I have heard many times, ‘How you do one thing is how you do everything’, and it’s always annoyed me. My house is often cluttered. My work space is cluttered. And there are times when my mind is cluttered. I guess it annoys me because it’s true. I always wanted to think if I brought 100% to my business it didn’t matter if I didn’t make my bed or wash my dishes every day. But working from home that small mountain on the kitchen counter top takes up space in my mind. The pile of unfolded laundry etches a picture in my brain. So my 100% effort is at least a few percentage points off because my whole mind isn’t there.

The Way You Do One Thing

Recently I made a switch to join a gym again. I had spent five years exercising regularly at a gym and gave it up last year thinking I would catch yoga classes and try other forms of exercise regularly. It didn’t work. And it spiraled into other things. My eating became lazy. My habits around getting up early and reading daily slacked off. And it affected my self-esteem, which made all of these things worse. And it affected my ability to work my business. There’s that theme again; one thing I did affected so many other parts of my life.

I look at my blog with this same light: small steps to change. If we each just do one thing that improves our mindset, our health, or lessens our footprint on planet earth it will lead to more things. You read one blog, and then become curious and dig a little further into the topic. Before you know it your Facebook feed is full of healthy foods, gardening tips, and climate crisis news. This has been the evolution of my brain – and my Facebook feed. It’s hard not to shout it from the rooftops to get everyone to buy in. But I truly understand that everyone is on their own path.

One Step can Lead Down the Wrong Path

My own path certainly hasn’t been straight, or all uphill. Going back to the gym also included counting macros for my nutrition. This is a method that works well for me. I really have to think about my protein because I eat a mostly plant-based diet. Within a few days of tracking I realized how off balance my protein ratios were, and made adjustments. But ‘just one thing’ can look totally the opposite, too. I decided today to grab a special lunch out with my daughter and consumed over my fats, and almost my whole calorie count for the day, with Eggs Florentine. I don’t normally eat eggs. So this is a super special treat. But with this new knowledge it’s not to be had again, now that I see the impact on my health!

That one step could have thrown me off my plan. But I didn’t let it. I could have decided this was a ‘bad’ day and continued down a path with potato chips, pop, or cake! But I planned very careful  meals for the rest of the day to focus on mostly protein. Keep your focus on the horizon, and don’t worry about the path immediately under your feet. Small steps in the right direction always lead to great destinations.