3 Steps to Change - Ready, Willing and Able

We are creatures of habit, and therefore we may forget that we have the ability to change our old patterns, behaviours, and mindsets. Whether it's things from yesterday, a month ago, or a year(s) ago, it is possible to make some changes starting today.

Maybe you have been putting off things until tomorrow that you can do today, or you've been waiting for something to happen before you take the next step(s), or some of your patterns or behaviours are so ingrained that you feel you can't change them.

Perhaps you haven't been taking enough time for yourself or spending time with others, or you've been meaning or attempting to commit to something but you haven't had very much success, or you have been feeling stuck or unsatisfied at work or home.

There maybe something going on for you personally, or there may be someone you need to forgive, or you are holding onto past hurts, resentments, or grievances.


Just about anything, including excuses, can become a deterrent to taking steps forward if you let them. No matter what's going on, or what you are holding onto, or what you aren't doing, it's not too late to make a change!

Read: Change Your Brain, Change Your Life (Revised and Expanded): The Breakthrough Program for Conquering Anxiety, Depression, Obsessiveness, Lack of Focus, Anger, and Memory Problems 

The question is, "Are you willing to?"

Do you really want to do what you are saying you want to do?


Have you heard the saying, "Ready, willing and able"? This is what you want to ask yourself.

Are you ready to take a step, and it doesn't have to be a gigantic one, towards that which you would like to change?

Are you willing to do what is necessary to move forward even if it's uncomfortable or difficult to do?

Are you able to accept the setbacks, fears, trials and errors, rejections, disappointments, tough conversations, etc., that at first may accompany what you want to change? This can be the tough step and the one that holds you back the most. 

Being "able" to accept what's holding you back is exactly what needs to be looked at in order for you to make that move forward again.

You don't have to change anything if you don't want to. But, if you recognize something within you that is stopping your growth, or creating unhappiness in your life/relationships, or something you are complaining about, or you hear yourself saying something repeatedly that you want to do or commit to, then it's time to do something about it, and now is the time.


It may not be easy to change some things, and others may be easier than you think. Either way, you won't know until you try.

What's the worst that can happen? If you try something and it doesn't work, then you have a stepping stone for your next step.


If you really want to change something then you can do it!


If you are willing to do what's required then you will do it!


If you are able to accept that things will be different and maybe even difficult at first, than you are able to do it.

If you are can do all three steps, then you are capable of making a change.


Look over the last month or previous couple of months. What have you been saying or wanting to do and haven't, or what do you want to change about yourself or something in your life?

If there is more than one thing you want to work with, choose the one that you feel is the most important, or you think the most about, or weighs the heaviest on you.

What step(s) can you take to bring about this change?

When you took that step, what happened?


What, if anything, surfaced for you?

What did you learn?

Are there any other steps you need to take next to implement that change 

further? 

Remember, change may not be easy, but you will never know what lies around the next corner if you don't take the step(s) to see. Use these techniques to help you find the insight to assist you in taking the next steps to change and facing what is holding you back, or surfaces, and then using that knowledge as a stepping stone for your next step(s).

30 Day Challenge - Improving Your Productivity By Creating Better Habits

When it comes to improving your productivity there are a number of strategies you can use to make it happen. One strategy that we like to suggest is to challenge yourself to add a habit or behavior that will support your overall productivity. 


You can also approach this from the perspective of getting rid of a habit or behavior that currently hinders your overall productivity. It doesn't matter as much which of these two you choose to do as long as you actually complete the thirty day challenge. 

At the end of this you can be an even better example of possibility to your friends and family. You will also get the feeling of being able to overcome the things that in the past have been holding you back from being more productive.  


THE THIRTY DAY HABIT CHANGE CHALLENGE; 


Since it is probably safe to say that we understand why you would want to increase your level of productivity I think we should make sure we are talking about the same thing. Wikipedia defines "Habit" as  "...A habit, from the standpoint of psychology, is a more or less fixed way of thinking, willing, or feeling acquired through previous repetition of a mental experience." There are of course two sides of the coin with this. We all have positive habits that we do day in and day out that enrich our lives. Because they have become automatic behaviors they will keep happening until we make a conscious effort to change them. 


What we are looking to do with the thirty day challenge is either add a positive habit to our existing set of habits or get rid of a habit that we have deemed negative. That is an automatic behavior that we keep performing day in and day out that actually takes away from our lives.  


Since our focus in this report is on increasing productivity we will be looking with that outcome in mind.  So Why Will This Work? The thirty day challenge is based on three specific principles that make it work. The first principle is the idea of "Awareness Is Curative". 


This is the idea that as we make ourselves consciously aware of something then we can do something about it because it's not happening out of our awareness.  This is important because if we are trying to change a habit then we have to make ourselves consciously aware of when we are performing the unwanted behavior. Conversely, if we are trying to add a new habit then conscious repetition is one of the keys to making it an automatic behavior. 


The second principle of "Focus Causes Growth" works on the idea that the things we focus on tend to grow. This is partially because that increased focus implies increased importance. Since we usually perform or tend to the things we deem important first then this is a way to leverage that mental strategy. 


