**412 How to Build Consistent Habits: The Time, Energy & Money Framework for Business Owners**

**Episode 412:** Rain or Shine Podcast
**Host:** Kelsey Reidl, The Rain or Shine Podcast

The Real Reason You Keep Falling Off the Wagon (It's Not What You Think)

Episode 412: Rain or Shine Podcast
Host: Kelsey Reidl, The Rain or Shine Podcast

Quick Summary

Consistency isn't about doing everything all at once — it's about doing the right things, repeatedly, in a way that's actually sustainable. In this solo episode, your host breaks down the real reason most people fall off the wagon, introduces a powerful Venn diagram framework for diagnosing consistency blocks, and walks through a practical goal-mapping method you can use starting today.

In This Episode

Why modern productivity advice sets you up to fail at consistency
The Cambridge Dictionary definition of consistency — and why it might surprise you
The difference between healthy evolution and self-sabotaging reinvention
Why "big burst" entrepreneurs burn out before they ever see compounding results
The tortoise and the hare: what it actually takes to win the long game
The Time–Energy–Money Venn diagram for diagnosing why you're inconsistent
The "never break the chain" calendar method (and how the host has used it for 15+ years)
How to set 1–3 outcome-based goals and map them to a strategy, a why, KPIs, and support systems
Why the path of least resistance is the secret to long-term consistency

Key Takeaways

Stop trying to be consistent with everything at once. Pick one focus per season and stack habits intentionally over time.
Use the Time–Energy–Money Venn diagram. If two of three are present, you can be consistent. If none are, eliminate or defer the goal until the conditions change.
The "never break the chain" method works — but only for goals that genuinely matter to you. Meaning fuels the mark on the calendar.
Map every goal to four elements: the goal itself, the strategy, the why, and your KPIs. This eliminates decision fatigue and keeps you on track.
Consistency is the path of least resistance — by design. Build systems and get support so that showing up becomes the easiest choice, not the hardest.

Memorable Quotes

"It's not the entrepreneurs who work the hardest who succeed — it's the ones who show up consistently, so they're always top of mind."
"Structure your life so that consistency is the path of least resistance."
"If you have no time, no energy, and no money to invest in support, you're not going to be consistent. That's not a character flaw — that's math."

Resources Mentioned

Kelsey's Website: www.KelseyReidl.com
Kelsey's Instagram: @KelseyReidl
The One Thing by Gary Keller — goal-setting and focus
Jerry Seinfeld's "Never Break the Chain" method — visual habit tracking
F45 Training — referenced as an example of removing decision-making from a fitness routine
Factor Meals — referenced as an example of outsourcing for consistency

About the Host

Kelsey Reidl is an entrepreneur, fractional CMO, and host of Rain or Shine (formerly Visionary Life). She's been podcasting for 8 years, helping entrepreneurs show up consistently and build sustainable businesses. She runs the Wave Mastermind and specializes in marketing strategy, website design, and business growth. Kelsey is a mom to a 2-year-old, an avid mountain biker, and a firm believer in the "rain or shine" mentality.

