Insight Into What It Takes To Attain Perminant Change
Have You Achieved Your New Year's Resolution? Insight Into What
It Takes To Attain Permanent Change
Now that the new year is underway, a fresh start has been
offered to all to achieve the goals we have set in our declared
"New Years Resolutions"! So how's it going? How many of you are
on your way to shedding those extra 20 pounds you've gained,
quit smoking, improved those less than passionate relationships,
organized your daily lives, created more balance between work
and family, or whatever it is that you desired to change? The
lists of resolutions are endless! Are you finding success in
your efforts to achieve your goals? My hope is that you are well
on your way to changing the habits that have contributed to
creating these draining limitations in your lives.
When an individual observes positive change beginning to occur
as a result of their declaration to reach a goal, tremendous
energy is gained much like igniting a fire within that helps
fuel the effort it takes to reach a goals. How many of you are
feeling ignited in this way? Do not be too upset if you are
among those who have declared to change and are yet, once again,
confused as to why you cannot make the changes you wish to gain
in order to live your life to the fullest. Making a "resolution"
to change a detrimental habit or improve your negative behavior
is a both courageous and admirable! Please acknowledge yourself
if you have had the insight to recognize the changes you desire
to make in your life. This is an excellent first step to
achieving your goal. Unfortunately, creating a goal is only the
first step. In order to truly achieve positive change, a plan of
action must be developed to allow you to take the steps
necessary to reach your goal. Without a plan of action including
specific action steps that are measurable, attainable, realistic
and timely, permanent change is unlikely to occur. Such a plan
is known as a S-M-A-R-T plan. How smart was your plan of action?
Keep in mind that failing to plan is planning to fail. Those
people who achieve extraordinary goals in life are not just
lucky. Such people set goals just as you may have. The
difference in their success is that they also created a plan of
action to help them get into immediate action. People who
succeed dedicate themselves to continuous improvement on a
consistent basis. In order to change you must have a strategy,
some step-by-step action plans for changing how you think, feel,
and what you do every single day you are alive. To help you
create such an action plan for your own success, two things are
require: 1. Creating a SMART plan of action. 2. Disputing
limiting beliefs that have stood in your way in the past.
The combination of these two elements is necessary in order to
make lasting change. Let us examine each one separately.
Creating a Smart Plan of Action:
The first step to creating a Smart plan is to define your goals
for the next 90 days. In doing do, remember to keep these goals
specific. After you create the top three goals you wish to
achieve for the next 90 days, the next step is to complete the
action steps you will need to take in order for you to
successfully reach them. As you write these action steps,
include in them the result that is gained by following them to
remind yourself of their purpose. An example of this would be:
Goal - I will improve my health and fitness level and lose 10
pounds. Action Steps- 1. I will begin working out with a trainer
twice a week to improve my muscle tone. 2. I will do
cardiovascular exercise four times per week to help burn
calories 3. I will consult with a nutritionist to design a
healthy eating plan for me to follow to ensure that I am eating
properly to lose weight. 4. I will plan what I will eat a day a
head of time so that I will eat healthy throughput each day. 5.
I will keep a journal to record how I am feeling during this
process of change to increase my awareness of my emotional ups
and downs.
Disputing Limited Beliefs:
The next part of achieving positive change is to understand
that, often times we fail to achieve our goals because we have
limiting beliefs that sabotage our efforts. In his book Taming
Your Gremlin, Rick Carson refers to your limited belief as a
"gremlin". Carson explains that your gremlin is the narrator in
your head. He states that your gremlin has influenced you since
you came into the world and continues to accompany you as you
travel through each day. Your gremlin wants you to accept his
interpretation of your experiences and of what is reality.
Carson strongly teaches, "Listen to this carefully: your
gremlin's goal is to squelch the natural, vibrant you that is
within you." Given such insight, it is evident to see that
allowing your gremlin to feed you your belief of the world or of
what you are capable of is not going to be beneficial in
allowing you to live your life to the fullest.
With such knowledge regarding the limiting thoughts that
interfere with the progress that can be made towards positive
change, it is helpful to do a daily assessment of the thoughts
that travel through your head each day. This can be done
beautifully in the form of a journal. Becoming aware of what you
are thinking allows you the opportunity to dispute the thoughts
that are not based on what is real but rather on the gremlin
that lives within. Often limiting beliefs provoke emotions such
as anxiety, guilt, fear, sadness, depression, and anger. By
becoming more aware of the thoughts you are thinking and the
emotions that those thoughts promote, you will gain clarity as
you walk through your process of change. Keep in mind that you
have the power to choose what you think. You may, at anytime,
replace a negative thought with a more empowering one. Positive
self talk ignites the energy you will need to fuel you as you
move towards reaching your goals!
For more information on changing in a positive direction and
empowering yourself to achieve your goals, you may contact the
author at esav1@aol.com or visit her website at
http://www.elizabethsavino.com.