Creating New Habits, Setting Realistic Goals & How Hypnotherapy Can Help
Changing something about yourself can be pretty hard at times. Good intentions and setting goals gets you started, but most of the time the change can start to get challenging. Most people get off to a great start and soon after begin to realize that they are falling back into their old habits or patterns. This can be discouraging, but it doesn’t mean that change is impossible. It takes time, effort, and most of all consistency. Being consistent is key. That’s what creates a habit in the first place! Most of what we do in our daily lives is automatic and very routine. Incorporating the new habit is all about making it a part of your daily routine and being consistent with it until it becomes a habit! Easier said than done. Regardless, taking a pragmatic approach and applying sensible daily goals can get you there. This article aims at giving you a few pointers on how to get started.
With the new year right around the corner many people are looking to change something about themselves moving forward. According to Business Insider magazine approximately 80% of new year’s resolutions will fail by February. What makes most people give up on change is that they don’t stick with it long enough. Change is a process, not and event! It takes time, and there are many different stages a person has to go through in order to make it stick. Everyone is different and change can occur more rapidly in some individuals when compared to others. This is why you should focus solely on yourself and your goals and not concern yourself with how fast it will happen. It really is a process. It may take a few attempts, but it is possible. Setting sensible, realistic goals you can work with is the first step in the process.
Tips To Help You Get Started Last year around this time I wrote an article about applying the SMART acronym method. If you google the SMART method it will give you a great framework on how to set up a realistic action plan. Another key tip that can help with the consistency part of your plan is to initially set the bar really low. For example, if your goal is to incorporate more physical fitness into your daily life, make sure it’s a realistic daily goal. If you are currently sedentary and rarely exercise, planning on running 10k every morning is fairly unrealistic. You may get through the work outs, but the strain and pain you are shocking your body into will surely set you up for failure. Why not start out with a 10-15 minute walk every day? The key is to do it every day. As you build on that, you can increase your goal moderately as you see fit.
Another example I read about setting the bar really low was how a man started exercising by only doing 2 pushups per day. Doing only 2 may seem really low, but he did it every morning. He kept it consistent and did it every day as he got up before he showered. Eventually it became so automatic it was a part of his daily morning routine. It’s not how “big” or “fast” you can go, but more about how consistent you are over a prolonged period of time. Something to keep in mind!
How Hypnosis & Self-Hypnosis Can Help You Along Hypnotherapy can help you along with achieving your goals. It is a great way to look at yourself introspectively and identify self-defeating ideas that you may have built up unknowingly over the years. Research shows that hypnosis can help you move through the “steps” needed to change much quicker than if you were to do without it. Basically, it can act as a catalyst for change for most individuals. Research and science proves it!
Hypnosis, Hypnotherapy & Self-Hypnosis are very empowering and offer you invaluable tools to help you along in your daily life. If you are interested in learning more about the process please reach out and I’d be happy to help out.
If you have any questions, interested in trying out a session, or getting a personalized self-hypnosis recording made, please reach out and feel free to send me an e-mail.
Written By: Sebastian Di Cesare PhD, RCH - a research scientist & practicing Registered Hypnotherapist based in Vancouver, Canada.
