Snow shoveling out from a snowstorm and goals. The same but...the same.

St. Louis was hit with a snowstorm this weekend, and while the world outside turned into a winter wonderland, homeowners like me faced the reality of digging out. It got me thinking—there's a lot snow shoveling has in common with setting and achieving goals

 About 7" of the very heavy white stuff had fallen by Sunday afternoon. I bundled up and shoveled one, 10' -12' clear path of the driveway. Sufficient to maneuver my car in and out. Mission accomplished!

Today it had to be done again. Another 4-5" of snow had fallen and on top of that, there was another huge hurdle awaiting. If anyone has or lives in a cul-de-sac, you know what's coming. Yep. That giant pile of snow that gets pushed in front of all of the houses in the circle.

Ugh. It's really heavy. And there's a lot of it. It's overwhelming. But I decide to just start. Even if I do 1/2 shovels and take a few breaks, I'll at least start.

Okay, it's not too bad. And I'm getting a good workout, right? Soon another 2' path cleared. Okay, look at me!! Then, the huge pile at the end of the drive way. Small shovels at a time. But scoop by scoop I'm making progress. I'm not whining in my head anymore but giving myself a little "atta girl!" instead. A while later it's done. I'm sweaty, pooped and cold, but it's done.

Making those resolutions, setting goals and shoveling a whole bunch of snow, all sound like a great idea, before we get started. We get ready, get set, but then sometimes fail to start. Or we get started, then once it gets tough, doubt and negative thoughts creep in, we quit. They say most people give up on their resolutions just 2 weeks in. Just 2 weeks!

But if we chip away, little by little, those small steps ad up. Not giving in to self-doubt, not giving up because it gets hard and even cheering ourselves on when we make strides in the right direction can make it happen.

I think today's snow shoveling will be a good reminder for me and working on the goals I've set. What's the one snow pile in your life you've been putting off? Take that first scoop today. Remember, progress happens one shovel at a time.