It’s a nice thought, the new year begins and off you go with your list of changes you want to make in our lives.
The only problem is… roughly a month later you are right back to the same things, repeating the same actions that you always have and getting the same results that you have been getting before the new year began. For some, they can last a month, some get out to about 3 or 4 months.
I happen to work in an industry that I can almost nail it down to the day as to when the last of the new years resolutions are over based on the eating habits of people. It is pretty interesting to see.
Anyways, why is that we start off the year with great intentions but end up right back where we were before the new year, sometimes even worse?
That is the age old question that if answered would be the “magic pill” to answer all that ails us with regards to breaking those habits that we know we need to get rid of.
I do have some ideas that may help you get a little farther down the road with regards to breaking those nasty habits that you are looking to get rid of this new year:
1. WHY, WHY, WHY? – This is one of the most important questions that needs to be answered before setting off on your habit breaking.
When you state the habit that you are looking to get rid of, you need to sit down and write out all the whys you can for getting rid of this habit. The more powerful “whys”, the stronger your will to stay the course. If you have a flimsy list of “whys”, you will fold the minute you are faced with the smallest temptation.
2. What is the thinking that is rattling around in your head that is creating the actions you are taking that is causing the result that you are getting? This is a very important question that will increase your level of success by about 80%. If you can isolate this thought and replace it, your chances increase to about 100%.
We have thoughts that roll around our heads all day long, some we are conscious of and some are there without our knowledge.
These thoughts and pictures in our heads will inevitably turn into actions that create the results we see in our lives.
And the stronger reoccurring thoughts ALWAYS win in the end.
In my first marriage, I had a thought about my ex-wife that rolled around in my head over and over again. As our relationship rolled forward, that thought caused my relationship with her to break down, inevitably leading to our divorce.
Since then I had been with Tracy and very happy for about 5 years, when all of a sudden this thought came into my head about Tracy and it was exactly the same thought that I had about my ex-wife but replaced with Tracy. When I caught that thought in my head I happened to be driving, I slammed on the brakes and skidded to the side of the road. I couldn’t believe it.
If I had dismissed that event and went on down the road, I guarantee that me and Tracy would not be together today. And this month, we will be celebrating 10 years together.
By catching that thought in my head, I was able to change it. But if it continued to roll around in my head without consciously becoming aware of it, it would have continued to ruin relationship after relationship.
Becoming aware of thoughts surrounding what you are looking to change is vitally important to changing your habits, but it takes becoming vigilant with regards to what is going on inside of your head.
3. We need God’s help. Don’t be fooled by the importance of this. As it is last on this list, it is the most important part of the list. When we examine our motives, the most important person we need to impress is our creator.
When we look to fashion our lives after our savior, Jesus, we become more focused on helping those around us. And God has set up a great system that if we take advantage of it, will help us get the results that we are looking for.
And to quote one of my favorite speakers, Zig Ziglar, “If you help enough people get what they want, you will get everything you want.”
If you are not getting everything that you want , you need to focus your efforts on helping more people get what they want.
As Always, Here’s to Your LifetoSuccess,
God Bless You,
John Clark
P.S. If you are going to take your new year’s resolutions serious this year, you need to get over to http://www.habitbustingsystem.com, this is a great program that will help you step by step through a proven system for habit change. Make sure to check it out today!!