Have you ever taken on a task that was so daunting that it caused you some sleepless nights? How about a task that looked super cool as an end result but the steps to get there were chasm- deep?
Back in the 90’s I teamed up with a couple guys on a project that would see us cycle from Northern Alberta towards Rio for the Earth Summit.. of 1992 to be exact. Oh- and we were to meet up with a fourth cyclist somewhere in Arizona.. along one of the interstates.
For some, a non- specific meeting point might be troublesome.. for me it was the way Steve and I did things. Like when I went up to San Francisco and he sat at the corner of Haight and Ashbury waiting for me with an obscure and oblique sign. My flight was late.. and I ended up coming in to a southern port.. which meant I had to cycle all the way in to the city (it was SO MUCH FUN.. seriously) and then I had to find the intersection. I knew I was on track when I was riding downhill on Clarendon (my grandmothers old street name in Ottawa). She showed me the direction.
At any rate, the two I rode with had End Goal in sight only. They didn’t see the thousands of kilometers they would have to cycle. And I didn’t realize they weren’t really cyclists. So they got dejected and wanted to turn around at about Bozeman, Montana. And so they did.
I would have pressed further forward as I knew Steve was on the horizon.. and meeting up with him would be elating.. and we would be on a route of higher populations allowing for greater fund raising efforts (Montana and Central Alberta was slim pickens)… BUT- the two I was with essentially blackmailed me in to turning around and heading back with them. I had the credit card.. so I had the money.. they needed the money to get home. So I stuck with them.. even through the retreat.
From the very beginning of that project I knew there would be insurmountable obstacles.. but I was ready to take them on.
With Ocean Cyclist.. I see the end result and yeah, it is sometimes daunting in that the task of pedalling a boat around the world is.. well, nobody would find it a simple task. It is a daunting task. And sometimes That Task overshadows.. much like the cornice hangs over the small Swiss village.. the present tense needs and tasks.
The other day I wrote down the immediate goals for this summer.
Prior to writing those goals I knew what I wanted to achieve as an end result.. and I knew that I needed AUDIENCE to make it happen so I was kinda fixated on doing things that would increase the audience.
Now.. I see two clear tasks that I have to acomplish this summer- first being cutting a hole in Boat #2 and making it water tight so I can install the pedal drive and gear system.. Task Two is similar but a bit larger in scope- finish the cockpit flooring and increase the sidewall height of Boat #1 so that I can cut a hole in her hull and make it watertight.. to install the pedal drive there, as well.
So.. not really a lot of work. But decided and important steps.
Doing The Little Steps will help to attain Goal Success. Sometimes I forget that 😉