CLEANED & EDITED TRANSCRIPT
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Host: Hey, visionaries. Welcome back to the podcast. Today I want to do a quick solo episode on the topic of consistency — specifically, how to be consistent, what routines, rituals, and processes I use to stay consistent, and how being consistent can keep you on track to grow as a business owner and in your personal life.
Whether your goals are health, relationships, travel, or money, I think we all aspire to be more consistent with the things that matter to us. But here's what modern productivity advice gets wrong: it tells us we have to do all the things consistently, all at the same time, with the latest tool, app, or gadget to fit it all in.
When we're trying to reach for 30 different finish lines at once, consistency feels impossible. I don't believe we can build a ton of new habits simultaneously — but I do believe we can stack things.
Maybe your focus this month is building a consistent 6:00 AM workout routine three times a week. You go to F45 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Same classes, same instructors — no decision-making required. You sign up Sunday nights. You align with your partner. That's the focus for the week.
You're not also trying to be consistent on Instagram that week. You're not also trying to implement a weekly date night or start your budget that week. That all-or-nothing mentality is what trips us up. I know people who constantly fall off the wagon because they push too hard — they run a sprint when they should have been running a marathon.
Instead of going from zero to 100, start slower. Start in a way that lets you consistently build without burning out or feeling scattered.
Let me rewind and talk about what the word consistency actually means. The Cambridge Dictionary defines it as "the quality of always behaving or performing in a similar way, or of always happening in similar ways."
When I first read that, I felt a little jarred. Life changes a lot. We change a lot as humans, as entrepreneurs. It's natural to evolve. But there's a difference between evolving and burning down the strategy at every corner — reinventing yourself every single day.
When we apply consistency to business or health goals, if you know your long-term outcome — you want to be healthier, you want to grow a business that generates a certain level of revenue — then you do need to perform in similar ways over and over to get there. Being erratic doesn't work. Starting the business, shutting it down, working hard one week and not the next, answering client emails and then ghosting them — that's not going to move you forward.
A lot of entrepreneurs are multi-passionate. Every day they think differently, feel differently, cycle between "the business is going to be great" and "it's never going to work." That inconsistency is what holds them back from achieving their big goals.
The myth I'm trying to debunk here is that you have to do it all, be it all, and be consistent at everything at once. Nobody has the time, bandwidth, or energy for that. What we need to talk about first is what actually matters to you right now.
My guess is that if something isn't important to you in this season of life — or you've lost energy for it — you're probably not consistent with it. And that's okay. That's a signal.
I've worked with a lot of people who come to me with enormous ambitions, and I love that. But the people who become the most inconsistent are usually the ones who start with a big burst of energy. They follow every step nearly perfectly, expect fast results without long-term consistency, and then they go dark. They shut down their course, close their website after a few months, and change business ideas. There was never any compounding because there was no continuity.
They lost energy for what they were doing. The goal mattered in the moment, but they weren't truly committed to the vision. Maybe it was shiny object syndrome. Maybe they were chasing quick results and quick wealth — which, as we all know, simply doesn't happen.
Think of the tortoise and the hare. The tortoise moves slowly and consistently toward the destination. The hare might be sprinting — but potentially in the wrong direction, then backwards, then further astray. The tortoise arrives first, every time, because the hare never had a clear, committed direction.
I like to think about consistency through a Venn diagram. Three overlapping circles: time, energy, and money. I'm at my peak consistency when at least two of those three are present.
Take this podcast, which I've been hosting for eight years. If I have time, I can record, edit, and post without excuses. If I have energy — if I'm genuinely excited about getting this show out — I'll keep going. And if I have money, I can invest in a podcast production team to manage what I can't.
Without any of those three? I guarantee I won't be consistent.
Apply this to health: if you want to eat better and you have time, you can meal prep. If you have energy, you'll find a way to make it work even on a tight schedule. If you have money but not the time or energy, you can hire a personal chef or order prepared meals.
But if you have no time, low motivation, and no money to outsource — consistency just won't happen. The Venn diagram helps you identify why you're not being consistent and what you can do to fix it. Do you need to carve out time? Do you need a stronger "why" to reignite your energy? Do you need to invest financially instead of just hoping things will fall into place?
Here's a quick tip that actually helped me build the habit of working out — something I learned about 15 years ago in university.
I lived in a student house with five girlfriends and wanted to build a consistent gym habit. I started printing out a monthly calendar, writing one single goal at the top — something like "Work out every day, 30+ minutes" — and posting it at my desk. Every day I went to the gym, I crossed it off with an X.
I later read that Jerry Seinfeld uses the same approach: the "never break the chain" method. You put an X on each day you complete the habit, and you never break the chain. But for me, the power wasn't in the paper itself — it was in the visual reminder of who I was becoming. I literally saved stacks of those calendars. I still do this today whenever I'm trying to build a new consistency habit, whether it's reading, taking supplements, or getting workouts in.
One caveat: this only works if you actually care about the goal. If you're writing down something meaningless to you, you won't feel motivated to mark off that X. I was training to become a fitness and spin instructor at the time — that goal had deep meaning.
So if you're feeling scattered with your business or your marketing right now, here's where I'd start: set one to three outcome-based goals for the next 90 days.
For example: grow your email list to 500 people, record two weekly podcast episodes, and attend one networking event per month. Whatever matters to you right now.
For each goal, map out four things:
1. The goal. Make it specific and measurable. "Work out three times per week at F45, 6:00 AM, Monday, Wednesday, Friday." You'll know if you hit it.
2. The strategy. How will you make it happen? "I commit to the same three classes every week — same time, same days — so the decision is never made in the moment."
3. The why. Tell yourself why this matters. "I want consistent energy. I want to show up as the best version of myself, and that only happens when I'm active and strength training."
4. The KPIs. How will you know you're succeeding? Maybe it's three Xs in the calendar. Maybe it's podcast downloads, Instagram reach, or number of coffee connections.
And finally — what support do you need? Do you need to book your classes in advance? Do you need to communicate with your partner about childcare? Do you need to hire a VA, a trainer, or a podcast editor?
Getting clear on these things removes the mental clutter. Once you commit to F45, you stop debating whether to go to the big-box gym or do a home workout or browse YouTube for a 20-minute class. That decision is made. The habit becomes the path of least resistance.
After almost 10 years in business, I've found that being consistent is easier when you're clear on your vision, you're selling the same product year over year, and you're not constantly changing course.
It's not the entrepreneurs who work the hardest who succeed — it's the ones who show up consistently, who are always top of mind, who never swing into all-or-nothing seasons. They build in a way that genuinely excites them, they offload what doesn't, and they operate within that time-energy-money framework.
So here's what I want to leave you with: structure your life so that consistency is the path of least resistance. That doesn't mean being rigid or type A. For me with the podcast, I don't have a strict recording schedule — I'm always looking for interesting guests, and when I don't have one, I record solos. But once I hit record, the system takes over. I upload to a folder, check off the required assets, and my assistant handles everything else. I don't think about it after that.
The same goes for something as simple as grocery shopping. Since having our son — and with another baby on the way — I don't have the energy to browse the aisles. I pay a little extra to order online once a week. That's my path of least resistance.
I'll leave you with a few reflection questions as you think about this:
- Where are you currently being consistent in your business or life, but it's not actually moving the needle — it's just familiar? (Hint: for many of you, that's posting on social media three times a week because someone told you to.)
- What have you been working on lately that's getting your time but not your energy?
- Where in your health routine are you consistent — and what makes those things stick?
- And which two of the three Venn diagram factors do you currently have for your health: time, energy, or money?
I hope this was a helpful intro to consistency and the rituals, routines, and processes you can use to stay on track. If you loved this episode, reach out and let me know — I love talking about this. Until next time, have a wonderful week.

412 How to Build Consistent Habits: The Time, Energy & Money Framework for Business Owners