The secret to changing yourself? Take it slow.
Just over 2 months ago the clocks hit 12 o’clock, and countless New Years Resolutions were made. 2 months into 2019 and approximately 99.96% of those have already failed.
Why did they fail? What can you do to make the changes stick?
The secret to lasting change is to keep the change small and simple. For example, don’t say: “I am going to stop smoking this very moment!”, but say “Instead of 5 cigarettes a day, I am going to smoke 4”.
The key is to make a change so small, that when you think about it your first reactions is: “Oh, but I can do that easily!”. The change might not seem like much now, but in a month you will be smoking 20% fewer cigarettes. A month later (it takes about a 1–2 months for something to become a habit) later, remove another cigarette. Keep going on with small steps like that, and within 6 months you will be able to quit smoking altogether!
Why do small changes succeed while big ones fail?
Humans are creatures of habit. To change a habit, you need willpower. Every human has a certain amount of willpower. Some people seem to swim in it, others have barely enough for a puddle. However, there is one fact that is the same for everyone: It is not infinite.
Everyone has a limit to their willpower. Whenever you make a huge change in your life, you need to drain a sizable chunk of that willpower every day just to keep that change. So much in fact, that you don’t leave enough for the day-to-day challenges. So, when a bad day comes around, we throw the change out.
A small change takes much less willpower. It leaves enough for our day-to-day lives and if a bad day hits, we have plenty to deal with the issues at hand and our change. Because of this, our change sticks and before long becomes a habit.
Mission accomplished.
