Mind Set 7 Change is Scary

Your mind’s humming along not even thinking about the things that have become your daily habits (whether good or bad habits).  You grab a doughnut with your coffee at the service station on your way to work. In the lunch room someone left some brownies out on the table to share. You pop one in your mouth. You meant to go to the gym this morning, but you just didn’t get up in time. And tonight, well there’s that great movie on TV. I can’t go to the gym tonight.

These habits become so automatic that your mind never clicks in. And it likes it that way. It can be lazy.

Then you present that word “change” to your brain and it freaks out.

“What? I can’t change. That’s too hard. I don’t have time. I’m too busy.”

Whoa, did you see your brain put on the brakes? Why would it do that?

First of all, a process that you go through regularly becomes a habit when you no longer have to think about each step of the process. The steps are in your subconscious and you can do them and be thinking about something else. So this habit seems very easy.

As an example, the process of driving a stick shift car becomes a habit. I could easily drive a manual transmission car but when it came to teaching our daughter to drive one, I gave her the wrong instructions. I told her to let out on the clutch, give it some goes and go. The car died every time she tried that.

So I switched places with her and analyzed what I actually did to drive this car. I gave it some gas, then let out on the clutch and it drove along just fine. Do you see where my instructions were wrong? I had to give it some gas before letting out on the clutch. When our daughter performed the process with the correct instructions, she could drive this manual transmission car just fine.

Driving this car had become so automatic to me, so in my subconscious, that I had forgotten the steps in my conscious mind.

Therefore, to establish a new habit you have to consciously think about each step along the way. Your lazy brain has to wake up and think for awhile. But not for long.

Simply practice the new steps regularly for 3 weeks and all the thinking will go subconscious again. The new healthy habit will now seem easy because you can perform it and think about something else. Your brain can be lazy again.

Remember, it only takes 3 weeks to establish a new habit.

Three weeks goes by really fast. That investment of time in building healthy habits will pay great dividends in your future. You will stay productive and be able to avoid wasting a lot of your time at home sick in bed or sitting in doctor’s or dentist’s offices, or worse yet in hospitals.

So brain there goes the excuse, “I don’t have time”.

For awhile you will need to consciously plan ahead. For example, prepare extra food when you fix your evening meal. Then pack it in a cool pack to take your healthy breakfast, lunch and snack with you the next day. After your morning workout at the gym, eat your healthy breakfast. Those death food snacks on the table at work won’t even tempt you because you have healthy food to eat that really satisfies you. And you’re feeling so comfortable in those new smaller dress sizes.

Although preparing your meals ahead may seem like it will add to your busy schedule, you will probably find your day going more smoothly partly because you feel better and can be more productive. But also you don’t have to spend time running to the store or restaurant or fast food place to buy something. You’re making more efficient use of your time.

Ok brain, we’ve exploded that myth about being too busy. Besides “too busy” can be the fast track to degeneration and death. Get off of that track now.

Before long you automatically plan ahead to carry these healthy meals and snacks with you. Your brain stops complaining because it can be lazy again. You have established a new healthy habit.

Who said change was hard? Shut up brain.