How to Stick to Your Plan Until You Succeed
How to stick to your plan
Making plans can feel energising, exciting and fun… but actually achieving your goals doesn't always happen as your enthusiasm and motivation begins to dip along the way.
Too often you'll make grand plans, get the buzz of a new goal, work on it for a bit, but once the initial excitement dips and the reality of doing the work sinks in, it can make it much harder to see projects through.
If you're struggling to work out how to stick to your plan, take a peek at some of these ideas in this blog, learn how to stay motivated during the messy middle, and how accountability is your best friend!
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Table of Contents
Understand Your Goals
Setting goals will help you to get where you want to be. Without them, these ideas or thoughts remain dreams. Once you make a plan, you're much more likely (42% more likely) to move forward with it and achieve the goal.
It’s not only about having goals, it’s about knowing why they matter to you, so you can stay focused and motivated even when progress isn’t visible.
A plan with clearly defined objectives and steps is like having a roadmap that guides you from where you are now to where you want to be.
Set Clear & Measurable Goals
If you're working towards something vague, it's a bit like trying to find your way somewhere that you've never been, without any signs or directions to guide you.
There's much more uncertainty, which means that you'll likely waste time and energy simply trying to work out how to get there. It's this kind of confusion that often leads to abandoning your plans altogether, and turning back around!
The same thing happens when you don't have specific goals or a clear plan. To make your goals more achievable, you need to know exactly what it is you're aiming for. This removes any uncertainty and vagueness.
For example, instead of saying “my goals is to grow my business with passive income” say, “I will set up an online store so that I can create and sell digital products.” This is much clearer and actionable, and gives you a tangible goal to work towards.
SMART Goals:
SMART goals are a popular goal setting framework that many use. While I don't use them for everything that I do, they make perfect sense and work brilliantly for many people.
- Specific: Clearly define what you want to achieve.
- Measurable: Make sure you can track your progress.
- Achievable: Dream big, but set realistic goals.
- Relevant: Make sure the goals fully align with what you want.
- Time-bound: Give yourself a deadline to help you to stay focused and on track.
PACT Goals:
Personally, I align more with PACT goals as they fit with how I work and process things. But ultimately, it depends on the context of your goals, and your own preferences and needs.
- Purposeful: Make sure your goals are meaningful to you, and aligned with your long-term vision.
- Actionable: Focus on what you can do right now, staying present rather than future focused.
- Continuous: Choose simple, repeatable actions that are flexible and adaptable as you move forward.
- Trackable: This isn't about statistics or charts, it's about being able to answer “Yes” or “No” to “Have I done A,B,C yet?” Tracking this way feels more tangible and encouraging rather than number crunching with a complicated graph!
Stay Motivated with Longer-Term Objectives
Staying motivated isn't always easy, especially if the end goal feels miles away. Linking your daily actions to your bigger life goals can help you stay inspired and focused on the day to day repetitive action that's needed even if progress feels slow.
Remind yourself why you want to achieve these goals, and keep the reasons visible. Add it to your screensaver, on a sticky note, or your vision board.
Ask yourself:
- What difference will achieving this goal make to my life? What impact will it have?
- How will I feel once I've achieved it?
When your goals are emotionally meaningful, it's much easier to stay focused during the slower and more challenging times.
Break Big Goals Down
Big goals can feel pretty intimidating. Breaking them down into smaller, and more manageable steps helps them feel achievable and less overwhelming.
For example, if your goal is to write and publish a book, start by outlining your chapters. Then focus on completing one section at a time. Each step forward gives you a sense of progress and momentum, which naturally boosts your motivation and confidence.
This approach completely changed how I approached my Master's dissertation. I dreaded it at first, but once I broke it down into chapters and focused on completing one section at a time, the overwhelm faded. I stopped fixating on the finish line and simply chipped away. I was able to forget the big end goal which removed a lot of the anxiety and overwhelm.
Use Tools / Tech to Track Progress
This is personal preference, but if you're a tech lover and you find apps useful for planning and monitoring your work, there are many tools available to help you track progress.
Apps like Trello can be great for visual workers, with easy drag and drop features so that you can easily move things around once completed. This type of app can help you keep track of both your tasks and milestone achievements, which can be incredibly motivating.
