The Journey Begins:
A Tiny Start for Your New Year.

Does anyone love New Year’s resolutions? Good for you if you do – I always felt set-up to fail by my way-too-massive goals that usually centered on being different, better, faster, more, less – basically working on something I had to stop doing – or at least something I had to do better. Way better. Exhausting and unnecessary! Many years of life later, I started taking a different approach and I’m much happier for it. (For more on dealing with New Year pressures, click here: The New Year Effect.)

So, if you are interested in embarking on an anti-resolution, pressure-free New Year, you’ve come to the right place.  And I’m happy to show you how to begin.

To get there we are going to start by thinking very small and explore the power of tiny. We’ll also take a look at some examples of results that came from tiny starts, and you’ll find a couple of questions that can help you decide where you’d like to begin. At the end you’ll be able to download the questions as well as a list of 59 Tiny Seeds for Cultivating your New Year Goal – in case some added inspiration will be helpful : )

This guide will help you kick start your New Year
with a tiny goal, just for you.

First, take a moment or two and decide to explore your New Year as a joyful reminder that a) we’re here b) we have choices, and c) beautiful plans and deadlines often change. Because life does.

Don’t worry, a tiny goal can still be life-changing (if that’s what you want) – think changing a mind-set, or deciding to work on staying in the present. OR a tiny goal can be just that: very, very small. You’ll see how shortly.

Why tiny?

All things begin as tiny. All goals, buildings, nations, governments, relationships, work, love, writing, inventions – all of it – start with tiny little things and then more tiny little things get done and it starts to become a bigger thing.

Every single creation on earth has a tiny beginning.
Even a skyscraper, even a person, even a bridge,
even a vase, even a house,
even a poem.

I once watched workers in Hong Kong’s harbor begin reclaiming land from the water, so that new buildings could go up. I was enthralled by the process. That tiny start involved the first of a seemingly endless dumping of some mixture of heavy rock, soil, and cement into the water. It was weeks before the pile was visible at water level. This went on, the same tiny step times a million times a billion, for months. Five months later I was back in Hong Kong and saw the progress from my hotel window. Unbelievably, there was now a large peninsula. Actual land! Men in hard hats were walking on it. Heavy equipment was going back and forth. It seemed to me a miracle had occurred – and yet, the new peninsula simply had a tiny beginning. On repeat.

Here’s the key that I couldn’t wait to share with you when I was writing this:

Thinking small and tiny is the first step
in thinking big.

Focusing on tiny things to start our thriving bravely year does several things for us:

• By acknowledging tiny as essential, we can focus on that one tiny thing and side-step overwhelm along with self-defeating thoughts such as “oh my god, how-the-f— will I be able to write 200 pages” …and then go take a nap or binge that new show on Netflix (nothing wrong with either choice unless it keeps you from feeling refreshed and ready to begin).

• Beginning tiny makes any beginning doable. Way easier to write a sentence than a full page. Way easier to make a list of ten subjects for chapters than to write the chapter (oh, yes, we will get to the chapter but we’re going to start with a sentence first.) See? Tiny is a rockstar. Tiny is the chapter on its way to being born.

• It nudges us into momentum. (Remember Newton’s Law of Motion? An object in motion stays in motion). So, focusing on a tiny step will create more tiny steps and this momentum will build on its own energy.

Even the goal of having a completely clean and clear desk (a frequent tiny goal of mine) has a tiny start: I gather stray pencils and pens and they go in this darling cup:

Then I put books back where they belong. Then I gather into a stack the papers that I don’t need to do anything about right now (and get them out of my sight, into a pretty dark pink box they go).

Three tiny steps and less than two minutes later I have a tidy desk, on its way to being completely clean, and I can focus again.

Tiny is doable, purposeful, & often fun.
Tiny is badass.

