Do you know why most people never achieve their lifelong dreams?  I believe there is one distinct reason why people settle for mediocre and that is simply the fear of the first step. Why they are afraid doesn’t matter, all that matters is getting past that initial step. Realize this one key concept: the first time is always the toughest, after the first attempt is under one’s belt the consecutive ones get progressively easier!  Very simple, very to the point, just the way I like it!

People tend to look at the whole ordeal as one super-tough, ultra massive juggernaut of a mammoth abstract mess!

In my last article I talked about simplifying and making things concrete.  This article continues that approach by taking a major undertaking in your life, a mammoth project that scares the living hell out of you, and approaching it from another angle. Like I said before, I am not in the business to create new ground breaking concepts; I am here to take what already exists and simplify it. I am here to get you to think differently because the old way doesn’t work; if it did you wouldn’t be here…

Here is my concrete portion of the article.  This is a concept that everyone understands and many people have used this example before. 

I bet many have seen a baby begin to walk for the first time.  I have watched all three of my children with this undertaking, and all three times it was shear amazement to me. The determination they show is astounding and the lack of fear is amazing. If you stop to think about it, here is a being that experiences new things every single day of their waking lives. Put yourself in their shoes for a moment and think about the first time you push yourself up onto your own two feet. I can imagine comparing it to an adult standing on the very top of a 6 foot step ladder with nothing to hold on to.  Picture yourself doing that and tell me it doesn’t create some sort of anxiety!  Now imagine falling off that ladder and having the drive to do it all over again until you succeed!

Why would a baby show no fear in doing something as huge as standing up for the first time, not knowing the consequences of falling or possibly getting hurt? Are they super brave, and laugh in the face of danger?

No, I don’t think babies are brave, I think they just don’t know any better and lucky for them, ignorance is bliss!  Their ignorance to life is their key to bravery in that they simply lack the reference to the dreaded “fear of failure” that cripples so many adults in the world.

Our gift of awareness, our ability to analyze our thoughts, is also our Achilles Heel!

Our unconscious mind records every single event in our lives and it records how we reacted to those events as well. The problem is if we fail to consciously define whether our reaction was indeed the one we intended we could end up setting ourselves up for disaster in the future. A baby hasn’t developed that habit, at least not yet…

So, you’re an adult who has dreams (we all do) but you’re too damn scared to do anything about it.  Now what? 

1. First off, if anyone is telling you that you can’t do it, ditch them! They are a cancer and they need to go, period! They are not in your best interest and all they are doing is projecting their own fears on to you. Misery breeds company…
2. Second, stop thinking how scary the whole idea is.Really, what the hell is so scary about pursuing your dreams? Are you afraid you might actually succeed? Wow, what a shame that would be, to actually live your dreams… [Insert sarcasm here!]
3. Next, determine the very first thing you need to do to get started and do it!Don’t be a wimp and hide like usual. You’ve been there and you know inside it doesn’t work…
4. Once you get started on a new venture, or learning a new skill, pat yourself on the back! You have just bypassed probably 95% of the rest of the world who are content sitting on their butts and complaining how the “doers” are doing it wrong anyway!

Remember this and recite it to yourself every single day while you’re working away diligently at you’re goals, “The first time is always the toughest!”

Thanks,

Gerry

Have you ever bought a software program to simplify your life only to give up on it because it’s too complicated to use?  There are many things that are supposed to “simplify” our lives, but when you stop to think about it, all they do is add a higher level of sophistication.  This was a frustrating concept to me for quite some time.

I recently finished my book “The Habit Driven Human”, and it is based on exactly what this article is about, simplifying the sophisticated.  Those of you who have read the book, (if not, you’re missing something very powerful) you see how simple I made the concept of achieving one’s goals.  I did not reinvent the wheel; all I did was take some solid fundamental principles of goal setting and rearranged them to simplify the concept. After reading my book, some have commented to me that they had never looked at goal setting from that angle before.  I think the reason no one has noticed my interpretation before was because we all tend to overlook the obvious, most simplistic methods because we have somehow been conditioned to associate simplicity with ineffectiveness.  As a matter of fact, I believe the concept of simplicity to be completely the opposite. (Remember K.I.S.S., Keep It Simple Stupid!)

