If you have a priority or interest that you want to develop and are seeking inspiration on how to go about it, here are seven steps and some ideas to help you find your footing and pursue your goals the heron way.
The last few months of the year are an excellent time to reflect on where you are headed. Does the direction you are going still feel right to you? This applies to major vocational and educational aspirations, as well as to personal interests. An encounter with a heron gave me new insights about pursuing our most important goals.
I was out walking with a friend near a duck pond, when we came upon a magnificent Great Blue Heron on our side of the water. I was struck by how still it was, listening and watching intently with its head cocked to one side. When it moved forward, it did so with slow, deliberate motions, carefully placing one foot on a round stone and gripping it tightly with its long, pointed toes before stabilizing itself with the other foot. My friend and I observed the heron for a long time, until it caught and ate the fish it had been tracking.
The way the heron moved toward its target, one careful step at a time, seemed an apt metaphor for focused goal pursuit. The awe-inspiring bird was successful because it paid attention to environmental cues, eliminated all distractions, and was ready to act when the moment was right. At one point, it veered around in one deft movement to better position itself to strike. Because it was working from a firm foundation, this was possible. Watching it, the following steps came to me:
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- Decide what your goal is, large or small
- Break it down into manageable steps
- Find your footing, one step at a time
- Focus
- Eliminate distractions
- Reorient yourself if you need to (adjust according to conditions)
- Follow your intuition
During the pandemic, many people began to feel differently about their work or how they spent their time. It inspired a reconsideration of the boundaries between responsibilities and personal activities. In your life, have you had a yearning to do something you really enjoy more often?
It might be a leisure pursuit, like hiking or oil painting, or it could be an activity that might help you professionally, such as taking a course or reading a book. Maybe you even have a dream that you would love to make your living by applying a talent or skill set. The key is to carve out time now to practise, develop and become more expert at those competencies.
If you have a special interest that you would like to develop, either for your own pleasure or as an alternative source of income, are you able to devote a certain amount of time to it each week? Daniel Pink and other researchers have shown that what gets scheduled is more likely to happen. First, reflect upon what is most important to you. Then you can slot everything into your schedule, building around those blocks of time. Think about the time of day when your energy level is highest and capitalize on it.
Also, you may find that the morning is best for problem-solving or organization and the afternoon is optimum for creative work, etc. Consider these individual differences to find the most productive time slots for your priority activities. As the heron does, focus on your target, reduce distractions, and adjust if you need to do so.
This last quarter of the year is a perfect time to find your footing and make room for your most cherished goals. Then, like the heron, you will be ready to strike when the moment is right!
Cynthia Adam is a bilingual career coach and life coach. For more information on the above ideas or for individualized support, please call 613-552-7909 or email info@naturexpansion.com
This article was first published in the Riverview Park Review, Ottawa (Oct.-Nov. 2023). Photo: Terrysartifacts.
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