Here are some real-life examples of people whose tiny beginnings led to big result

• Result: Marcus finished writing his book. Tiny start: Had an idea, wrote it down and all thoughts associated with his idea
• Result: I launched an online mental wellness business. Tiny start: Had an idea, thought of a name, wrote a brand statement
• Result: Susan was chosen to speak at a professional conference. Tiny start: Printed proposal requirements, jotted down a few ideas
• Result: Tabitha got fit and strong. Tiny start: Tried one free class
• Result: Charlie bought a house. Tiny start: Researched mortgages for first-time buyers, and for inspiration went to see some houses
• Result: Lucia read twelve books in six months. Tiny start: Made a list of books she had always wanted to read, picked one, then ordered it
• Result: Joshua found his life partner. Tiny start: Made a decision to stop dating emotionally unavailable people

Now, of course there can be a few or a thousand tiny steps
between the Start and the Result,
but without exception,
there can be no Result unless there is a Start.

This is precisely where some of my wishes, goals, and dreams got derailed – the sheer enormity of some of them activated the fear that they’d be impossible to achieve – because I lost sight of the first, tiny step. (It’s great to keep your big dream in view, so long as you get yourself back to tiny: what is one (tiny!) thing I could do today?

I made a huge shift over two decades ago when I decided to change careers. This required steps that a) were hard b) were expensive and c) took a while (years). But still, the start was absolutely tiny. I was living in Chicago and found out that Northwestern University had degree programs for grown-ups. I called the school. That’s it. That was the start.

I reached more milestones than ever when I switched to tiny beginnings. And the beauty of tiny is that it doesn’t have to be a milestone, huge achievement – it can be as small and beautiful as growing a sweet little herb garden. We are after hopes and wishes, contentment and joy, in whatever form they come, large or small.

“Little drops of water
make the mighty ocean.”
– Julia Carney

Here are two questions to help guide you in setting up your own tiny goal. See where they take you.

1. My heart tells me that during this coming year, these are the most meaningful ways I’d like to feel and be:

Some of the countless possibilities: Do I want to be challenged, nourished, stimulated, comforted, encouraged, satisfied, pushed, soothed? Do I want to feel more peaceful, more accepting, more calm? Or perhaps I want to learn something new, improve a relationship, clarify what kind of work I’d love to do, care for my mental or physical health? Do I want to create something brand new – a poem, a cookbook, a mini Zen garden? Do I want to nourish myself while being of service to others?

2. These are three tiny things I could start with:

Tiny really means tiny! As in: “Can I start right now? If not, what do I need first?”

Example 1: If my heart tells me that learning to live in the present moment is what I want and need, I can certainly start practicing right now by turning off my phone, dimming the lights, and using five minutes to focus on my breathing. Will this mean I’ve achieved living in the present consistently? No, but it gets me on my way!  Example 2: If I want to read two books every month, I can start today by making a list of books and ordering one.

Around here we love small things, that despite their
smallness, can have mighty impact.

When I had the idea for Thriving Bravely (big), I started with my vision and a brand statement and created an organized binder (tiny).

Then I decided to make a commitment to keep going.

Tiny starts have two things in common:
an idea and a decision.

If you feel like it, jot down other thoughts you have about what the next tiny things might be. Little is a delightful, smart powerhouse.

Remember that beautiful plans and deadlines often change. Because life does. It’s ok. Change your mind, change your goal, change your deadlines…this is your New Year.

Would you like to hear about my tiny start this year? Here it is:  My heart tells me I want to work on living in the present moment so I can absorb and appreciate what is right in front of me. My husband. My dogs. My health. My work. You. My writing. The love I’m offered. Three tiny things I can do right now to practice living in the present moment? One: Spend ten minutes focused on my breathing. As I breathe in, I inhale calm. As I breathe out, I exhale fear. Two: When a future worry intrudes, I will hear it but not engage. Three: When I need to re-ground myself, I will put my hand over my heart and count the beats.

Tiny yet mighty. I’m excited to see how it will unfold. And I wish you all the very best as you create the start of your year, your way.

Part Two in this Tiny is Mighty Series will go wider and deeper into the journey of small and ways to capitalize on momentum. Stay tuned, more to come : )