Making Big Strides With Small Steps

Making Big Strides With Small Steps

Change is a Process…Not an Event

The advent of the new year has come and gone and understandably for many, the allure of creating positive change within our lives begins to wane. Suddenly, the drive to seek more success and fulfillment in our careers, relationships, health, and well-being begins to diminish. Of course, we still want more for ourselves, personally and professionally, it’s just that the effort is hard to sustain, life gets in the way, and results don’t typically occur quick enough, all of which detracts from the once renewed sense of energy we had back in January.  But hears the good news, that is ok because change is a process and not an event. Having the things we want in and for our lives will not happen overnight, research proves it is within the small, subtle (not sizable or drastic) tweaks we make gradually that will add up to the big changes we seek. So don’t give up on those new year resolutions yet, slow and steady actually does win the race. Read on and learn how to make big strides with 4 small steps.

Four Small Steps That Have a Big Impact

 1.   Build On Existing Habits- Add a new beneficial behavior to an existing habit. For example, change your daily walk with your dog to a jog. Use the time carpooling your kids as an opportunity to connect. Add a fruit or vegetable with every meal and snack. Combine your daily mid-afternoon coffee break with calls or brief meet-ups with your team. The point being is to ease the creation of a desired new behavior by coupling it with an existing relatable habit.

2. Create Most Optimal Surroundings– Create a greater likelihood of success with supportive surroundings. So for example, if you want to eat healthier, stock your shelves with nutritious foods, not cookies or chips. Set out your gym clothes the night before so you’re ready to go for your workout tomorrow, put your cell phone in the draw while having dinner with your family or finishing up an important work-related project. In other words, set up your environment to promote what you want. 

3. Anticipate Obstacles– Whether it’s a sudden circumstance that interferes with our well-intended plans to align with our goals (i.e illness, technology challenges, weather conditions, etc.) or the reality that we are only human and naturally our conviction will be tested. Anticipate obstacles and prepare for them with if-then strategies. So for example, if the going gets tough with work aspirations then connect with a mentor or other colleagues that can be of support or inspiration and create accountability. If you know you have a series of commitments that will challenge healthy eating or regular workouts then eat a nutritious, filling snack before heading out or travel with a jump rope should you be out of town or stuck indoors due to inclement weather. Know life can get in the way and plan accordingly.

4. Act. Learn. Build. Repeat.- The key to success is seeing change as a curious experiment and then taking a bunch of small actions steps to point yourself in the direction you want to go. Follow this formula and results are inevitable. 

Do not underestimate the power of taking small steps, not only does its cumulative effects provide tangible markers of success but the cost of failure is comparatively low.  So there’s less on the line to lose allowing us to feel more confident and at ease with implementing change into our lives. Sounds like a win-win to me!

Wishing You Always The Best Of Success

-Holly-

Empowering Your Relationships

Empowering Your Relationships

The Third Entity

February 2018 Insights

In honor of Valentines Day, I’d like to take February’s newsletter to reflect upon enhancing our relationships. Agreeably, Valentines Day has now become a holiday that tends to be more of an excuse to generate maximum profit of flowers/candy/jewelry while often spotlighting for many of us what’s not working so well in some of our relationships. However, with all that being said, none of us live in a bubble, relationships are all around us. Think about your life at home and at work. In virtually every moment of our lives, we are in relationship with significant others, co-workers, friends, family and moreover ourselves. Our lives are a web of connecting relationships. Nurturing and growing positive relationships while effectively managing draining, negative relationships are undeniably a vital aspect that needs to be addressed to ensure greater well-being and success in all areas of our lives. (more…)

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FEAR…the monster under our beds

Live LifeMore Fearlessly

April 2017 Insights

Fear is something with which most of us are well-acquainted with. People are afraid of dying, of being injured, and of being alone since we were created. Though most people would argue that external events and people are what cause us to feel fearful it is actually our thoughts about our external experiences that create our fears. The worries (thoughts) that keep us awake at night, hold us back from opportunities each day. Of course, there are situations that rightfully cause us fear (for example, it is perfectly reasonable to be afraid if you are facing someone with a gun pointed at you) but most of the things that we fear are not life threatening. (more…)

New Beginnings

New Beginnings

Thoughts On Creating New Beginnings

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Spring has sprung! It’s a great time to embrace new beginnings. All around us we witness an awakening of our surroundings, bringing us the perfect climate, literally and figuratively, to create fresh starts and renew our existences. For me spring time screams the inevitability that nothing stays the same. Even though we often feel as if the winter will never end, we suddenly see a budding flower or experience our first warm weather day, reminding us that life is truly cyclical and that all experiences, positive or negative, come to pass. However, unlike the natural ease of the changing seasons, most people don’t strive for new beginnings nor exercise their power to create them. (more…)

Is It Spring Yet?

Is It Spring Yet?

 

 Spring Fever!

 March 2015 Insights

Is it spring yet? It seems many will agree, March is one of the most challenging months of the year. Thirty-one days of yet still cool temps keeping us mostly indoors, bare trees and still less daylight hours, can even get the best of us down. The “winter blues” can hit us particularly hard this time of the year. Hence, it’s no wonder we lose sight of those goals we set forth for ourselves back in January. (more…)