How to succeed in 30 days

Suppose you want to develop a new habit, for example, adhere to the exercise program or get rid of the habit to suck on "cancer sticks". We all know that most difficult to start and follow a new habit the first few weeks. Once overcome the force of inertia — to continue becomes much easier.

However, we often we exhaust ourselves just thinking about the beginning of something new as the need resistant to change once and for all — even before we start to do it.

To make a serious change and stick with new habits every day for the rest of your life seems unmanageable task, especially if your current habits are pulling in the other direction. The more I think about the change as something permanent, the longer you stay in inaction.



But what if to think about the change as a temporary phenomenon — say, 30 days — and then we can go back to their old habits? It does not seem so heavy. Exercise every morning for 30 days, and then throw them. Maintain cleanliness on the desktop for 30 days, and after that hammer. Readers for an hour a day for 30 days and then go back to the evenings in front of the TV.

You can do that? Of course, you need to have some discipline and effort, but not as large as when making a life change. Any loss of comfort is just a temporary inconvenience. You can count the days until freedom. These 30 days will bring you concrete benefits. Not so bad. Everyone will be able to withstand. It's just a month of your life.

What happens after the 30-day experiment?

First, you go far enough to form new habits, and to follow it will be much easier than in the beginning.

Second, during this time, will weaken or disappear the dependence on old habits.

Thirdly, behind you will have 30 days of success that will strengthen your faith in your own strength and ability to go further.

And fourth, you will see the result of those 30 days, which will give information about what you can expect if you continue to live with a new habit. You will be better informed and can make sound long-term solution.

Consequently, once you get to the end of your 30-day trial period, your ability to leave the habit permanently will increase substantially. But even if you are not yet ready to make a constant habit, you can extend the duration of the experiment to 60 or 90 days. The longer the probationary period, the easier it will be to fix the habit of a lifetime.

Another advantage of this approach isthat it allows you to check new habits when you are not sure whether to leave them forever. Maybe you want to try a new diet, but fear that it will be too difficult for you.

In this case, try it for 30 days and then make conclusions. There is no shame to stop if it becomes clear that the new habit doesn't suit you. This is the same as to use the trial version program for 30 days and then delete it, if it didn't fit. No harm or violations of the law.

Here are a few examples of how I used a 30-day experiment to develop new habits:

1. In the summer of 1993 I decided to try vegetarianism. I didn't want to become a vegetarian the rest of your life, but read about the great benefits of vegetarianism for health, so I put a 30-day experiment to gain experience. By the time I was in sports, my health and weight were normal, but my College diet consisted of a large number of hamburgers from fast food.

Become a vegetarian for 30 days was much easier than I expected — I would even say that in this there was nothing difficult and I never felt deprived. After a week I have noticed an increase in their energy level and ability to concentrate, and my head became much clearer. After 30 days I did not have the slightest doubt about whether to continue in the same spirit. This step seemed much more complicated than it really is.

2. In January 1997 I decided to try to go from vegetarianism to veganism. While vegetarians can eat eggs and dairy products, vegans do not eat any animal products. I developed the desire to become vegan forever, but I didn't think I could dare to take this step.

How could I give up my beloved cheese omelet? This diet seemed too strict — even to fanaticism. But I was interested to see what would come of it. So I spent another 30-day experiment. Then I thought I would be able to pass the probationary period, but, frankly, did not expect to continue after graduation.

Well, I lost three kilos in the first week, mostly in the bathroom, as my body was cleansed of the accumulated dairy mucus (I now know why cows 4 stomach to digest it all). I was a little depressed the first few days, but then my level of energy has increased dramatically.

Among other things, my head became clearer than ever before that the reason "came out of the fog"; it seemed that my brain did upgrade the CPU and RAM. However, the biggest change I noticed in terms of endurance.

I lived in Marina del Rey, a suburb of Los Angeles, which usually jogged on the beach near the Santa Monica pier. Noticing that he no longer tired after the five-kilometer runs, I increased the distance to 8 km, then 15 km, and, in the end, ran the marathon (42 km) a couple of years later. Increasing endurance has also helped me to improve my skills match in Taekwondo.

Overall, the benefits were so significant that the food, which I refused, ceased to attract me. So, after this 30-day period, I again without hesitation decided to stick with a new habit, and remains a vegan to this day. For me it was a surprise that after such a long period of animal food that I ate before, no longer appears to me as food at all, so I don't feel any deprivation.

3. In 1997 I decided to exercise every day for an entire year. It was one of my new year's goals. I set the bar to engage in aerobic exercises at least 25 minutes a day, skipping classes Taekwondo, which I visited 2-3 times a week.

This, combined with my new diet, had to raise my physical condition to a new level. I did not want to lose a day, even during illness. But the idea of having to do 365 days without a break was awesome, so I started with a 30-day experiment.

It was not so difficult. At the end of each day I set a new personal record: 8 days, 10 days, 15 days... it just got harder to quit. After 30 days, how could I not continue the 31st and not to set a new personal record? And give up after 250 days was unthinkable.