Some other apps:
Create a Detailed Action Plan
A plan doesn't have to be boring, or make you roll your eyes at the mention of it! An effective action plan should feel like your best friend, something that keeps you organised, focused and accountable as you move towards your goal.
Think of it as the brain of your whole process, an evolving document that grows with you. A plan should also double as a journal, where you capture ideas, reflect, and realign with your bigger vision or goal. Most importantly, it needs to be used!
Filling in a monthly or weekly plan is pointless if you only look at it the following week or month. Daily check-ins, progress reflections, and documenting your micro-steps are what will help you to stay clear and focused on where you are, and where you're heading.
Before you start to do any work, get your plan written. Break your big goals down into smaller steps, and use these to create your timeline or tracker.
An action plan you actually use every day will keep you focused because you'll know exactly what needs your attention. It allows you to adapt and realign as you go, without veering off track.
How to Organise Your Action Plan
How you organise your plan will depend on whether you prefer digital planners or pen and paper. It will also depend on the functionality of the app or tool, as well as how you like to work. The key is to find a system that feels natural to you and supports consistency.
In essence, your action plan should include your daily and weekly tasks that align your larger goal. Having a clear and detailed plan like this, helps you build a routine that feels manageable and keeps you on track.
Personally, I can’t work with a “cold planner.” By that, I mean one that’s overly tidy, formal, or spreadsheet-like. I need a bit of organised chaos!
My planner is very well-used, with notes stuck in, mind maps, vision boards, and mini trackers and updated goals. It’s the brain of my business and goals.
Because of this, I use a planner where I can easily add or remove pages. Flexibility is essential for me, as plans evolve, and I need a system that isn't too restrictive.
Daily & Weekly Planning
Organise your daily and weekly tasks so they directly support your bigger goals. Clarity about what you're focusing on each day will save you time and energy, and reduce the risk of procrastination when you sit down to work.
1. Prioritise Tasks:
Identify your most urgent and high value tasks. Prioritise the ones that will move you closer to your goal. Be mindful though, that not every urgent task is equally as important. Focus on what truly matters rather than what just feels pressing in the moment.
The Eisenhower Matrix is a great resource that can help you with this:
2. Use a Planner or Digital Tool:
Whether you prefer to use a physical planner or a digital tool, having a system for planning and project management will make a huge difference. Writing down yourdaily and weekly tasks helps you stay focused, organised and on track.
3. Time Blocking:
Time blocking is a simple yet effective productivity and time management technique. It's particularly helpful if you struggle to stay focused. There are different ways you can do this. For example, you would use your calendar to block out chunks of time that are dedicated to a specific task. During that time you focus solely on that one thing.
If you're more productive and energised in the morning, use that time for highly focused or creative work. You can also combine this with task batching, where you group similar tasks together for 30, 60, or 90 minutes at a time.
Breaking your day into clear sections helps you lessen the morning dread – that overwhelmed feeling when you look at everything you need to get done. Read more about time blocking here.
4. Build a Daily Routine:
Consistency is key. Create a daily routine that includes time for work, rest, and recharging your batteries. A simple routine makes it easier to transition into work mode each morning.
When you introduce and repeat a routine, it becomes a habit. Your brain starts to recognise cues that signal it's time to focus. This again makes it easier to shift into work mode, and reduce resistance and procrastination. For example, I walk on an under-desk treadmill every morning, and I use this time to write my blogs. After months of doing this consistently, it's become automatic.
As with any habit, the more you repeat it, the easier it becomes. And when it feels easier, you're far more likely to stick to your plan!
5. Review and Adjust:
Review your progress regularly, ideally weekly. Reflect on what went well, your progress, challenges and any changes you had to make. This helps you stay on top of what you're doing, ensuring that it's aligned with the big goal.
Don't be afraid to pivot or readjust things along the way. Life is unpredictable, and adapting to things is essential when working towards long-term goals.
Regularly reviewing things will save you time and energy in the long run. It's far easier to make small tweaks, and implement changes in the moment, rather than realising three months down the road that something isn't working.
How to Maintain Motivation
Motivation is a fickle thing, and can be unpredictable, with ebbs and flows. It's important to not rely on it to keep you focused and on track. At the start things feel easier, and motivation is high because it's still exciting, and you're seeing some quick progress. The dip in motivation happens after working towards your goal for a while, as you're not seeing big or tangible changes.
