We have all been there. We want to exercise more. We want to stop smoking. We want to eat healthier. We want a new job this year and we really want these things. We set wishes / goals, we have the best intentions yet there are no significant results! ………. Let us look in to with ‘WHY’
As a quote says “You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win and expect to win.” and this is where we fall short sometimes.
Start Small and Easy, Schedule Time, Prioritize, Say No, Learn to gracefully say no, to those who ask for your time when you already have too much to do. Saying No can be done in a Kind way, just be clear that you cannot do what is being asked of you. Pick a time when you will work on your goal, such as early in the morning, late at night, during lunch whichever is appropriate…
Successful quitters: Yeah. I am done with smoking. It was costing too much money and my wife doesn't like it as well. Instead of smoke breaks, I’m taking fresh air breaks and going for a walk around the building. I threw away all my cigarettes. And when my usual gang goes for smoke breaks, I just make myself a cup of tea now. I stopped going to the shops where I usually get my cigarettes.
When our intentions work for a month or two and then our good intentions and resolve, start to shade away and most of us realize we are back where we started. Obviously, a lot of this depends on the goals (wishes) you set. Even we set achievable, realistic and measurable goals, there is more to that. There are other things we need to pay attention to.
As a quote says “You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win and expect to win.” and this is where we fall short sometimes.
PREPARE TO WIN
Goals are great but to just trust 'your resolve to achieve' your goal is not sustainable. To persist, we need to plan and prepare for them. Otherwise, your good intentions will fade away even make you guilty.
Start Small and Easy, Schedule Time, Prioritize, Say No, Learn to gracefully say no, to those who ask for your time when you already have too much to do. Saying No can be done in a Kind way, just be clear that you cannot do what is being asked of you. Pick a time when you will work on your goal, such as early in the morning, late at night, during lunch whichever is appropriate…
EXPECT TO WIN
This is actually more insidious than people realize. At work, I too have lots of colleagues who are trying / have given up smoking and I realize there is a key difference in the way those who have given it up and those who are trying and still failing.
Unsuccessful quitters: I have seen a hypnotist and that’s sort a helping me but yeah, I want to quit but work is so stressful and I really need a break sometimes. It’s really difficult. I have been trying to quit for years. I’m giving it a try again. We’ll see how it goes this time. But it’s really taking a lot of effort. I’m going to try and be good but yeah, I do have some cigarettes in the drawer just in case I need it. You never know.
There’s almost a sense in the second group that this is a difficult task and it’s going to take a lot of effort to get it done and also it seems like they are not expecting to beat their smoking habit. Whereas for the first group, a decision has been made and they seem to be quite sure they will stick with it and there are not preparing for failing.
That is the thing with most of us. We want to stop smoking but we believe we can’t. We want to lose weight but we think it’s too difficult and we have tried it before and this time, we will try again with this new diet but really, we don’t think it’s going to happen. We want a new job but the job market out there is bad, etc. We are not really expecting success. This actually shocks most people…..
So closely monitor how you speak about your goals with others. That will give you important clues on whether you actually do think you will achieve your goals. Reversing these unconscious barriers will go a long way in helping you change your behavior. Think about it ..
