Every evening at 11:00 pm, my cat reminds me that it’s time to go to bed. He’s very consistent about the timing, often meowing at me exactly on the hour. Like nearly all animals, he craves consistency in his life. And while we humans might not be as meticulous about routine as our feline and canine friends, it’s essential to stay consistent to reach your life goals.
Being consistent is one of the keys to a successful life. But building up a routine and staying focused on what you want in life takes discipline and dedication.
It’s not easy to keep doing the same things and not get bored. Keep reading to learn what staying consistent means and how to develop consistency in your life.
What does it mean to stay consistent?
Consistency can impact every aspect of our lives. It’s not just about having a morning routine or feeding the cat at the same time every day. It also means doing things every day to achieve a specific goal.
For example, I am currently learning French. Learning a foreign language isn’t easy for me, and it requires me to be disciplined and stay consistent about learning.
I take lessons twice a week and spend my lunch breaks studying vocabulary or reading in French. I may only study 20 to 30 minutes a day, but over the last year, my French has vastly improved.
The same type of consistency works for other goals, including financial goals, career goals, and even in our relationships.
The benefits of being consistent in your life
There are many benefits to being consistent. Having an idea of what the benefits are can help you build up your schedule and routine. Here are some big benefits you will reap if you stay consistent:
More likely to meet goals
The first benefit is that you’re more likely to reach your goals and not give up. It can be tough to stay motivated. But setting something up in your schedule and working on it every day can help you slowly chip away at your goals.
And the more time you spend working on something, the more likely you are to accomplish it.
It's better for your mental health
Staying consistent and having a daily or weekly schedule is also better for your mental health. Humans tend to thrive when they have a consistent schedule and routine.
For people struggling with their mental health, consistency helps them know what to expect and face daily challenges.
Helps you develop discipline
Forming habits can be a challenge. We all prefer to keep doing what we find comfortable. Setting up a new goal to exercise for 30 minutes a day can be difficult at first.
But the more you do something, the more comfortable you become, and the easier it is to turn it into a habit.
How to stay consistent with your finances and life goals
It can take a while to form a habit, from 18 to 254 days, depending on the type of habit and circumstances. But one thing that helps form good habits and especially financial habits, is to stay consistent.
Here are some tips for ways to learn how to develop consistency:
1. Use technology to keep track of goals
Technology can be used for many things, and goal tracking is one of them. There are many apps available that you can use to consistently reach your goals.
You can use a goal-tracking or habit-tracking app to track your progress, such as building up your savings or putting money into your 401(k).
2. Track your savings and investing goals
One way to reach your financial goals is to track them. You can use an app to track your savings and invest your money automatically, or just use pen and paper to keep track of how much you have saved every month.
Seeing your progress every month will motivate you to keep on track of your goals and consistently set money aside for your savings and investments.
3. Get an accountability buddy
So having someone who you check in with regularly about your goals will help you stay accountable. It can be a close friend, your partner, or a family member.
Your accountability partner can act as your sounding board as you sort through your goals. And they are likely to be supportive and motivate you when you start to get off track.
4. Stay organized
Staying organized is how to stay consistent without the chaos! So, clear the clutter from your workplace and keep track of all of your tasks and to-do list.
Being organized helps you manage your time better and know exactly what it is you need to do every day.
It can help you stay consistent as you won’t need to worry about spending time trying to figure out what you need to do. Set up a routine and consistent steps to take daily or weekly towards your goals.
5. Make a vision board
A good way to remind yourself to stay consistent is to make a vision board. Print or cut out magazine images that represent your goals, whether that’s buying a house, learning to draw, or spending more time with your family.
Make a collage of all of those images on a piece of large paper and display it somewhere you will see it every day, like your office or fridge door. You can add stay consistent quotes to remind yourself to stay focused.
Here are a couple of stay consistent quotes to get you started:
“Get used to rejection. No one starts from the bottom with applause or the word yes being heard often.”― Nicky Verd
This is a fantastic quote because it reminds us that you can use failure to achieve success!
“Old habits die hard, but consistent practice will bear fruit.”― Soshail Akash
This is one of our favorite stay consistent quotes because we know the battle of dropping bad habits and forming good ones. But we also know it can be done!
“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come.” – Dwayne Johnson
The key to success in achieving any goal is getting just 1% better every day. Little wins lead to big accomplishments!
Goodreads is a good place to look for more stay consistent quotes to add to your vision board. Or you can just use a single word or phrase that speaks to you. My vision board includes the word focus in bold letters as a reminder to not get distracted from my main goals.
6. Breakdown your goals into smaller goals
When you’re setting up a goal, especially a large goal, it helps to break it down into smaller steps. You can do this by writing down all the steps you need to do to reach your main goal, then breakdown those smaller steps into goals.
For example, if you want to buy a house, you’ll need to save up a large amount for a downpayment. But instead of focusing on your goal of say, $60,000 for a downpayment, think about it as smaller goals.
Instead of a lump sum, break it down by years and how much you would need to save. So if you want to buy a house in six years, you’d need to save $10,000 a year.
Breaking down big goals into smaller ones is key for how to develop consistency!
7. Schedule time for things you love
When you’re trying to stay consistent, it’s important to also make sure to take time for the things you love doing. Not only will you enjoy your days more, but it will also keep you motivated.
While setting goals is important, doing the same thing over and over again can get boring. Make sure to balance your life with a bit of fun as you work towards your goals.
8. Don't let self-doubt hold you back
One of the biggest obstacles to learning how to stay consistent is our own self-doubt. Being emotional can not only impact your finances but also keep you from reaching your goals.
If you start to doubt your ability to learn a new language or save up for retirement, try to face your fears head-on. Write down what you’re worried about and instead try to let those feelings go and approach your life with a can-do attitude.
Learn how to stay consistent
So learning how to develop consistency is all about putting things in perspective and sticking with them. Once you know your goals, set some time to find an accountability buddy, use an app to track your goals, and schedule time for things you love.
Being consistent will not only help you reach your goals but will also help your mental health and improve your self-discipline.