Issue 49: How To Win With Habit Change
THE LEAP
BY QUANTUM ORANGE
GROW, EXPAND & EVOLVE
ISSUE 49 | HOW TO WIN WITH HABIT CHANGE
Each week The (Quantum) Leap summarises a key aspect of success into what you need to Think, Feel and Do to create a personal shift.
Ask yourself if what you’re doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow.
~ Paulo Coelho
THINK
How often have you set exciting, massive goals at the beginning of the year or when you want to create some major change, and then fallen short? Often repeating the goal-setting process doesn’t help, we just cycle through it: we get motivated, fail, then try again.
Our brain struggles moving into action because it loves analysis and has difficulty picking an option. You can help your brain by getting specific about what you want and the steps you’ll need to follow to get there. Doing so brings clarity and helps dissolve resistance.
So it’s time to change the strategy: have a clear plan that ‘shrinks the change’ into bite size actions you can take one after another in order to increase the feeling of accomplishment.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew - start small, too small to fail. Doing something small is better than doing nothing at all.
Decide on ONE habit change you would like to make.
Start small, really small.
Think through a plan of action.
Write down your plan: know your motivations, be clear about the benefits, state your start date, and outline any obstacles you might meet with a plan to overcome them.
Consider if you need an accountability buddy.
FEEL
We are quick to blame ourselves for our failing to reach our goals, but often don’t consider the strategies we employed to get there. Seeing yourself make progress on a small goal is much more motivating than not making progress on a big one.
There is a “winning feeling” that comes with completing small actions. The success is not really about how much you are doing - it’s about reframing your mindset and putting things into perspective.
- Does setting the smaller habit make you feel less resistance?
- How does it feel to set a habit change goal and achieve it?
- Do you feel you can influence the outcomes you want?
- How does setting these small targets affect your feelings of confidence?
Each repetition may not seem to have much effect but over time it will make a big difference because when you repeat something your brain learns.
DO
One of the most powerful things you can do is START.
Put your plan into action - meet the commitment you made to yourself. Remember, no step is too small to take.
Be happy with all progress and reward yourself often.
Keep your awareness on your self-talk so you catch any derailing thoughts. When you do, replace them with a mantra and visualisation of reaching your target.
If you fail, figure out what went wrong, plan for it, and go again. Don’t let failure and guilt stop you. They’re just obstacles, but they can be overcome.
In fact, if you learn from each failure, they become stepping stones to your success.
Regroup. Let go of guilt. Learn. Plan.
And get back into action.
Read. Watch. Listen.
