Have you ever gone overboard? I’m not talking about on a boat, but in life.
Have you ever gotten to the point where you were so frustrated, so disgusted, or so motivated that you took massive action… but it didn’t last long term?
I know I have. That’s pretty much how I used to exercise. =)
I would get tired going up the stairs or playing with my kids, and get so disgusted with myself that I’d make the commitment to get to the gym immediately. And then I’d ride that wave of motivation and work out for about 4 hours.
Sure, it felt great while I was there. I was motivated, I felt like I was making progress, and I knew that I could really turn things around if I continued to go to the gym consistently.
Only problem was, after 4 hours of working, I didn’t want to go back! The next day I’d be sore, tired, and unable to find another 4 hours in my day to endure what I now percieved to be more pain. No way!
Eight months later… I’d get tired going up the stairs or playing with my kids again… I’d get motivated again… I’d go to the gym for 4 hours again… Then I would quit… AGAIN.
Each time I repeated the cycle, the habit of starting and quitting got stronger. Oops!
Does this sound familiar, or am I the only one that goes overboard like this? =)
So what does my old exercise cycle have to do with anything?
Everything.
It’s an example of how we approach life, and how we get burned out, too. This “all or nothing” approach gets us in trouble.
Logically I knew 4 hours in the gym would not give me the results I wanted, but my pride got involved and I really wanted to kick start my progress – go ALL OUT!
It’s the “microwave mentality” world we live in now – with information available to us at the click of a mouse, food available at the touch of a button & all kinds of get-rich-quick programming – we’ve been conditioned to want results…NOW!
But personal development and achievement simply don’t work that way. The only thing that “going overboard” does is get you all wet! You end up in a vast ocean – where you can learn a lot, it’s true – but you wear yourself out trying to stay afloat.
It’s much better to build long lasting habits to create the results you want. Sustainable, do-able, enjoyable habits.
Set yourself up for success, not failure.
In the case of exercise, I would have been much better off doing 15 minutes of exercise every day for 8 months than 4 hours every 8 months. Imagine how much more progress I would have made!
By the way – since I stopped going overboard, I exercise a little bit regularly now, and have lost almost 20 pounds in 3 months. Hmmm…
Small, incremental and sustainable changes are much easier to make and much better for you in the long run.
No matter what your goals are, what results you want to achieve, or what lifestyle you want to live, there are a few foundational success habits that will help you – as long as you don’t go overboard!
- Be grateful – spend just a few minutes each day in gratitude – for what you have, who you are, and all you’ve accomplished. You can record it in a journal, or simply recite it to yourself as you walk from your bed to the bathroom.
- Move your body – go for a walk, do some situps, stretch…do something to move your body each day. Every 24 hours, your body is either growing, or it’s dying! The difference is whether you choose to exercise it or not. Moving your body creates energy; energy is what’s needed to achieve virtually everything you want in life.
- Exercise your mind – read, meditate, listen to empowering material…do whatever works for you to expand your mind, so you can expand your reality. We are bombarded every single day with so many negative messages from society – it’s crucial that you intentionally combat those disempowering messages with positive programming.
- Get organized – your external life is a mirror of what’s going on inside of you. If you see chaos around you, you will likely create chaos inside. Even 15 minutes a day clearing out clutter can make a significant difference. Everything in your life takes up space, so if you want something more than you already have, you’ve got to make room for it.
And remember, you don’t want to go overboard! Set a timer for tasks you undertake and keep it to 15-20 minutes or less.
HUGE POINT → If you allow yourself to do too much, you’ll be setting a precedent that will be hard to keep in the future, so it’s much less likely to become a habit.
Creating these habits are the foundation upon which you can build your dreams. As you keep these commitments to yourself, you’ll trust yourself more, feel more fulfilled, create more energy, and achieve much greater success.
