else. So, you know, for me, I started praying I was like God help me to find something that I can do to create more freedom that doesn't cause me to have to always be somewhere you know it's like this, this desire was was was birthed in me that I was like okay I don't want to have to travel from here to here, but also don't even if I don't know I have to travel. If I have to work, and always be at a specific place. Well then that also sort of like defeats the purpose like I want that freedom to be able to choose where I want to be in when I want to be there. So, that's when I started pursuing okay I want to start my own business. Okay so, my wife and I really wanted to work together. So we started working together in let's see it was 2015, we actually started shooting started photographing weddings, we had talked about okay what do we want to do for a long time actually in. And, you know, my work had said hey look if, and they told us to everybody said, anybody wants to leave we'll pay you this sum of money. And you can leave the company and do whatever you want to do and that was like an answer prayer, believe it or not, sounds so strange but that was an answer prayer so I took the money and I ran it and started my business in 30 days. And then, I actually got another job, but that was that enabled me to start the business right so I was working another job for a while, and then as we grew that business. The wedding photography business we were able to. In, 2017 was our first full time, you know, a year, we end up making six figures and it was like, this is awesome I was terrified because we we left you know I left okay the state officials they left that stable job environment.

8:43
So again we're talking about okay small incremental steps right. So like, where I am today, which is an. I mean, unarguable.

8:54
And I say unarguably because it's like a no brainer where I am today financially is so much better even when I was working at a stable job. You know and like, even with the pandemic. Right, that's been going on. This is what is today like slyke may see what time it would, it is, is may 16 2020 right. Like, I've been able to continue making profit.

9:21
Even though I'm not able to be somewhere.

9:24
Right, so I'm not saying that to boast it's just, I see where this these small incremental steps that have come from having a worthy vision, have set me up for a lot of what I consider for me to be success.

9:40
So that's the beauty of these small incremental steps is that you can, you know, you don't have to do it all at once and I see people get really really discouraged because they're taking that you know they're like okay I gotta accomplish this and then it's like it just doesn't happen and then they get all discouraged. So I, the encouragement that I want to give you listening to this podcast is don't be afraid of the small, incremental steps. Don't be afraid of, you know, okay, I'm just gonna do the next thing. If you've seen frozen to which I have because I have two daughters.

10:15
There's a scene where Ana is really discouraged, you know, sort of, everything's that every everything that she wanted to do and how she wanted everything to unfold has fallen apart. Okay. A love melts and on is like last. Okay. And she remembers with something head with someone had said to her, which was, you know, basically, just do the next right thing. Okay. So, then she sings a song of course, and she, she realized, I just have to do the next right thing. And then she goes and does what in the movie is the next right thing if you've seen it, you know that she essentially schemes how to destroy this dam.

11:00
And, yeah, anyhow that was that was the next right thing and it truly was the next right thing. Now, that's really, you know, if you have a vision you have a this moral obligation of what you have to accomplish because you know that okay if this is what I like my destiny. This is what I how I can best serve those around me and I have this obligation to my fellow neighbor to love them. Then you're going to say, Okay, then what is the next right thing to serve at that capacity, right, like my vision involves me serving other people but also involves me serving the family, and also serving myself, right, like, I don't want to be in a place where I'm burnt out where I feel like I don't actually, you know, like I'm not living to my fullest. So I have to like love myself in that I'm loving others like those around me, and I'm fulfilling what I believe is my calling. You know, so that's where having that vision, the big picture like, you know.

12:05
Okay, maybe your big picture is. You want to be able to have this lifestyle freedom. These great relationships. You can be sort of general like that but I think it's really really good to become very specific like I know for me, my life vision has evolved. Okay, I want to, to separate it at this point I'm saying now, right, like right now my vision for my life is to continue separating my time from my money. In terms of where I'm trading money directly for my time. And then to create so much free time that I'm able to have an impact on my family.

12:47
On my community, my church.

12:50
Okay. Even my government. You know like I want to be a be able to serve in a greater capacity. And so what I enjoy doing.

12:59
So, because I have these this very specific vision and I could, I could go deeper and talk about okay well here's how I'm going to do it right the tactics and the strategies and the goals that I'm setting, which should all be a part of taking these consistent steps. These small incremental daily consistent steps. And I don't know if you're like me, but sometimes like I get exhausted. I'm talking like mentally exhausted emotionally exhausted.

13:28
And there's like all these big things in my life and you can look at these mountains and be like, I just can't just can't today.

13:36
But what I found is is if I just take the next right step now, for me, I'm a Christian. Okay. Many times for me the next best step is just to go to God and prayer and surrender like it'd be honest with God and myself like I can't do this, like God help me. Give me strength, you know like, I don't feel like doing anything today.