I have begun moving in that direction of simplicity and I am making it sort of my mantra…

“Seek simplicity within the complication, because we tend to be more productive and creative in that state of mind.” – Gerry Ayers

I think everyone could benefit from this idea, by seeking ways to simplify by taking a step back and looking at our daily lives, and really take notice of how abstract many things really can be.  Chip and Dan Heath talk about the difference between concrete and abstract ideas and why concrete ideas become more “sticky” to people in their book “Made To Stick”.  They compare two concepts, the word truth and the painting of the Mona Lisa.  Below is a paraphrased concept from the book, “Made To Stick”.

When asked to think about the Mona Lisa, the actual painting pops into your head.  When someone asks you to think about the definition of the word Truth, you have to develop that abstract word into a series of past experiences and try to develop a solid picture in your mind to describe your interpretation of the word.  Which way seems easier to remember, more “sticky”, the painting or a definition of a word? 

So how do we make our world easier to manage? How do we simplify the over-complicated?

First, step back and get the whole picture, the forest if you will.  What is the gist of it?  Can you describe it in 10 words or less?  Forget about details, what is the general idea of it?

“You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother.”- Albert Einstein

Next, once you have the general idea and can explain it to grandma, try to associate it with something you already have mastered.  (Think Mona Lisa)

Example:  For a long time, I used the SMART method of goal setting and would spend hours planning my goals out.  It was extremely sophisticated and any engineer would be proud of the level of detail it showed.  It was a work of art, something to marvel at, the problem was, fundamentally is sucked! It was not very functional as the shear level of complication would hinder its true purpose; accomplishing my goals.

After several failed attempts and growing frustrations with the SMART goal setting routine, I realized there had to be a better way.  The SMART method proved to be rather dumb in my eyes and then it dawned on me that the focus was on the “system” rather than the results the system needed to deliver.  I was focusing on the means to the end rather than on the end itself.

“Don’t get bogged down in busywork. Don’t get caught up in activity.  Focus on accomplishment. It doesn’t matter what you do as much as it matters what you get done.”-Larry Winget

That very shift in view point spawned a whole new outlook on things for me. I began to focus more on what I want, and what is the simplest way to get there!

Another example ties into an article I wrote some time ago: Waiting for the Perfect Time.  The idea behind this article is to first get started and then figure out the details later.  That is plain and simple, and is extremely effective.  Waiting to create a plan and make sure the time is perfect is abstract, there is nothing to grasp a hold of and take off running.  If I was still in the abstract “waiting” mindset I would have never accomplished the “28 day challenge”, or started my “14 week challenge” and I would have never written my book.  Waiting for the perfect time is sophisticated, abstract, and hard for your mind to grasp and in turn hinders progress.

My simple method to eliminate sophistication in your life:

1. Always focus on the end results, what is it you want to accomplish?
2. What is the one action you can take right now to get started?
3. Take that action right now.
4. Develop and perfect the plan that “grandma can understand” only after you get started.
5. The end is all that matters, how we get there doesn’t.

Thanks again.

Gerry

Welcome to Greatness Inside Out!

The reason why mental conditioning is important for everyone and what this site will offer you in 30 seconds or less!

Many have compared the human mind to a computer.  Our unconscious minds execute mini programs to function in our daily lives without having to be aware of it (habits).

The problem is…

Very few control what programs (habits) are stored within.  On top of that many people fail to realize they indeed have bad programming…uh oh.

The good news is…

That since you can be programmed haphazardly, you can be programmed consciously with programs (habits) that work for you not against.

Indeed good news right???

There you go, the importance of mental conditioning in less than 30 seconds!

Where do we start?

At the beginning of course!!

Step 1:

Go check out my book “The Habit Driven Human” and BUY IT!  It’s only $10 bucks, but it is jam packed with great worksheets and excellent systematic approaches to putting your dream achievements on autopilot so you have a greater possibility in succeeding in them.

If you aren’t willing to spend $10 bucks or like to “try it” before you buy it, I do offer a snippet of the foundational worksheet and system for free.  The only catch is you must share the link to my ebook on twitter or facebook before you can download it. 

