I’d heard that it all comes down to ‘just deciding’ many times. Decide you want things to be different and make it so. Choose who you need to become to achieve your goal then be that person. Decide how you’re going to change things up and then do it. As if it’s ever going to be that easy, right?!
Game-changer
I knew I wanted to get fitter. I knew I needed to create a new exercise habit but I just couldn’t seem to put the words into action. OK, I thought, I’ve decided what I want, so why am I not making it happen?! Then I heard this phrase instead and the game changed;
“Make it a part of who you are”
Katrina Ruth – @thekatrinaruthshow
Do I want to be fit and healthy? Yes. Do I want to feel good in myself? Hell yeah! Do I want to wake up and love my body all over again? Absofuckinglutely. So it becomes a no-brainer. When you make something a part of who you are, you decide that you want to be THAT person, you say it, you commit to it and then you damn well do it! This message is 100% Katrina Ruth and she always delivers the ass-kicking vibes just when I need to hear them.
Make it happen
We don’t even have to be talking about exercise though, we could apply this to any new habit you want to create or behaviour you want to adopt. Make it a part of who you are and it follows that you’ll become it but as always, the fundamental part is taking the action. So what does that look like? Well, if we take my exercise goal as the example, it’s about making it so ridiculously easy, that by eliminating all the obstacles and excuses, it just gets done. Take a look at these 6 steps:-
Six Steps to Daily Exercise
- Decided I will make getting fit and staying fit a part of who I am
- Committed to scheduling a time each day – for me it’s always the morning because I know if I put it off ’til the afternoon, I probably won’t do it.
- Chose the kind of exercise I would do. In my case it’s a series of online classes through a fitness app, which also me to pick and choose between HIIT, weights, pilates etc. I know myself and I NEED variety (and someone telling me what to do)!
- Lay out my gym clothes the night before so they are the first thing I see and put on when I get up. No excuses! This has the added bonus of taking the decision-angst out of what I wear each day and although I now have to do the school run in head-to-toe lycra, at least I am relatively comfortable and I feel the slightest bit sporty when I drop the children off.
- My warm up is walking the kids to school, followed by a longer walk home
- I get home, fire up my tablet and get a glass of water ready so I can do the damn exercises and feel like I’ve already won the day!
What are you going to change?
Yes, a big part of changing anything is making that first decision, but whenever I feel like not doing something – especially something that I know is really important – the phrase I hear in my head is ‘make it a part of who you are.’ When you find a way to remove the obstacles and make it easier, you’ll turn a chore into a game, and a game into a habit.
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”
James Clear – Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
(Have you read this book? It’s truly eye-opening…)
So, where do you need a new system in place in order to facilitate a change? Can you commit to making that thing so engrained in your daily or weekly routine that it just becomes a part of who you are and what you do? We’re in the business of shaking things up here so I hope so!
Anyway, as always, keep disrupting, stay rebel and I’ll talk to you next week Mischief Maker!
Zoe x