I am an archer and a certified archer instructor. I love shooting archery but never seem to make the time to do it and my skills suffer for it. Some time ago while participating in a weekly Indoor 3D competition I noticed something just wasn’t right, I wasn’t sure if it was me or the bow, but I’d make a mental note to check it out. I’d mention it to my husband, my archery guru, put it back in the case and then I’d forget about the issue until the next week when I’d take it out again. I’d begin to shoot and realize there’s still something just not right, week after week this continued. Until…as one of my New Year goals I decide to become a better archer. To do that I decide I needed to practice more in order to become more consistent, so I added “shoot 3 ends of 6” to my daily routine. That meant I was going to commit to shooting a minimum of 3 rounds of 6 arrows with my bow every day. The intention was to build my strength and help increase my ability to maintain my frame and focus.
Three days of consistent shooting and the issue with my bow continued to happen, but now I could see it. The interesting thing is with this consistent daily practice I began to figure out what was going on and figured out how to correct it. I was able to evaluate “Is it the bow or is it really me?” This allowed me to make the necessary adjustments to correct the problem so I could move forward. You see, when I was shooting my bow on a more casual basis I could not tell where the problem was. When I became consistent in my practice it allowed me to see the problem more clearly and to become more effective in finding a solution, thus helping me to move toward my goal of becoming a better archer.
Business is the same way…if we work on a casual basis and are not getting the results we want, it may be time to do something about it. Remember…”If you keep doing what you are doing, you’ll keep getting what you are getting.” When we begin practicing daily, even if it is only a little bit each day. Consistency will help us determine where the problem is, whether it is our approach, our follow through, or the tools we are using and we will have the skills and ability to fix it or at least share our discovery with someone who can help. When we determine to be more consistent in business we are able to identify areas that need improvement more quickly, we can find a solution, and become more proficient at staying on target and hitting our goals.