“My book is a definite baseline to getting control of your mind. By controlling the habits you develop at the grass roots level you increase your chances of success tenfold!” – Gerry Ayers

Step 2:

A few simple “tweaks” in your life on a daily basis will yield huge, positive results.  Check out these posts to get a jump start on “tweaking” your life for the better!

• Procrastination
• Stepping out of your comfort zone
• Developing Principles to Make Decision Making Easier
• No one can make you quit, you make that choice
• Develop your key principles that make your decision process automatic
• Develop the 4 key attributes to mental toughness
• Develop the fighter mind to aid in your daily life
• How to create confidence
• How to stop limiting yourself
• Stop waiting and start doing!

Step 3:

Now, head on over to my resources page and check out some other great products that will help you in your quest for greatness.

For you athletes:

I want you to specifically look at The Renegade Mindset For Fighters link. This program will help any athlete by teaching you simple, effective tools that you can use before, during, and after competition.

Read My Review, As I Personally Use This Product!

Another great product is by my friend Dickie White, who happens to also be my weight trainer.

You can read all the articles to date in the 14 week challenge series. These are written while I train for my power lifting competition in November, 2011

His products are highly effective!

Non-Athletes:

Check out TACFIT Warrior by Scott Sonnen as it is incredible.  If you have heard of the P90X craze and are toying with buying it, I would tell you to check out TACFIT warrior first.  This is comparable to P90X but offers a mental training advantage as well (more bang for your buck!)

Step 4:

Hop on over to Facebook and “Like” the greatnessinsideout fan page and tell your friends:

http://www.facebook.com/greatnessinsideout.com

and twitter:

http://twitter.com/gerryayers

Sign up for RSS feeds as well.

Thanks everyone,

Gerry

Hello everyone, I am proud to announce my Ebook – “The Habit Driven Human” is finally complete.  I have decided to keep the cost down because I really want everyone to have the opportunity to utilize this powerful book. Visit “The Habit Driven Human” or click the picture for more details.

Here I am 3 weeks into my weight training challenge and I have begun to notice major

Week 3 Progress

progress.  Now, I haven’t noticed much in the appearance department but I definitely feel a lot stronger in my everyday life.  For the last decade I have been bothered with a “bad back” and thought it was something I had to live with.

Boy was I wrong.

A major portion of my training has been in developing my core strength (abs, lower back, and hips) which I always believed I was pretty solid there!

Nope, not even close.

Over the years I developed the habit that whenever I bent over to pick something up I would need to support my upper body by leaning one elbow on my knee to eleviate the pressure on my lower back.  That has begun to cease as I have been developing confidence in my back.  Proof of a solid core being important, in Week 1, one exercise was to do decline sit ups.  This exercise has you lie on a bench where your feet are higher than you head and perform a sit-up.  I tried it for the first time and the pressure on my lower back was immense.  If I would have pushed through it, injury would have resulted.  I let my trainer Dickie know about it and we substituted an exercise that gave the same results with less back pressure.  2 weeks later and I did 2 sets of 12 repetitions of decline sit-ups with zero pain or pressure on my lower back.

I now believe a good indicator of a weak core is the old “support your weight by resting your elbow on your knee when you bend over” maneuver.  If you catch yourself doing this, then maybe it’s time to investigate strengthening your core.

I want to share some numbers with you on my progress in gaining strength.  I wanted to give percentages of increase (or decrease) in strength progress but there was one problem I had to overcome.  Sometimes the weight would increase, but the number of repetitions I completed would be different.  How would you compare the two numbers if they had two variables that are different?  The answer was to find a common denominator, a formula that would make the numbers apples to apples.

I found a site that when you input the weight and repetitions would give you a general “maximum” weight for 1 repetition.  You can find the site HERE.

Since I am competing in the “Dead Lift” and “Bench Press” exercises, it only makes sense to make those the core routines and base the rest of the exercises around supporting them.

The Dead Lift requires strong legs, hips, and lower back (now you can see the importance on a solid core).  Here are the progressive numbers so far:

Dead Lift

Week 1:  190lbs. for 8 reps = 236lbs. for 1 rep.