To maintain motivation, you need that emotional connection and consistent reminders of progress through the regular check-ins.
Track Progress
Tracking your achievements helps you to stay motivated because you can clearly see what your progress.
Celebrate your wins – big and small. Every single step deserves to be acknowledged, because it's those small, consistent actions that move you forward.
Set yourself realistic daily goals, and take a few minutes at the end of each day to reflect on what you've achieved. This keeps your mindset positive, and also builds your confidence and self belief.
I like to do quick daily check-in's at the end of the day, and more in-depth weekly and monthly reviews. Looking back over your progress gives you a bird's-eye view of where you are, how far you've already come, and what you need to focus on next.
This consistent reminder of your progress and achievements to date, helps to keep your motivation high.
Accountability
Accountability is another great way to stay on track. There are several different ways you build accountability into your life, including:
- Work with a coach. As an accountability coach and mentor for students, I know teffective it can be to work with someone when focused on a goal. When I completed my MA, my mentor helped me stay focused and on task. Knowing someone was there to discuss my work, share challenges and ideas helped enormously.
- Find an accountability buddy. Partnering with someone who is also working towards similar things is another great way to stay motivated.
- Join an accountability group. As per the above, accountability groups are a great way to connect with others who are also working towards their goals. But be mindful that it doesn't become a distraction!
Mindset Focus
Working towards goals can feel scary and uncomfortable! You're stepping into the unknown, where uncertainty can lead to fear or self-doubt.
If you find yourself doubting your abilities, remember that challenges are part of it. They're opportunities to learn and grow. Pay attention to your mindset when things feel difficult, and journal or share any concerns with someone you trust.
It's about not giving up, and instead looking for practical solutions. A solution-focused mindset will help you build resilience and confidence. It's sending a message to yourself that you can adapt and keep moving forward.
Tools, Resources & Support
Here are some of my favourite tools and resources, and some of my own offers:
Anti-Procrastination Worksheets – Visit the Etsy store for this top value anti-procrastination bundle!
Quietly Conquering Membership – Accountability Membership Waitlist. This accountability membership is coming soon! It's focused on less distraction & is something fellow introverts may love! With no community group, you will receive accountability support via email along with monthly coworking opportunities and tools / resources designed to save you time and energy! Sign up to be a BETA member here.
The Counselling Coach – My counselling website. Visit for more information, or pop me an email [email protected] to find out about 1-1 services for both counselling & coaching).
Thought-Shifting Mini Journal – CBT-Based Thought Shifting Activities + mini journal with prompts
Etsy – Are you ready to create your own online store? Etsy is a brilliant shopping platform that's used by millions. Setting up your store is simple, and when you sign up with this link we both get 40 free listings!
Final Thoughts
Understanding how to stick to your plan will help you stay the course and not give up when you're faced with obstacles or when your motivation begins to waiver.
There are many different things you can do to give yourself the best chance at achieving your goals, but it's about finding what works for you.
Your mindset will play a big part in this, because procrastination and motivation are linked to your emotions. Once you're aware of the things that can potentially impact your focus, you'll be able to put things in place to counter any doubts or dips in energy.
Having an effective plan, creating routines, developing a solution-focused mindset, and celebrating your achievements along the way, will help to keep your motivation high.
I'd love to hear about your own thoughts and experiences, please share in the comments below.
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Meet Lynsey
Hey there! I'm Lynsey, a counsellor, coach and mentor for women who want to create change, but are feeling lost, uncertain and exhausted. With over 7 years’ experience of training, running businesses, and over a decade as a tutor and adult trainer, I've learned the value of a gentle and intentional approach to work and life that energises you without draining all of your energy.
I've lived with ME/CFS since 2011, and since then re-trained as a counsellor, and achieved a distinction for my Masters in Counselling and Psychotherapy Practice; all while running 4 businesses!
How? Improving your mindset, finding acceptance in yourself, and developing a gentle, but solution-focused approach to achieving goals is key. Knowing that it's not about how fast you move, but finding your own pace and trusting that you can achieve your goals in your own way, one step at a time.
If you'd like to know more about working with me, you can email [email protected] or find me on socials (links in the menu)
Have you seen my online store Quietly Conquer – Find DFY templates, downloads and more!