14:02
And I also don't feel like I want to risk, I don't know if you know if you can relate to that but there's a lot of times that like, I don't feel like doing what I should be doing, quote unquote, but also don't feel like resting. You know, so that's where worry comes in right and worry is kind of like the opposite of the small incremental steps. We tend, it's like we know that, like our brains have to be doing something, you know, in, in as entrepreneurs like resting is one of the like hardest things for our brain to do right so you could be laying down on a sofa or, you know, or in your bed or whatever trying to rest or taking even a nice hot bath with, you know like, some lavender.

14:43
Magnesium salts are whatever you do to relax, and you know be drinking a cup of wine or whatever. And, actually, your brain can still be latching on to all the things that just make it go around and around and around and around. And so we have to learn to not worry instead just take the small incremental steps and and so that might be like something like okay, well if I don't feel like doing anything then maybe like the, the next right step, you know, like, and again, then you know, for me, I'm always like okay I need to pray, but there's some pretty practical things apart from that, like, Okay, I'm going to the next right thing for me is to sit down and play guitar.

15:29
Like, and just enjoy that. Just enjoy playing guitar, because there was a point in my life I was like, I, you know what I did not play some music because you know I'm gonna want to buy these expensive guitars and I just need to focus on all these other things. And what I realized is like, and I realized this when my wife came to me it was like, why don't you play music anymore. Like when do I have time to play music she's like you should be playing music.

15:54
And I was like, but I'm not going to do it for money, like why, why, you know, why, why play.

16:01
But that was the mindset that I had gotten into and that's a, that's a deadly mindset when the things that you enjoy. You know the things that were your passion, have now become like ousted due to practicality. You know, so it's good to figure out okay what is my passion. You know what are the things I can do that give me life. So even if I don't feel like oh I today want to grind, grind, grind, grind, grind. Right, which sometimes we feel like that sometimes I want to just pedal to the metal grind get stuff done.

16:36
But if that's not how I'm feeling. That's okay, maybe I do need to just take time to make progress on developing passion, developing that passion, enjoying things, giving my mind, body, recreation, okay.

16:54
Think about that word recreation recreation recreation involves giving your mind and body, the ability to be able to relax and rejuvenate so that you can then come back to your work with renewed energy. Okay, so recreations huge. So, again, the power of these small incremental steps is that over time, we make this progress not just externally right i think we tend to think of progress is like, oh well when I have this external thing, then that's progress. That might be a sign of progress but true progress is is going to be a internal progress, first and foremost, in my opinion, now you might disagree with me, you know, but to me, if I achieve all my external goals, but yet I'm miserable inside or I haven't developed character.

17:47
You know, or my relations are not helping my relationships are not healthy, like to me. If I gain all that outward things but those things fade away. I've failed.

17:57
Right. So if I don't cultivate those according to my vision. Then I failed.

18:04
But if daily I'm saying okay like to me relationships are really important so that's okay if my relationship with God is correct relationship with my family and myself and my community. If my relationships are healthy. It gives me that clear mind to be able to also focus on the things that I want to do outwardly because like if I'm not loving my neighbor, I can't achieve my vision, like I can't, I can't help people in the way that I want to help people so like right now I have been helping people learn how to book more weddings, without the frustration and time consuming efforts that usually surround things like search engine optimization, you know ranking on Google, or even having to rely on paid ads or even on Instagram or any single like method that it seems like most photographers are getting leads and sustaining their business. I feel that I've developed sort of a unique approach that I call the spearhead framework that I've, I've gotten results with and I've helped other people get results. And they would tell you that you know so like my whole method of job, my method of achieving that freedom of lifestyle is through helping people so if my passion for helping people fades away then so does my motivation to keep taking the right next steps. You know, so I asked you what are your next right steps.

19:35
Like, take a second to just relax and think.

19:40
What's the next right step, what's the next thing. And I always say, you know, if you've got motivation you're like, I don't know if I need to sit in early. Think about this, I'm just motivated. Well, think, Okay, well if you've got motivation, you're probably working on a lot of things, what's the most important next step. What's the big Domino that can begin to change your life.

20:04
In order to achieve your vision. If you're not motivated. I usually say, just do something. Just something just whatever the smallest easiest, most enjoyable. Joy sparking thing there is.

20:20
That's your next step. As long as it's not morally reprehensible and things like, right, like we're talking in the vein of things that are good and right. So don't anybody come back and say I encouraged you to, you know, spur on your addiction or something like that. Unless it's a good addiction. So, you know, again, go back to what Tony Robbins said, There are too many people that focus on the immediate, when really we should have this long term vision of okay where do we want to be 510 1520 years down the road because if you think of what you can accomplish in 510 1520 years by taking these small steps every day.

20:59
You would be amazed at what you can accomplish and I've seen that in my own life I've seen it in other people's lives.