Week 2:  230lbs. for 8 reps = 286lbs. for 1 rep.

Week 3:  300lbs. for 3 reps = 318lbs. for 1 rep.

Week 1 – Week 2 = 286lbs. – 236lbs. = 50lbs./286lbs. = 17.5% increase

Week 2 – Week 3 = 318lbs. – 286lbs. = 32lbs./318lbs. = 10% increase.

Overall to date – 318lbs. – 236lbs. = 82lbs./318lbs. = 25.8% increase

Bench Press

Week 1:  160lbs. for 8 reps = 199lbs. for 1 rep.

Week 2:  170lbs. for 4 reps = 186lbs. for 1 rep.

Week 3:  195lbs: for 2 reps* = 201lbs. for 1 rep.

*This weight is actually a Personal Record, as I have never lifted more than 185lbs. in my entire life!  Did I mention the bench press was my weakness?

Week 1 – Week 2 = 186 -199 = -13lbs./186lbs. = -7% decrease (What happened here?)

Week 2 – Week 3 = 201lbs. – 186lbs. = 15lbs./201lbs = 7.4% increase (That’s better!)

Overall to date – 201lbs. – 199lbs. = 2lbs./201lbs. = .009% increase (It may be a small one, but it’s still an increase!)

I believe the progress issues I have with the bench are the combination of 2 problems.  One is out of my control, but really insignificant compared to the one I can indeed control.

#1 Issue:  I have long arms!  This physical attribute will create a bump in the road of progress for anyone.  I have to move the weight further to go through the complete motion, thus using more energy (short arms are an advantage).  I believe this to be highly insignificant compared to the next anomoly.

#2 Issue:  My own mind!  I have shied away from bench pressing since high school.  I am not sure why, other than results never seemed to come no matter how hard I trained at it.  I know one problem I had before that was brought to my attention was my hands were not spread wide enough. (narrow grip puts more emphasis on triceps rather than pectoral (chest) muscles.  Now that I have finally moved more weight than ever before I believe I will begin to make quicker progress over the next couple of weeks.

So by overcoming issue #2 I believe will ultimately make #1 totally irrelevant in my opinion.  (The mind will always trump the body!)

As you can see this challenge is indeed a mental conditioning experiment for me just as much as a physical one.

Thanks,

Gerry

The Beginning!

Making Progress!

Week 3 Progress

Back again, Week 2 of the 14 Week Challenge toward completing my power lifting

Making Progress!

competition goal on November 12, 2012.  The first week’s lift went very well and was basically a “warm-up” to get a feel where the weights should be.  In typical Gerry fashion I pushed myself harder than I probably should have, but it’s a habit I obtained from wrestling many years ago.  I experienced a little soreness on the next day, but still went for a 3 mile run.  The second workout of Week 1 saw lower energy and tiredness, but the workout is designed for that.  It was a lower intensity lighter workout who’s sole intention was to get some reps in, not for setting records.  After the second workout of Week 1 I had 4 days off to recover.  I ran at least 3 miles each day except for Saturday.  Saturday I was extremely tired and sluggish and had to even take a nap in the early afternoon. The rest of the weekend went by and I recovered fairly quickly.

Heading into Week 2, Day 1 I felt very strong and very motivated.  I lifted some pretty heavy weights and I felt I made a ton of progress in one week.  My weight hasn’t changed as I am hovering around 202-203 lbs., but I feel I am getting leaner as well.  I was seriously amazed at what one week can do.

I have dedicated to 2 days a week for this program, which is about all one needs to do in lifting.  Common wisdom used to push for 4-5 days hitting the weights, but not with “strong man” style weight training.

As I figured up front, the routine only takes me an hour to get through it (including a 5 minute warm up).  So I am only training in the gym for 2 hours a week, but they are a VERY productive 2 hours.

So far my routines have consisted of actually doing the lifts I am competing in (Dead Lift and Bench Press) as the core, with the remaining exercises being mainly support exercises.  Plus, tack on a few exercises to work on the opposite muscle groups so I do not get disproportional.  All in all each session only consists of 7 different exercises that take care of a full body work out.