Finally, the thirty day challenge works because a "temporary commitment is easier to keep then a permanent one". That is you can more easily make the mental decision to do something for thirty days then you can to say you will do it for the rest of your life. It's a well-known psychological adage that a habit can be formed in 21 consecutive days. 


Once you have formed this habit then no more conscious input is needed on your part.  

60 SECOND DECISION MAKING PROCESS STEPS 


Step 1. Identify a habit to create or change. 

Step 2. Commit to daily execution. 

Step 3. Keep track of your execution or lack thereof. 

Step 4. Adjust your execution using triggers if needed on a daily or weekly basis. 

Step 5. Add controls as necessary. 

COMMON THIRTY DAY CHALLENGE ISSUES 

Of course whenever you are given a new set of tasks to do there will usually be some form of resistance to it even if it was your own idea. Let's take a look at three of the more common issues that people have encountered with this and what they have done to get past them. 


Issue #1 - Looking Past The Thirty Days This is when instead of keeping their focus on just doing what needs to be done today their focus shifts to what happens a month or six months from now. Solution The biggest solution here is to just trust that if you do your part for the next thirty days that the rest will work itself out. The reason we know this to be true is that you currently have positive habits that are working for you right now that you are not even conscious of. We are just giving you a more direct way to add to that collection. 


Issue #2 - Making It To Cumbersome To Track There are two things that will allow you to be successful in the thirty day challenge. The first is to make sure you perform the new habit or substitute something in place of an existing habit you are trying to change. The second part is to make sure you track this. Solution Tracking your daily execution doesn't have to be complicated. It could be as simple as adding a tally to a piece of paper or adding an entry to your digital diary or notepad. Keep it simple. 


Issue #3 - Focus On The Habit Instead Of The Process This is like trying to watch water boil and forgetting the fact that if it's heated at a certain temperature for a certain amount of time it will boil most of the time. 


WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT 


I know we have covered a lot of new information in this report. We looked at why you would want to improve your productivity, introduced the thirty day challenge, covered the principles that make the challenge work and finally what to do if you encounter three popular stumbling blocks. By allowing yourself to commit to the thirty day challenge you can fully expect your productivity to increase in the specific area you have chosen to tackle first. Depending on your choice this could mean more fulfilling relationships, more satisfying career and/or business outcomes and of course a greater sense of accomplishment.

Attitude is Everything

Attitude can be defined as the way an individual looks at life. It is the outward reflection of what is taking place on the inside. It becomes his/her personality...it pervades their feelings and becomes their actions. Attitude is one of the most important aspects of life and a key to interpersonal relationships. There are two types of relationships in animal (or human) life, symbiotic and parasitic. Symbiotic relationships are mutually beneficial. Both of the animals (or organisms) involved receive a benefit from the other living with them.


Parasitic, on the other hand, is a destructive relationship where one benefits to the detriment of the other. When trying to accomplish something new, or break old habits in life, we need to associate ourselves with others who bring us up, those that help us become more than we were without them. Creating symbiotic relationships will only accelerate our progress. Attitude is key in tough situations; the better your attitude is in tough times, the better those opportunities become.

Read: Attitude Is Everything: Change Your Attitude... Change Your Life!

An oft-quoted cliché illustrates this point: "Most people are as happy as they want to be". There are very few, if any, easy roads to take on the road to success. Bumps and potholes, construction and traffic jams will constantly confront the typical person. The difference comes in how well the person can handle these difficulties. Shakespeare wrote: "There is nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so". Attitude leans heavily on thoughts, and the harder things seem in the mind, the more difficult they will be in reality. It is imperative that everyone makes themselves as happy as they can be, and forsake the negative thinking disposition, and become forward thinking individuals.



Attitude, like the common cold, is contagious. The more negative people that there are in a room, the more negative the conversation will become. The inverse is also true. Think about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the face of hatred, death threats, trials, and persecution he pronounced, "I have a dream". His dream was for the future. It was positive. Many people looked at his attitude and proclaimed that he was a dreamer, and that he was crazy. However, to the masses who followed him, his dream became one that penetrated skin color and pierced the hearts of thousands. About half a century later, no one can look back and say that he was not effective.



He sold millions in the future generations on his "dream"...what he really sold was a contagious positive attitude. It has been said by a well-known motivator, "It's your Attitude rather than you're your Aptitude that ultimately determines your Altitude". Very simple, you can become what you put your mind to. In all the studies done there is no evidence to say your knowledge or ability will give you the upper hand. The key to success is positive attitudes. There are many people with minimal abilities achieving greater heights than people with far greater knowledge or learning. Attitude has been called the spiraling effect.



This is the effect "like minded" people have on each other. It's been said; "Birds of a feather flock together". It can work both in the positive and the negative directions. If you have ever been in an environment where people hated their jobs and talked bad about their employer then you know how that can affect attitude. It can feel like a thousand pound weight weighing you down. On the flip side, groups of very successful people create more wealth for each other, as their positive attitudes create a form of synergy. In contrast the other group creates a negative synergy and the group becomes much less effective. It's the old saying the poor get poorer and the rich get richer. I believe they do it because of their own attitudes.

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