The Key to Making a Lasting Change
Change is hard. For some people, it's nearly impossible, and the mere mention of the word throws them into a state of sweaty-palmed panic. Others get really excited, make lists and buy the things on that list to catapult themselves into this new way of being...only to revert back to their old habits within a week (if that).
Change gets a bad rap because, whether you're super into it or not, it's monumentally challenging. Our habits are so much a part of us that any alteration feels like we are on our way to being a completely different person. Regardless of how you view it, though, change is a necessary and inevitable part of life.
So how do you make it happen? How does one make a real, lasting change?
The answer is going to blow your mind, and not because it's anything out of this world or super complex, but rather because of just how incredibly simple it is. Ready?
Do what works for you.
(insert mind-blown emoji here).
I know what you're thinking...WHAT? TF kind of lame advice is that? If I could change by doing what works for me...well, there would be no change!
Stick with me, though. I know that for many people, no change is the best change, BUT when it's unavoidable - you're starting a new position at your job, you're moving to a new city, your health is at risk and you need to lose weight, or you became a remote employee/home school teacher/housewife over night (I know I'm not alone in that one!) - you have to do whatever you can to make it as painless as possible.
What works for me might not work for everyone else. In fact, it often doesn't. I can't tell y'all how many times I've told the story about how I lost my baby weight and became a fitness/health fanatic, and people look at me like I have three heads. Waking up at 4:30am to work out and pack my food for the day is what works for ME, but maybe you're more of an evening person, or you really love cooking and want to do it 3 times a day (to me, that is weird). Who says that we all have to do things the same way?
Now, a more straight-forward rule to making a lasting change is to be committed, consistent, and give it time. No change will happen over night, or even within a week or a month. Real, lasting change takes real, committed effort and real time.
Take losing weight as an example. It will take 4 weeks for you to notice a difference when you look in the mirror, 8 weeks for your friends/the people closest to you to notice, and 12 weeks for the rest of the world to notice. 12 weeks...that's 3 months! When we are ready to make a change, we want it to happen immediately, if not sooner. Anything longer than that and we either lose interest, lose motivation, or we convince ourselves that we were fine the way we started.
No. No, you weren't fine, and you know it. It's just so hard to not only embark on something new, but actually stick to it and patiently wait for results. There is no getting around the effort the needs to be put in, but what you can do is implement that effort in whatever way suits you the best. When it comes to lasting change, self-awareness will be your best friend, because only you know what it's going to take to stay committed and consistent.
Do you work best alone or in a group? Are you the type of person who needs a lot of structure or a lot of autonomy? Are you a morning person or a night person? Knowing the answers to these questions, and being brutally honest with yourself, is a major first step and will give you a much better chance at consistency.
Don't fall for the idea that there's only one way to do something. We are all different, need different levels of support, and have different levels of tolerance for change. Give yourself the gifts of grace, honesty, and patience and you'll see that you can really accomplish anything.
Change gets a bad rap because, whether you're super into it or not, it's monumentally challenging. Our habits are so much a part of us that any alteration feels like we are on our way to being a completely different person. Regardless of how you view it, though, change is a necessary and inevitable part of life.
So how do you make it happen? How does one make a real, lasting change?
The answer is going to blow your mind, and not because it's anything out of this world or super complex, but rather because of just how incredibly simple it is. Ready?
Do what works for you.(insert mind-blown emoji here).
I know what you're thinking...WHAT? TF kind of lame advice is that? If I could change by doing what works for me...well, there would be no change!
Stick with me, though. I know that for many people, no change is the best change, BUT when it's unavoidable - you're starting a new position at your job, you're moving to a new city, your health is at risk and you need to lose weight, or you became a remote employee/home school teacher/housewife over night (I know I'm not alone in that one!) - you have to do whatever you can to make it as painless as possible.
What works for me might not work for everyone else. In fact, it often doesn't. I can't tell y'all how many times I've told the story about how I lost my baby weight and became a fitness/health fanatic, and people look at me like I have three heads. Waking up at 4:30am to work out and pack my food for the day is what works for ME, but maybe you're more of an evening person, or you really love cooking and want to do it 3 times a day (to me, that is weird). Who says that we all have to do things the same way?
Now, a more straight-forward rule to making a lasting change is to be committed, consistent, and give it time. No change will happen over night, or even within a week or a month. Real, lasting change takes real, committed effort and real time.
Take losing weight as an example. It will take 4 weeks for you to notice a difference when you look in the mirror, 8 weeks for your friends/the people closest to you to notice, and 12 weeks for the rest of the world to notice. 12 weeks...that's 3 months! When we are ready to make a change, we want it to happen immediately, if not sooner. Anything longer than that and we either lose interest, lose motivation, or we convince ourselves that we were fine the way we started.
No. No, you weren't fine, and you know it. It's just so hard to not only embark on something new, but actually stick to it and patiently wait for results. There is no getting around the effort the needs to be put in, but what you can do is implement that effort in whatever way suits you the best. When it comes to lasting change, self-awareness will be your best friend, because only you know what it's going to take to stay committed and consistent.
Do you work best alone or in a group? Are you the type of person who needs a lot of structure or a lot of autonomy? Are you a morning person or a night person? Knowing the answers to these questions, and being brutally honest with yourself, is a major first step and will give you a much better chance at consistency.
Don't fall for the idea that there's only one way to do something. We are all different, need different levels of support, and have different levels of tolerance for change. Give yourself the gifts of grace, honesty, and patience and you'll see that you can really accomplish anything.
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