Week 1 and Week 2 have consisted of mainly getting a feel for the weights and to get reps in and focus on solid techniques.  Week 3 will see a decline in reps and an increase in weight.  Remember I talked about heavy weights with lower reps build more muscle mass faster than lighter weights and higher reps.  This tactic works even better with me, because I will probably shed more time off my weight training.

Mark Sisson

I also want to discuss my diet that I have currently been on for roughly 5 weeks now.  On July 10th I made the choice to adopt a total primal diet and primal lifestyle.  I spent a lot of time researching what the lifestyle consists of and how to incorporate it.  I visited many websites that were very informative, but I just couldn’t find that exact place to trust.  Most of the other one’s felt sort of gimmicky and felt like they had something to hide.  Then I stumbled on a site that helped me make my mind up and switch right then and there.  The site was www.marksdailyapple.com and the man behind the site is Mark Sisson who not only preaches the diet, he preaches a lifestyle as well. The other beauty thing is he practices exactly what he preaches and everything about his site is transparent.

So, check out his site, and I will keep you posted again next week with a follow up picture and I’ll put some numbers up to show you my progress.  As always thank you to Dickie White at Iron Works Gym for all your help.

Thanks,

Gerry

Week 1: The Beginning!

Week 2: Making Progress!

Image via Wikipedia

Why are so many of us procrastinators?  Are we lazy?  Usually not.  Are we bad people? No.  So why do so many of us push off the tasks we know need to be completed in order to forge ahead?

These questions have been on my mind for quite some time.  I recently wrote Habits Can Make or Break You: The Definitive Guide to Success which touched on the system I use to create the habits that will support achieving my goals.  I feel it is a simple, effective way to finally move forward.  But I fear there may be a problem…

Many will never take the first step to incorporate the system, and will continue to run on the hamster wheel of life spinning into oblivion.  Others will jump in with both feet and completely change their routine because the “system” is the only way, only to lose steam after only a few days or weeks.

Whatever the scenerio, both end up in a crash and burn fashion, leaving people with a bad taste in their mouth.  They blame the system rather than blaming their behaviors. Procrastination is a powerful HABIT that effects many people and robs a lifetime of dreams.

Why do so many possess this habit?  Does procrastination really serve a purpose in our lives, or is it a bad habit like smoking?

I believe procrastination has resulted from a combination of simply not knowing the next step and either a fear of success or failure.  Couple that with mis-prioritized poorly planned tasks and it is no wonder procrastination is rampant.

Even though I have developed the habit of working from a list every single day, I still find myself putting off some things on that list.  After reflecting on the tasks that constantly get put off I have determined that every task falls into the following categories of why they get passed over.

• They are too vague in description: For example, “Work on finances” is a task on my list today.  Every time I glance at it, it creates a mild discomfort like something is missing.  It’s painful, and it will probably not get completed.
• They may be insignificant and unworthy:  Sometimes a task may not be worth even doing at all.  Many times we get caught up in insignificant “busy” work that does not bring us value, and does not move us forward .  Often times these tasks are someone else’s emergency due to poor planning, and you are their solution.  Their emergency becomes your emergency.
• A prior mistake was made:  Sometimes we procrastinate on certain tasks because we have made a mistake on a similar task before.  Maybe we were disciplined harshly for it, or it cost us something of value and we have become gun shy.
• Just plain overwhelmed by expecting to much:  This is a big one, and is usually my main problem. “Biting off more than you can chew” is the best way to describe it.  I tend to over-estimate how much I can finish in a day.  If I have too many tasks, I revert to doing the minor “quick” tasks and push off the big tasks I really should be focusing on.

Now that I have finished my 28 Day Challenge, I have decided to undertake another fitness goal that is way outside my comfort zone.

All throughout my adolescent athletic career, lifting was one of the weakest of my many undertakings.  I was never excited about lifting and only did it under pressure from my various coaches.  Even when I did enter the weight room, it was never consistent and sporadic at best.

The main reason it never stuck was because at that point in time (1991-1994) lifting was done with the “muscle isolation” technique.  A majority of exercises that were utilized focused on a single joint movement to isolate a specific muscle (think arm curls and leg curls).  I think the theory behind it was that the more attention given to a specific muscle made it grow stronger, faster.  Now, I am not a lifting expert, so it could have been partially true because some of my peers had great success with it.

