For awhile now I have been procrastinating on something I really desire to do. I have been putting off writing my first book on Personal Finance. Many of you are doing something similar with your fat loss goal, or other life goal you have.
Why do we do it? We say we want something then we don’t take the necessary actions to do it. A lot of it comes down to how strong our desire is, but even if we have a strong desire sometimes we still don’t accomplish what we say we want to do.
I know at least for me writing my book it has a lot to do with the fact that I want it to be perfect and I don’t think I can make it perfect. It seems so hard, such an impossible task, that I don’t even really start on it. Well I did start on it, but then I let minor frustrations get in the way of finishing it. Has that happened to you? You have started on a dieting plan, but some minor frustrations got in the way of you sticking with it?
Or maybe you are like me in another way? You started a daily habit of writing and kept at it for over a year, but you slowly let that habit get away from you. You lost interest. Except for you it was a strong interest in eating healthy and exercising, and you saw great results, but you just lost interest.
Both of these things can and do happen to anyone. You think to yourself, “It doesn’t matter what I eat, or if I just sit around all day, it won’t matter”, or something like, “I just don’t have the time or energy to eat right and exercise like I should.”
When you have a strong goal sometimes it seems hard to accomplish it, and maintain it once you got it, but there are a number of things you can do to make it easier.
1. Slowly develop the daily habit.
When you have an established habit it makes it all the easier to maintain it. Developing the habit can be hard, especially in the beginning. But each tiny success adds to future success. Each amount of discipline you can muster in a given day, adds to your future self-discipline. Learn to have that perseverance.
2. Gain support from similar people.
Having a good support group is key. These could be family or friends. What is even better though is being in a group doing exactly what you are wanting to do. Why do you think the people on the show The Biggest Loser are so successful? Cause each and every person there is DEDICATED to helping them lose weight. The trainers are dedicated to it, their friends and families are usually supportive, and they support each other. And for the most part, they don’t want the other people to do better then them! They are looking to win, and watching other people do it inspires them to do the hard work of losing all that weight that took them years to put on. Find some people dedicated to your same goals and you will be helped immensely by it.
3. Focus on the outcomes, not the setbacks.
No matter how hard you try you will always have setbacks. Things always pop up in life that prevents us from going as far and as fast as we want to. The key is to never let those things slow your momentum down to a stop. You can always keep going, in small ways, even in the worst of conditions. And through it all, remember what the outcome will be. For me, I know that writing a book is a personal accomplishment few people will achieve. And my hope is that the books I write will help a lot of people with what they are struggling with. For you, I hope you focus on all the weight you will lose, or how healthy you will be. How much energy you will have, how great you will look, and how wonderful you will feel. Imagine that and make it real!
I know the desire is there otherwise you wouldn’t have taken the time to read this. Yet no amount of reading will accomplish your goal for you. You have to take what you learn and apply it to make it happen. The hardest part is doing the world required the reach your goals. Increasing your desire to the point where you just have to achieve it! The choice is yours my friends.
This is our 37th challenge in The Personal Health Challenge Series…