If you are a full-time worker studying  something on the side, you already know that studying while working can be very challenging. After a full day of working,  thinking of learning on the side sometimes seems daunting. The things we want seem impossible to achieve, and we build a feeling of resistance that grows stronger and stronger and makes it impossible to go towards what  we desire.

In this section, I would like to talk about self-talk. We should be cautious of what we tell ourselves. Research states[2] that how we communicate will significantly affect our subconscious mind and directly impact our actions. Positive self-talk can drastically change the outcome of your goals.  Here I go over a few of the most common excuses I have heard and come across that make the procrastination monster come in.

Knowing your why is fundamental to achieving your goals. In this section, I ask you questions so that you can reflect on what things are essential for you, and I want you to make a direct link between your goals and what you consider necessary. What you believe essential has another name; your values. What do you value? Your values are precisely those things that are important to you.

We have already explored our deepest wants and needs and have a framework to decide what is really meaningful to us. Now it is time to take those needs and break them down into actionable steps that we can achieve without stress and with 100% focus. The key is that we have to separate the strategy and the action.

You have felt overwhelmed by having a task but not being able to get started on it. To have it there and to leave it for tomorrow, only to find out tomorrow that you also cannot get created, leaving it for the following day until the actual deadline gets closer and closer and you have yet to start.

When you face this type of pressure, most likely, there is a reason behind it. There is something you need clarification on; therefore, you need to research more to determine where you go, which exhausts you only to think about. Or the task may be too large, and you may be afraid of doing a part of it, for example, presenting something to an audience, and therefore your mind is unconsciously pulling the task away. Whatever the reason is, we are here going to take a step forward no matter what. Therefore, we need to break it down.

In this chapter, I will list the habits that will get you to crush your goals. Then, at the end of the chapter, I will provide you with a checklist of tiny practices that, if you follow through, will allow you to break through any procrastination barrier. But, first, I would like to introduce why habits [12] are essential. You see, motivation is not constant. 

Sometimes, we get motivated and can pull more stuff; sometimes, we feel worse, and things need to be done. Well, this is the beauty of habits. Habits are things that you do periodically without failure.

You will hit blockers and things that will make you struggle along the road. Here, we lay out the different triggers that our students and we have come across to prevent you from hitting them and thus make you take advantage of our experience. Take this section as a go-to section if you come across any blockers. Think about it as a guide to what to do if this happens.

This section contains useful templates and extra resources to supercharge your goal setting ability!