Make a Powerful Change in Your Life Right Now.
In this article I want to give you a very practical tip for making a real change in your life right now.
I've previously written about the "Bright Line" approach to making changes. In short, it means to draw a line in the sand. It's about making a very simple, clear rule in your life that you will follow. There is no fudging. There is no weighing pros and cons. It's a firm decision, and because there is no judgement involved it bypasses the judgement part of the brain, which is the part of your brain that fights you and wears on your willpower.
Step One: Decide what you want to accomplish.
This is your big picture goal. For example, I want to lose 20 pounds within 60 days.
Step Two: Figure out some very simple things that you can do to achieve this goal.
The key here is to keep it SIMPLE! So, some ways that you could achieve the goal of losing 20 pounds are...
I'm not going to drink any calories.
I'm going to have a salad every day for lunch.
I'm not going to eat anything after 9pm.
Every time I go to the grocery store I'm going to park as far away as I can so I can walk further.
Every breakfast and lunch I will supplement with 10 grams of fiber.
Step Three: Decide to do it, and then follow through.
Pick one of the things from the list above. It should be simple and you need to believe that you can follow through with it. Then you have to DECIDE to do it, and then relax and follow through. The key is that you are deciding NOW, so you don't have to decide at the time. There is no decision to make at the time, because the decision is already made.
Follow through with this, turn it into a habit, and then you can choose another small, powerful thing to change.
Some other habits to adopt...
Have a book that you've been meaning to write? Sit down at a specific time each day and write for an hour.
Messy desk? Make a rule that every Sunday night you're going to clean your desk.
Is your budget out of control? Make a time once a week at a specific time to balance your accounts.
Bring happiness into your life by sitting down for 20 minutes every night before bed and thank God for the good that is in your life.
