Get out of your own way!

You’re setting yourself up for long-term discomfort if you stay in your comfort zone.

There’s no silver bullet.

It isn’t easy to get out of your own way. That’s because we’re wired for the status quo. Our brain likes efficiency and mindless habits are efficient. Change is hard work and requires conscious and continuous effort.

Willpower is a finite resource and gets depleted. You get tired. You make the mistake of using progress as an excuse for self-indulgence. “One donut won’t hurt, will it? I’ve been eating well all week!”

Or you fall for the trap of telling yourself it’s better not to start. It’s way less painful to fail because you didn’t try, than it is to fail when you give it your all.

The good news…you can train your brain.

The legendary football coach Vince Lombardi said: “Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice does”.

Here are 10 tips:

1. Decide what you will do. Be specific. That way you’ll know when you get there. You’ll have more success if you focus on what you will do, not on what you won’t do.
2. Know your why. It needs to be so compelling that it will keep you on track when the going gets tough.
3. Focus on getting better, not on being good.
4. Start meditating. It will help to stop your mind wandering, enabling you to focus and concentrate on the task at hand.
5. Start small. Baby steps. B.J. Fogg at Stanford University has taught us the power of tiny habits.
6. Build your grit. When the going gets tough, remind yourself that you’re not there yet. Deepak Chopra said: “When you dig a well, there’s no sign of water until… you reach it”.
7. If/then thinking. Plan ahead. Prepare. Decide if X happens, then you will do Y.
8. Build Team YOU. Everyone needs supporters.
9. Start before you’re ready. You’ll never feel ready. Nike got it right: Just do it! Try one stretch goal at a time – remember willpower depletes.
10. Finish strong. The commitment starts when the fun stops. You’ll start to like it when you see you’re getting better.

Remember, “Most goals worth achieving require time, planning, effort, and persistence” Heidi Grant Halvorsen.

Now go get ‘em!

If you want some help getting out of your own way, hit reply and let me know! I’d be honoured to be part of your Team YOU.

Best wishes,

Michelle