We all make and break our annual New Years resolutions; I know this from my own personnel experience and those I have had the pleasure to work with. Behavioral change is very difficult, at times we are successful and other times we are tired and life seems to get in the way of our best efforts. The roller coaster ride begins. In order to reach our goals we need to establish a set of tools that bring us closer to our desired out come.
Here is my all time favorite tool- Daily resolutions give you the opportunity to make and break goals daily. It’s not copping out it just gives you time to keep trying. Self- improvement is an on going process and needs to be re-evaluated along the way to allow for life’s curve balls. Small changes made daily can change your life a year later. Stay positive and each new effort will bring you closer to your goal. In his best selling book, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell describes how ideas, products, and group behaviors “tip” into the culture and take root. Research shows that behavioral change also has its own tipping point, the more times you change a habit the more likely you come that much closer to success. Keep trying!
Self- Forgiveness-. We are only human and to be 100% percent perfect 100% percent of the time is not humanly possible. Avoid negative mind chatter that self defeats our best efforts Identify what is working (give yourself a pat on the back) and what isn’t.
Work harder not smarter-Create an awareness of what changes really need to take place in order to reach your desired goal. If you need to knock off some weight count calories or record your food intake, need to improve cardiovascular fitness get that walk in. What ever your goal think about what you need to do to make it happen and start. It is less stressful to begin a behavioral change than to obsess about it endlessly. At some point you may just stop and think that change wasn’t so painful after all and question how much fulfillment you really got from that big chocolate cupcake.
Ask for help-Misery loves Company, two heads are better than one, birds of a feather flock together. A sense of community helps you reach your goals and encourages change. There is comfort in knowing that you have a support group to help you reach your goals. A community can make a difficult situation fun and the road ahead less hard. Don’t be shy and ask for help!