Hooray! The concrete is finally going down behind the house for our kitchen extension. We’re ‘over the hump’ and work should move forward quite quickly from now on. (…ever the optimist)

It’s taken a lot of time to get to this stage. We have dreamed, imagined, talked, changed our minds, discussed with planners, waited for plans to be drawn up, considered them and made alterations, waited for planning permission, negotiated obstacles etc, etc.

While this was happening there was nothing ‘concrete’ to show for the time and effort. Now there is definitely something ‘concrete’ – its CONCRETE!

Often the planning and considering part of a project can seem extraordinarily lengthy and it’s during this stage that motivation and momentum can flag unless you are aware of and prepared for it’s particular challenges.

This is often true for personal challenges or changes as well.

When steps are very small or there are long delays between steps, boredom or demoralization can set in. A slow pace can open opportunities for your inner gremlin to start making other plans: you begin to question whether you really do want the goal… “Maybe it will be best to give it a miss.”

This is where you can help yourself by recruiting support – that support can come from another person – say a friend or coach – or it can come from yourself. By being aware of the challenge you can be prepared to encourage yourself through it until you begin to see some initial results.

I’m going out now to have a good look at our concrete results.