Starting again...again

So I think a one week pause break turned into a much longer month off. But it's the first of July (27th now) and a good time to start a post. A post about starting again.

This is a topic not just related to writing a blog post, but on starting or restarting anything new. Maybe it comes when you got sick and took an endless exercise break. Learning German for me has been a bit of a stop and go process too.

What are some different ways to get back into what was lost? I thought I would throw together a short list of different ways I've gotten back on the horse. I hope one of these inspire you if you are looking for some motivation or poke to do something. Or maybe it starts a conversation with some friends about what they do to start again. Either way, I'm hoping something good comes out of this for you!

(This list is not in order of helpfulness as different ideas are more/less useful for different times.)

Perfection is the enemy. Just do it. 

Sometimes it can take forever to answer the questions, "What is the best way to study der/die/das?" or "How can I find out how to loose the most weight in a short amount of time?" As a former perfectionist, there have been so many times I just never started or found it very hard to try again, because I was afraid of wasting my time when I could have found the best method. Thinking paralysis is a thing. And when I stopped to think about it, spending time finding the perfect solution takes time away from practice. Sometimes it's better to go with something and then course correct. Maybe you are worried you will make mistakes when typing in German to a native speaker, but if you always wait, then you might never communicate. Or maybe never get off the couch to exercise.

Find a fun (achievable) way and check-in.

Maybe you tried something too intense. I know I've told myself, "Okay, you are going to get into shape. Running every day! Only salads! Forever!!!!" Or maybe, "Okay, I'm only speaking in German for the whole day. Then the whole week!" Those ways for me have never really stuck, and usually did more harm than good. Goals are great, and so is motivation, though sometimes if you set the bar high and far, that spark of motivation can fly away. But if I can be a bit smarter about it, I can take that high energy motivation, and translate it into something fun and bite sized. And then add - on top of that - a short distance check-point to see how you've done and then go from there. I could tell myself, "Yes, let's get healthy! Jogging 2 times a week and at least 1 salad a day for a week and see how it goes from there!"

Acknowledge the break, but move on.

Let's say you were on a really good Seedlang, Memrise, or Duolingo streak of days using the app. But then you realize it's 12:03am and your beautiful streak is gone! I have spent time morning the loss, and then days pass by... then one week...two... and before you know it, your wondering when is a good time to try again. The answer is now! If the streak is gone, if your flow was broken, don't sweat it, we are only human. You can say oops and just start back again at day 1. And instead of loosing 1 month of study (or exercise) you lose 1 day.

Deeply think about what success will look like. 

It can be easy to feel like something will never happen or that it's going to take so much work to make little progress. In moments of feeling down and low, one thing that sometimes helps is thinking about the end. With health, I like to think of myself in the future, maybe with grandchildren and being able to go on a hike with them or being able to enjoy a swim in a cold delicious Austrian lake without worrying that my body will not work. With speaking German, I visualize conversations with people who tell me, "Wow, how did you manage to learn German so well!" or I think about how it would feel to easily talk to my daughter's teachers and ask how she is doing in her classes. Then I remember if I keep going, it's possible.

So those are a few ideas. And I think that's where I'll end it :) Hope you all have a wonderful day and maybe you will re-find something today! You can also share any ideas that work for you to start back again :D

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