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Improving self-discipline means changing your routine and striving to adopt new habits. This typically feels odd and takes a lot of ‘brain-power’, at least at first, to do what you have promised yourself you would do. Today we will look at ways to stay consistent with our new actions until they become habits. Once our actions become habits, we move much more easily in the direction of our goals.
Links to Effortless Success Steps 1-5 can be found at the end of this post.
Let's get started!
Commit to Yourself At this point you should have a clear idea of what daily actions you need to take. If not, take a few moments now and write down 3 to 5 daily actions you want to take, these actions will support your longer term goal achievement.
For example, if you have a health goal you may choose drinking x ounces of water, going for a morning walk, cutting simple carbs, drinking green tea, and taking your vitamins. Once you have your list, you are ready to commit to yourself. Simply write it down and review when needed. In line with our example, you may write “I commit to a healthy and active lifestyle.”
Take a First Step In the words of the great Tony Robbins “Never leave the site of a goal or decision without taking action.” What action can you take right now to confirm your commitment to yourself? Dig out your gym clothes, toss out the cookies, buy that business building book. Ask yourself Better Quality Questions Whether we believe something is possible or not is often determined by the questions we ask ourselves. The words we use can cause us to not even consider certain possibilities, or to take others for granted. For example, asking yourself “why can’t I ever achieve my weight loss goal” sets the mind in action to answer that question. And answers you’ll get. Non-empowering, self-sabotaging answers. A better quality question, then, might be “How do I stay focused on my long-term goal of a health and energy for myself?” Your mind will then look for ways to stay focused on what really matters to you.
Strive for Consistency not Perfection Create a habit tracker and check off the daily actions you have chosen to take you in the direction of your goal. This can be done on paper, on a calendar or electronically. The means is not as important as the visibility – your tracker needs to be easy to update and in a place where you can see your progress. Focus on and celebrate consistency, not perfection. Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, explains that habit behaviors are traced to a part of the brain called the basal ganglia - a portion of the brain associated with emotions, patterns, and memories. Decisions, on the other hand, are made in the prefrontal cortex, a completely different area. We are on auto-pilot when our action becomes a habit; we no longer need to think (or argue) with ourselves about performing our chosen action. Before this happens, however, our old habits are the ones on auto-pilot (hence the self-arguing) and the new habit will likely feel wrong. The solution is to just embrace the ‘wrong’ feeling and know that it will take a while for your new actions to feel natural and automatic. Just keep going!
If you miss a day, just pick it up again the very next day. Reset, refocus and restart as many times as you need to.
Your challenge for today is to take action, and commit to your daily action steps, take one action right now! and create a way to track your actions each day.
Posts in the Effortless Success Series:
Effortless Success Step 1 is all about the importance of having a clear vision of where you want to go and who you want to be.
Effortless Success Step 2 highlights the importance of focus and keeping your eye on the prize.
Effortless Success Step 3 provides tips and ideas to keep yourself mentally and physically feeling good – a precursor to taking action towards your goals and ultimate vision.
Effortless Success Step 4 is a simple technique to feel better mentally, and therefore physically, which makes it easier to stay motivated and take action.
Effortless Success Step 5 provides six ways to keep your self control strong working in your favor.
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Linda Short of Elle Short Coaching is a Goal Achievement Coach, certified health and life coach specializing in goal achievement. As a goal achievement coach, I help people struggling with where they are to create their own life story and take action toward their life vision. So that they can get unstuck, find joy in each and every day, and live their best life.
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