Motivation
Motivation
Do you set yourself New Year’s Resolutions only to find that by February they’re long forgotten?
Part of the issue lies in the way in which we phrase our goals. We’ll often describe the changes we want to make as sacrifices, things we need to deprive ourselves of or give up entirely – quit smoking, cut-down on alcohol, go on a diet, stop procrastinating.
When we describe our goals in this way it’s hard to get excited about them. There’s a certain sense of reluctance, like they’re something we know we should do but we don’t really want to do. It’s no wonder we drop them so soon.
In addition, research shows that the sub-conscious brain has a hard time differentiating between doing something and not doing something, so if you’re telling yourself ‘don’t eat junk food’, your brain focuses on the junk food and starts to give it power. Before you know it you're craving a burger and experiencing inner turmoil over whether or not to give in to the temptation.
If you focus on what you ultimately want instead, ‘feeling full of energy and looking fantastic’, ‘enjoying yummy winter-warming vegetable soups’, ‘getting creative with crunchy, flavoursome salad ingredients’, that’s what your sub-conscious will focus on and hey presto you find yourself spending more time in the grocery aisle at the supermarket and subsequently looking and feeling great.
OK, I realise I’ve made this sound super easy, but it actually isn’t that complicated. It’s simply about re-training yourself away from old, negative habits towards new, positive habits instead. And this can work in all areas of life, not only with your health.
So think about what you really want out of life this year, not about what you should or shouldn’t do.
And if you need some extra help take a look at my Top 20 Motivation Strategies to help you get there.
Further resources