The Never-Ending Loop of Almost Getting There

I break promises to myself. I make plans, get excited, see results, and then somehow end up back where I started. It’s a cycle so predictable that I could set a calendar reminder for it. Get ambitious. Do well. Push harder. Fall apart. Feel like a failure. Reset. Repeat.

The worst part? I see it happening in real time, and I still let it happen.

It’s frustrating to watch myself create my own misery. It’s like I’m walking in circles, wondering why I’m not getting anywhere new. And at the core of it all, I keep looking for validation. If no one sees it, did I even achieve it? If no one acknowledges it, does it even count?

And then there’s the guilt—the shame of slipping up, of not following through on things I swore I would do. Success feels temporary, like a borrowed jacket that doesn’t quite fit. The moment someone acknowledges an achievement, I start questioning it. Did I really earn it? Or did I just get lucky?

But let’s be real—if I don’t break this cycle, I’ll just keep running in place. So here’s what needs to change:

1. Show Up Anyway – Motivation is unreliable. Some days I’ll feel like it. Some days I won’t. But feelings don’t do the work. I need to show up anyway.
   
   
2. Stop Moving the Goalpost – The moment I see progress, I pile on more. More goals. Higher difficulty. More pressure. And then I crumble under my own expectations. I need to stop treating success like a moving target. Progress counts, even if it’s not dramatic.
   
   
3. Bounce Back Faster – Slip-ups will happen. The real test is how quickly I recover. Not whether I never fail, but how soon I get back up.
   
   
4. Validation Won’t Save Me – If my self-worth hinges on other people’s approval, I’ll always be chasing. There’s no finish line to that race.
   
   
5. Be Honest About What I Want – Not what looks good. Not what I think I should want. Not what impresses other people. What do I actually want? Because if I don’t answer that, I’ll always feel lost.

I don’t want to keep repeating this loop. If I want to get anywhere, I need to stop waiting for a perfect mindset and just do the work. And if no one notices? So what? It still counts.