#4 Developing Consistency One Return at a Time

Perfection isn’t the point—returning is. We take a hard look at the myths around consistency and trade hustle noise for sustainable growth you can actually live with. Instead of glorifying unbroken streaks, we focus on how to come back after breaks, rebuild momentum with gentle steps, and treat yourself with respect while you do it.

Guided by insights from Dr. Lori Schwartz Reich’s work on “key changes,” we unpack five practical shifts that make consistency doable. You’ll leave with a clear mantra—consistency is not perfection, it is perseverance—and a journal prompt to reset your mindset after any pause: If consistency meant returning instead of never stopping, how would I treat myself after a break? If you’re ready to replace shame with momentum and grind with grace, this conversation will help you build a rhythm you can sustain.

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Chapters

• 0:07 Welcome Aboard & Website Update
• 1:00 Defining Consistency Without Perfection
• 2:24 Introducing Dr. Lori’s Key Changes
• 4:29 Start Small And Then Crescendo
• 5:08 Align Routines With SMART Goals
• 6:13 Track Progress And Celebrate Wins
• 6:50 Stay Flexible: Perseverance Over Perfection
• 7:30 Build A Support System
• 9:03 The Core Message: Returning Beats Perfection
• 10:41 Journal Prompt And February Theme Tease

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:07

Hello, my dear passengers, and welcome aboard the Self-Growth Train, a podcast that combines personal stories, opinions, and research in order to better guide you through your self-growth journey. My name is Frances Marie Jimera Pacheco, and I am your target. First, I just want to say thank you for tuning back for another episode of the podcast. My dear passengers, if you haven't done so already, please go check out the newest website designed by Carrie McCutcheon. You can find it at the selfproinpodcast.com. This new website has everything. It has a blog, it has a forum, it also has a schedule of the episodes that are coming out with the title. So you know exactly what the episode is going to be about, and you can schedule yourself a couple of minutes to make sure that you've listened to the latest episode. Without further ado, here's today's episode. Welcome aboard, my dear passengers. Today's episode title is Developing Consistency One Return at a Time. My dear passengers, how many times have I said the word consistency on this podcast? At least once every single episode. Why? Because I've always been very open and vulnerable with all of you guys about my struggles with being consistent. Now, here's the thing, and I want you to pay really close attention because this is very important for the start of this episode. Matter of fact, I'm gonna get closer to the camera, okay? Because I want you to listen to me and listen to me very clearly and very closely. Consistency has setbacks. Consistency is not perfect, and consistency can lose momentum. This is what I need you to keep in mind before we start this podcast. Because if you're thinking that I'm going to be talking about what I like to call toxic consistency, which is this unrealistic notion that you're gonna start a process and you're gonna finish it perfectly. This is not the episode for you, my friend. On this podcast, we don't do the hustle culture, okay? We do the sustainable growth. And that is exactly what we're going to be focusing on today. So if this is what you're looking for, stay on this episode because you're going to learn how to become consistent in a sustainable and doable way. So I went online and I found an article that I'm really excited about because it's not what I typically highlight on this podcast. Okay, I went outside of the box. The reason for this is because I've read multiple, multiple articles on consistency over the years, and they're all very repetitive. And they all are very like preachy about how basically, if you want to achieve consistency, you just have to set your mind up for it and grind away until you achieve it. That's not the message that I want to give you, my dear passenger. So I needed something that was more aligned with what I want for you. What I want for you is sustainable growth. What I want for you is a gentle push. What I want for you is something doable. So I found an article from the National Association for Music Education, and the article title is Consistency is Key, which was written by Dr. Lori Schwartz Rank. I think that's how you say her name, Dr. Lori. If you're listening, just know that I'm not trying to be offensive. That's just how I think your name is spelled. But what's interesting about Dr. Lori is that her career began in music education. And during her career, she learned the importance of a key change. Now, this is a specific thing in music, it's the tonal center of a piece of music, often used to inject energy or produce significance. So, what she did was that she started applying key changes into her life, and she realized the necessity and the positive impact that it was having in her life, and she wanted other people to get that positive impact. And so she started a podcast, and it's called Making Key Changes, and it's actually about self-growth. It's really cool. I started listening to it. I hope that you guys listen to it as well because it's very insightful and it's very relatable. But, anyways, going back to this particular article that she wrote, right? In this article, she discusses five key changes needed for consistency, and we're going to dissect each one of them right here. Number one, start small and then crescendo. What she means by this is whatever goal you have that you want to focus on, start with small steps along the way. And then as you start getting that groove and you start getting that momentum, that's when you start increasing the intensity. That's when you start increasing the frequency. But at the beginning, at the lowest level, or when you're just starting to become consistent, you need to start small. And that's okay. There's no shame in the game. That is exactly what you need to do in order to become sustainably consistent. Number two, create