After the first month, which was established this habit, the rest of the year has passed by inertia. I remember one time in the year I was coming back after the seminar home well after midnight. I had a cold and was very tired, but still 2 in the morning went for a jog in the rain. Someone may think it's stupid, but I was so determined to reach my goal that I didn't let fatigue or illness stop me. I successfully reached the end of the year, without missing a single day.

I even continued to do this for a few weeks next year, and then made the difficult decision to stop. I planned this experiment for one year, expecting to get a result valuable experience, and so it happened.

4. A little more about the diet... a few years Later, after I became a vegan, I decided to try other varieties of vegan diet. I conducted a 30 day experiment with a macrobiotic diet and raw food diet. They were interesting and added new knowledge, but I decided not to follow these diets after the trial period. I have not felt any changes, adhering to a macrobiotic diet.

Although in the case of raw food, I felt a considerable surge of strength, such a diet requires too much effort: I spent a lot of time to cook and buy food. Of course, you can just eat raw fruits and vegetables, but to cook interesting dishes — you need a lot of time and effort. If I had a personal chef, I would probably have followed this diet, because in this case the benefits are undeniable. I spent another 45-day experiment with raw food, but my conclusions remain the same.

If I was diagnosed with a serious disease, such as cancer, I would immediately switched to a diet of raw, "living" food, as I am sure that this is absolutely the best diet for optimal health. I've never felt more healthy than when eating raw food. But it was not easy to follow this diet in practice. However, I have added some ideas and dishes from macrobiotics and raw food to your regular diet.

In Las Vegas there are two restaurants with raw food and I love eating there because all the cooking is done. Thus, these 30-day experiments were successful, and influenced my point of view, although in both cases I deliberately refused to adhere to the new habits. One of the reasons why it is important to stick to a new diet all 30 days of the experiment — the first couple of weeks spent on detoxification and overcoming old habits, so that a clear picture can be obtained not earlier than the third or even the fourth week.

I believe that if you stick to a certain diet less than 30 consecutive days, you simply did not understand. It is impossible to understand, which gives the change of diet, without trying it for yourself.

This method 30-day experiment is ideal for daily habits. I could not use it to generate a habit, which repeated only 3-4 days a week. Although this approach might work, if you stick to a new habit daily for 30 days and then to reduce the number of repetitions in a week. This is exactly the system I use, for example, when starting a new programme of sporting activities. Daily habits to develop much easier.

Here are some other ideas for the 30-day experiments:

  • Reduce TV viewing. Record your favorite programs and store them until the end of the probationary period. One day, my whole family did, and this experiment was very instructive.
  • Refrain from online forums, especially if you feel that you are becoming dependent on them. This will help to break the attachment and will give clearly perceive what benefits does your participation in them (if at all gives). You can always continue after 30 days.
  • Take a shower, the bathroom, shave every day. Yes, YOU don't need it, so tell to whom it may concern.
  • Every day meet someone new. Start a conversation with a stranger.
  • Go for a walk every evening. Every time you go to a new place and have fun — this month will be remembered for a long time!
  • Spend 30 minutes a day for cleaning and organizing your home or office. In sum, it is only 15 hours.
  • Every day post something new on sale at the local flea market. Get rid of unnecessary.
  • Invite on a date someone new every day. If the success rate of invitations will be at least 3% — you will get at least one date on which you can even meet your future mate.
  • If you already have a serious relationship — do partner massage every day. Or agree to do it to each other at a time, 15 each.
  • Give up cigarettes, soda, junk food, coffee or other bad habits.
  • Become a morning person.
  • Write in your personal diary every day.
  • Every day call different relatives, friends or business partners.
  • Do 25 business calls per day in order to prepare the ground for new business. Professional speaker Mike ferry (the Mike Ferry) was doing it 5 days a week for two years, even in the days when led seminars. He argues that this habit helped him to build a business that makes more than $10 000 000 of sales per year. If you do business 1300 calls a year, the business can not go to the mountain, regardless of your sales skills. This habit can be extended to any marketing job, for example daily registration of new links to your site.
  • Daily publish a new article on your blog.
  • Read for one hour every day literature on that topic.
  • Learn one new word a day.
  • Every day go for a long walk.
 

Remember that no one is forced to adhere to any of these habits after 30 days. Think about what will benefit these 30 days by themselves. At the end of the experiment you will be able to assess the experience and results. You will certainly feel your own growth as a result of the obtained experience, even if you decide not to continue.
 

 

Efficient solution to a difficult situation

I don't know what I want

The strength of this approach is its simplicity. Despite the fact that the repetition of certain actions day by day may be less efficient than following a more complicated schedule (a great example of strength training because they require adequate breaks), fix it a daily habit in most cases much easier. When you repeat something every day without breaks, I can't justify skipping one day, or promise yourself to do this later by modifying the schedule.published
 

 

P. S. And remember, only by changing their consumption — together we change the world! ©

Source: vk.com/badpsycho?w=wall-31862851_68633