Finding the time to take on a new habit : IF-THEN strategy

My biggest problem is that I have NO IDEA when Im going to find the TIME to ……

THIS is something we need to openly discuss because lets face it – its true for most of us (if not ALL of us)

When we want to take on something new for ourselves – like meditating, going for a walk, reading, or even just remembering to drink a damn glass of water… the truth is, making a lifestyle change is really, really, really challenging.

Thats not just me saying that – the statistics show that depending on what you are trying to change there is a 50-80% chance you will fail, most likely within the first month.

Pretty grim – right?!

Great, thanks science – you buzz killing downer.

BUT here is the good new today – this week I discovered the work of behaviour change expert Peter Gollwitzer, a professor of psychology at New York University. He has developed a technique called “IF-THEN” planning that helps us work out how we can **bridge the gap between what we say we are going to do – and what we actually do.

**I got excited about sharing this with you here because its SO SIMPLE & involves 3 steps:

Basically you have to break down and specify :

1. The action you intend to take

2. When and were you will do it

3.What you will do when you slip up

**Here is an example :

IF I wake up at 6:00am, when I wake up, THEN I will stretch and listen to my meditation app in my bedroom for 20 minutes.

IF I need to sleep in longer or the kids are in my bed or wake up before me, THEN I will stretch and listen to my meditation app at work on my lunch break.

IF its the weekend & I am not at work, THEN I will stretch and meditate in my bedroom while my two year old has his nap and my five year old is having ipad time.

IF my day has been crazy & I still havent stretched or meditated, THEN I will stretch and meditate in my bedroom as soon as the kids are in bed.

The reason I really love this, is that most people dont have a regular and scheduled life that operates like clock work – so when we plan to do something at the same time every day- its likely we are setting ourselves up to fail.

This strategy is supporting ourselves with the backup plans we often need to follow through…

Definitely worth a try AND having this clarity will also help you request and share the support you need from the people around you that might also be impacted by this…without clarity its easy to let someone convince you to just sit on the couch or make other plans.

This supports you in prioritising yourself and being REALLY clear within yourself about what that means, what it looks like and what you actually have committed to doing.

Hope this helps!!

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Finding the time to take on a new habit : IF-THEN strategy

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