routines based on specific goals. Now, here's the thing, my dear passengers, she is right. However, I'm going to tweak her wording just a little tiny bit because, as you recall, on the second episode of this year, we discussed smart goal planning. Why? Because a goal needs to be smart, which means specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound in order for you to be successful at achieving it. So having said that, I'm going to tweak this a little bit and I'm going to say create routines that align with your SMART goals. Having said that, if you need help coming up with SMART goals, go back to episode number two of this year and you will learn because I literally discussed it for I think like 21 minutes. So yeah, go over there after this episode and learn. Because I need to move on. I need to tell you the other three things that she suggests. Number three, track your progress and celebrate it. My dear passengers, this one is so important because I think that when we're working towards a goal, we fail to celebrate the wins along the way. We have to celebrate the big wins. We have to celebrate the medium wins, and we also have to celebrate the small wins. Everything is a win, if you're asking me. And if there's something that I know how to do, is celebrate. So, my dear passengers, keep track of everything that you are accomplishing and treat yourself as a winner because that is exactly who you are. Okay. Number four, stay flexible. My dear passengers, we've actually said this quite a lot this year on the podcast. But just in case you have not been listening, or just in case you need a little reminder, it is very important for you to show up consistently in an imperfect way, okay? Remember, and this is what she says in her segment, and I think it's beautiful, okay? It's not about perfection, it's about perseverance. Again, let me say this again because it's so beautiful. It's not about perfection, it's about perseverance. Chef's kiss, amazing. Are you ready for the last thing that she has for us? Number five, surround yourself with support. My dear passengers, this is so important, okay? This is so important. So we're gonna sit on this for a second because I need to really make sure you guys understand how important this is, okay? Just sit down for a second, just listen. Nobody, absolutely nobody, can grow by themselves, okay? You can make the decision to grow, but along the way, there are people helping you, there are people keeping you accountable, there are people leading you, there are people guiding you, there are people teaching you, there are people literally holding your hand. Okay. So this idea and this notion that when you're growing, whether it be in consistency, whether it be in your self-growth journey as a whole, whatever, that you need to do this alone. I don't know where you got started, but we're going to demystify that myth right now. Okay. For me, in my self-growth journey, I have curated a beautiful support system that includes mental health professionals, family members, friends, and even influencers that I've never met in my life. But somehow add beautiful quotes and reminders and inspirations for me to get motivated and for me to keep moving towards my goals. And that's exactly what you need to do as well. You need to design your support system so that it lifts you up, doesn't drain you, and makes you feel alive and that you are on the right track. And having said that, I want to give a huge, and I mean huge shout out to four people that have been essential with my podcast, especially with motivating me, inspiring me, backing me up, and sharing me on. And these four people are Alex, Solomon, Christina, and Natalia. Okay, so thank you so so much. I love you all. Thank you for being part of my support system, and thank you for always keeping me accountable and keeping me aligned and in check because your girl needs it. You see, my dear passenger, the main message today is that consistency is the practice of staying in relationship with yourself, especially when motivation fades, when progress is slow, and most importantly, when perfection is no longer an option. Say it with me, my dear passengers. Consistency is not perfection, it is perseverance, okay? It means returning, it means coming back and back and back and back again in your most imperfect way. Because you understand that in order to create momentum, there has to be action, there has to be movement, and the only way that we can keep on moving is by staying consistent, but not in the way that we have been taught, not in the way that says consistency is perfect, because again, no, consistency is not perfect. In fact, we celebrate showing up, not finishing perfectly. Well, my dear passengers, let me give you the journal prompt of today. So go ahead and grab your notebooks and grab your pens because this one is a good one. Are you ready? If consistency meant returning instead of never stopping, how would I treat myself after a break? Let me say it again for the people in the back because I want to make sure you're paying attention. If consistency meant returning instead of never stopping, how would I treat myself after a break? Can I get a shushu? Well, my dear passengers, that ends the episode for today. And I know exactly what you're thinking. Francis, this episode was so needed. Francis, this episode was amazing. Francis, what do you have for me next? Well, my dear passengers, listen up because this whole month, January, was all focused towards the sustainable growth reset. Okay, that was the purpose of this month. I wanted you guys to be able to set yourself up for success for this month. And I wanted you to focus on the goals that you were having. However, the month of February is going to be different because the theme is check it out, coming back to yourself. Yes, that is right. So next week we're going to be discussing the first element, which is self-care. And let me tell you, it's a really good episode. So add it to your list because you're gonna want to listen. As always, all the resources used today have been added to the episode's description. Well, until the next up, dear passengers, safe travels. Bye.