21:06
Another example of this that I thought was actually interesting this is from the health and fitness world right now for the life of me I can't remember who this was, but it was a man that came on, Joe Rogan's podcast, and he was talking about training, he said, people tend to want to train like pedal to the metal, they want to work out pedal to the metal and exhaust themselves. And what happens is you end up not really being able to work out as often so just as an example, you know, you say, Okay, well if I'm lifting, you know this 20 pound weight or 150 pounds whatever the weight is you're lifting. If you always are pushing pedal to the metal, you will have moved less weight throughout the year. Then if you say worked out at about 50 to 65%, maybe with a few bursts here and there.

21:58
Right, so if you if you reserve your energy, then you're not going to be, so you're not tearing down yourself so much that you actually work out less, and I believe the same is true for just about anything that if you if you learn to be balanced and how to have this these consistent daily steps that bring these long term results, you will achieve way more than if you were to just pedal to the metal all the time, or to think that you need to pedal to the metal. And then actually just end up doing less or nothing at all because you think that your, your little steps aren't gonna matter when really, you got to think like the smallest seeds out there create these massive trees. I'm not saying the smallest of all seeds I'm just saying, seeds are little in yet they make these big old trees. Okay, so like, we have to begin thinking of our actions like that like every little step that I take is sort of like planting a seed that will have a reaction.

23:00
Okay, like many times and here's another example from from own life like, I will start to be like, Man, I'm just not motivated I don't feel like doing anything.

23:11
I'm just gonna go take a shower.

23:14
Like, and it's been amazing how many times, like I really just need to go take a shower, shave and get dressed. And then after I achieve those things.

23:26
I remember to pour a cup of coffee and drink that and then my life sucks I'm just joking about the coffee bar, although that is a good one for me too. Sometimes right so, but the point is, again, it's it's like our actions can be very very incremental. And if we wanted to get into like the the psychology or the neuroscience of it, and again before I say this, I'm not a medical doctor. None of this is medical advice. I did go to school for psychology. But again, I'm not, you know, this is, I'm not speaking as professional here this is just things that interest me, you know, your, your, the way our brains work is that we, when we achieve goals, and then we like. Recognize that we've achieved those goals. There are things that go on in our brain.

24:11
You know our brain experiences a reward system and if we're intentional about that. It actually continues building up that mental momentum. Right. So, when we achieve little things. It sets it sets us up to achieve more things, and even bigger things, and even better. You know, if we say, oh yeah we just I just achieve this, and then like you kind of reward yourself, you know, and that might be okay I'm gonna, you know, have a glass of wine or, you know, I'm just gonna sit and be grateful, they're like, wow, I just did this, even if it's small, like, we tend to think of miracles as these big like outlandish things that happen when, in have really, like, I don't mean to sound fanatical saying this but what goes on in our minds and our bodies is amazing. You know, like learning about ATP in like high school science class or whenever I think about it, you know. That stuff is like wild, you know, and just to remember and think like we are these amazing machines. You know, and I'm speaking a little bit more in this instance to like if you're struggling. It's actually really good to stop slow down and think like my body is amazing, like the fact that my brain works. And then I can, like, even just move my hands like this is amazing and I think it's good sometimes just to slow down and realize that, like life is just amazing.

25:50
The fact that we can do anything is amazing and again I I'm speaking from a place that I have been at I've been in places before where it's like nothing, there's no, I can't do anything right now. And what happens is worry sets in. At that point, you start thinking about all the things you need to be doing. And then you, you start breaking down essentially in there's been studies that show that stress actually breaks your body and mind down.

26:16
And so that's, again, where if the mind can be become fixated on what is right and good and positive. You know, like, in which it's occupied with consistent small steps towards progress. It's spurred on by a worthy vision, then that's where we find long term success. So I hope this has been really helpful.

26:43
thoroughly enjoyed talking about this subject. You know if you have any questions you can feel free to reach out, you know, I've got an email.

26:52
I'm not even sure how I'm going to set all this up but more than likely, if nothing else, you can contact me. There you know if you're listening to this on my website at the realjeffarmstrong.com, you can click on contact and send me a message, you can email me at contact at the real Jeff armstrong.com. Also, you can find me on on on Facebook, find me on Instagram at the real Jeff Armstrong, and I would love to connect with you because I really. This podcast is a passion project of mine. I've wanted to do this for so long, and I thoroughly enjoy being able to take the things that I'm learning about and sort of digest them in the context of sharing it with others, you know, so if you have something to add to the conversation, please do. You know, it more than likely I'm gonna put this. Maybe my videos working I'm gonna put it on YouTube, you know if it says on YouTube and actually made it on YouTube, put something in the comments below.

27:49
I would love to connect with you! That's it for today's episode, so so glad that you stopped by instant some time with me here. And I hope the best for you in the coming days.