The problem I had with it, was that it consumed a lot of time to work in this focus.  It would require me to lift 4-5 times a week for nearly 2 hours each day (8-10 hours a week in the gym?).  I really did not want to spend that much time in the gym so I opted not to. Well that led to me being uncomfortable in the gym even to this day.

A little over a year ago I ran into a great friend and a highly motivating person.  His name is Dickie White and he owns Ironworks Gym in Binghamton, NY. I met him when I began training Mixed Martial Arts at CNYMMA since they share the same facility.

Dickie is a highly educated individual in developing huge amounts of strength. Plus the beauty thing is he practices what he preaches, as he has dominated his first 3 amateur fights in MMA by ending the bouts all within the first round.  He knows what he is talking about, not just because he read a book, but because he trains his own body, as well as the bodies of many very successful wrestlers from the junior high school level all the way up to the collegiate and U.S. Olympic and World team levels.  He has also developed a few programs that can be purchased and used on your own if you cannot get a chance to train with him personally. One program in particular was developed with Tamden “The Barn Cat” McCrory who fought and dominated in UFC 96 and is currently staging a comeback.  As a matter of fact I promote one of his products on the greatnessinsideout Resources Page.  (Check it out!)

Now that we have Dickie’s background out of the way (which is quite extensive), I want to talk about the program he has developed for me.  I am a pretty busy person who has limited time (I am a husband and the father of 3 children), and limited patience as well.  I like things to move along quickly and really need to move along efficiently or I get impatient. The program Dickie developed consists of lifting 2 days a week, and each day has between 6-7 exercises that work out the ENTIRE body, and get this, it only takes an hour to complete!  Talk about quick and effective, right up my ally!  So how is this possible? How can you get a total body workout with only 2 hours of weekly gym time and be ready for a POWER LIFTING COMPETITION in only 14 weeks?

The answer is extremely simple.  It’s called multi-joint exercises that utilize very heavy lifting.  The old paradigm of muscle isolation and a lot of reps are over.  Dickie explained to me that lifting something very heavy even just one time is the equivalent of lifting lighter stuff 3-5 times (even more efficient, awesome!).  Weight is the key, more so than the quantity of repetitions.  Of course the technique has to be correct as well so I don’t risk injury.

Some of the tools of the trade consist of sandbags, medicine balls, atlas stones, and even chains and giant rubber bands!  Add to that the flipping of giant tractor tires and it is quickly apparent that this style is totally outside the realm of what most deem “normal” weight training.  Some of the old fashioned exercises are still highly effective like bench presses, squats, and dead lifts and really are still the staple of this type of training.

I would like everyone to follow me over the next 14 weeks as I will be posting my progress on here weekly (including pics).  Also check out Dickie’s programs and buy them, or if you live near Binghamton, NY, schedule some time to talk with him (you can reach him here).  Most of all, create a goal that is WAY outside your comfort zone, something that scares the hell out of you and then do it.  Also read my article on the power of Habit Forming and you will thank me later.

Please comment on your comfort zone goal below or “Like” my Facebook page and tell the community what your going to accomplish this year and then DO IT!

Thanks,

Gerry

Welcome back everyone!  I have been very busy the last couple of months and have put writing on the back burner.

Yesterday (8/7/2011) I finished up my self proclaimed “28 Day Challenge”.

Mark Rockwell

This challenge was basically me training for the Kelly LeBare 5K Race. Roughly 28 days ago my long time friend Mark Rockwell challenged me on Facebook to compete in this race.  He is having a fantastic journey, (click on his name above and READ it. It’s a true story of guts and determination!) and has motivated me to step out of my physical comfort zone to shock my system. (It couldn’t have come at a better time!)

Stepping out of your comfort zone

I have never been a big time runner, and my view of running was something you did to train for wrestling. Short sprints, and running to failure and exhaustion was the basis of running. Sure, I ran 5Ks during the triathlons I competed in, but I never took running seriously, and never trained consistently at it.  This was going to be a major shift in my physical paradigm, and really required a different way of thinking from me.  (Thus the shift in comfort zone).

