Early in my career, I worried about being a ‘streaky’ character. I would often ask myself – can I really be consistent over longer periods of time in the workplace? After all, I had done several internships of shorter timeframes ranging from 2 to 6 months.
At this point in my life, I was regularly getting into a state of mind where I was thinking about my next opportunity, so when I got my first actual permanent job, the idea of staying for several years felt overwhelming.
What I’ve since learnt from experience is that consistency is a characteristic we choose to be, rather than one that we are born with.
In fact, this article is actually a particular achievement for me. It marks a year since I last missed writing an article for a week in this newsletter. In other words, I’m on a 53 week streak. It’s crazy to think that I’ve managed to keep up this level of consistency for such a long time.
Ironically, for most of the last year, I didn’t even realise that I was being so consistent. I just felt a natural urge to write, so I did. There were times (particularly this December) where I didn’t feel like writing anything. But I did it anyway, because I chose to commit to my writing.
Some tactics help – I give myself leeway on when exactly I publish my articles. Recently I’ve slipped to doing them on the weekends rather than the weekdays. I also tend to keep notes of things that have come up and reflections that I want to make – it makes the writing process easier when an idea has been brewing in the back of my mind.
But I also don’t pre-bake articles either. I do not have a ‘bank’ of spare articles in case I don’t feel inspired. I have no judgement for those who do this, but I prefer to keep my writing fresh rather than batching blogs.
The consistency worked because it worked for me. It is a personal thing after all. But equally, the way that I am being has shifted to naturally be more consistent.
The way I see and act in the world is very different to when I first started publishing articles. Before, I felt like I had to find something to say, now I feel like I harness the energy of the things I notice around me and the words flow out. It feels a lot more effortless.
There’s a phrase that has really been guiding me through the last few weeks in particular – the way you do anything is the way you do everything. Commitment isn’t just tied to a single thing. When I realise I am not really living into the way I want to show up in the world, I take a step back and readjust.
Consistency flows from me being my word. If I say I am going to do something, I tend to do it. This includes even when I’m not feeling like it. Generally when I make an offer, or schedule something, I want to keep to my word. I’m not perfect, but I’m certainly stronger at this than I was a few years ago.
A large part of the shift to keeping my commitments is shifting into the drivers seat of life. No longer do I let the excuse of being a victim of circumstance push me off course so easily. I don’t tend to use the reasoning of ‘oh I would love to do that but I’m too tired after work’. Suddenly I’m seeing my friendships blossom, and my trust in myself increase as a result, as well as numerous other things.
This has been a journey. There is no magic fix to becoming more consistent. It’s simply working on yourself and seeing where you can live by your word more often.
The good news is that you are far more consistent already than you realise. Some people live with the believe (as I did) that it wasn’t in my nature to be consistent. The reality is that you do many things already – you brush your teeth, make breakfast each day, turn up to work and do numerous other things regularly without fail. This is consistency in action, so you know you are capable of it.
The magic is seeing how you can bring that to a wider set of things in your life. Look at how consistent you are being with your partner, your work and your friends. Then slowly adjust to being more consistent with them.
Small actions like turning up late are the things you can adjust without actually that much effort. Quickly these actions build into a dramatic shift in how you’re living your life.
So if you want to be more consistent, practice consistency. You can start right now.
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In November 2022, I released my book, Make Diversity Matter to You. This is to help you understand diversity better for yourself and make a meaningful impact. To purchase a copy, check this link here: https://linktr.ee/tahmidchowdhury
I am a coach and I work with individuals to have awesome and fulfilling lives by shifting their thinking. If you would like to explore what that could look like for you, message me on LinkedIn or email me at [email protected]. I am also open to queries on talks, webinars and podcasts.