SMART goals are not as smart as your habits.

Along with this 28 day challenge I decided to try a mental challenge as well.  I realized there is a correlation to achieving goals and forming supporting habits.  Now, this is by no means a new idea and the goal setting “experts” have been talking about habits and goals for quite some time.  I believe these experts just delivered the idea in the wrong order. I think the traditional concept of SMART goal setting is too complicated and clunky to be successful.  In addition to the “clunkyness”, I feel it assumes that once the idea and the steps are identified, it will be done on shear “WILL”.  Willpower is an exhaustible resource in my eyes because forcing yourself to do something will eventually return less and less positive results as time goes on.  (Think New Years Resolutions!)  I believe cultivating the habits that will support your goal pursuit are far more effective than any super complicated goal achievement plan.

Worry about perfecting only after you get started!

So I decided to put my theory to the test by creating a 28 day challenge.  I did not spend any time planning or structuring it.  I just started doing whatever felt right and adjusted my course to fit my needs.  I basically made it up as I went along and here is what I discovered.

Habits are solely the greatest tool you can cultivate in order to achieve success!

I have been fighting a losing battle to an addiction to tobacco for the majority of my life. Addictions are basically habits coupled with physical dependence.  I wanted to put the theory of using a habit to change a habit to the test and decided to consciously quit nicotine and replace it with exercise by linking both habits in my mind and tracking the results daily.

Parallel to my “habit for habit” theory, I began testing another habit theory based on task

My Daily List

planning.  Have you ever heard the saying, “Plan your work and work you plan”?  If not, it’s extremely powerful to spend a few minutes planning out your day in advance.  By planning I mean figuring out the most important tasks that move you further in your life’s goals.  I know we all have daily tasks that require our attention, but many end up making those the bulk of their day and never make the important “moving forward” tasks a priority. According to Anthony Robbins, ”Most people fail in life because they major in minor things.”

Every morning I woke up, just after brewing my morning coffee, I would sit down and write down my daily task list.  At first, I had to consciously remind myself to do this, to put pen to paper and “think about the important stuff”. Luckily is was very easy to do, and it was fun for me to do it (I am a notorious list maker by nature).  After about 6-7 days I realized that instinctively I was reaching for my list without even thinking about it.  I became very excited that a positive habit could take hold so quickly.  I attribute the success to a couple of factors:

1. Consistent, daily practice of the habit:  I did it directly after making my coffee (also a habit) and…
2. I would reward myself by checking that off the list every day.  (Habit forming should be part of your daily list of tasks to do.

After the second full week of my daily list habit, I felt I needed a “recap”, a review of my progress, so I decided to incorporate a weekly review/look ahead habit.  This habit has been quick to develop because I think it “piggy backs” the list habit and gets absorbed and included.  (Piggy backing may be another strategy that I am going to experiment with). The reviews allow me to track my progress, and it sparks ideas for the future.  It essentially gets me to plan the future by recalling what I finished in the past.  While reviewing and planning, I can begin to see if any future habits will need to be created, or quite possibly eliminating bad habits I already possess.

I can safely say that 28 days later I have developed 4 distinct positive habits that, although in infancy stage and require daily conditioning, are indeed on auto-pilot and support the behaviors I will need to succeed in any goal I decide to pursue.

In summary, when your goal has been decided on:

1. Begin by working from a list every day. (First and greatest habit in my opinion, and will support any goal you have in life!)
2. Determine what habits (unconscious behavior) will best support your goals.  If you have bad habits (smoking, drinking, junk food), consciously replace that habit with a healthy positive habit (running, walking, biking).  All you have to do is mentally tell yourself, “I want to replace smoking with running, and tell yourself that every time you find yourself craving a smoke, or you decide to feel like running.
3. Write those habits on your daily list, and cross them off every time you complete them. (Don’t forget to include the “list habit” as well!)
4. Create the weekly review/look ahead habit and do it once a week.
5. Most of all enjoy the progress, and the challenge.  Also remember to focus on the big picture and if you hick-up one day acknowledge it, blow it off and move on. These are lifelong habits and one day here and there are not going to destroy the grand scheme of things.