build your beautiful self

As the new year approaches planning to plan is on everyone’s mind. I am just like everyone else in that sense. I have decided to not make resolutions anymore. I am now a powerhouse small goal setter!

My last post was about little goals that lead to big goals, and I have put together my month of January goals. I loved it so much I put it together on a publisher file, saved it as an image and it is now my wallpaper on my computer! I have windows 10 and that allows my settings to show across all my windows devices so it is on my laptop as well and my computer at my office. I will see it every time I open my computer to work. It will be a constant reminder of what I am working on and what I need to accomplish that month. It is inspiring!

As you can see, my goals are not particularly big. They are little steps that will lead to bigger things. Nothing daunting, mostly education on my end figuring out what I need to know in business, along with meeting and connecting with more people. I have other more personal goals that aren’t on here, but I needed to stay on track in business and not go all over the board. My word for 2017 is FOCUS.

I wanted to share a strategy that I have been using to be successful. It takes a crapload of discipline, but it has worked for me while trying to stay on track. I have recently made some changes in my habits and they are not easy changes. I made the decision to get to my pinacle of health this year. I want to be mentally and physically strong from now on and that alone is a feat.

First step is to figure out what you are trying to achieve.
Are you trying to lose X amount of pounds? Quit Smoking? Get to the gym? Something else that requires you to make the tough choices?

My journey right now is to make better food choices and not eat so much throughout the day. Really, your diet is your worst enemy when it comes to weight loss. You can drop pounds without working out soley by changing your eating habits. (I will write on that topic another day.)

Next step is to create your plan.
What are you going to change? The amount of food you consume, the type of food you consume, or something like the amount of times you eat in a day?

I needed to make better food choices when I eat, and eat a smaller portion when I do eat (both snacking and meals).

Now that you have your plan and what you are trying to achieve, implement.
I have found that the hardest thing to do is implement. This is where most struggle. Implementation and discipline are where 99% of the people get discouraged and quit. I am no different!
Over the last 2 weeks I have made this tweak in my life and it has worked wonders.

In walks bad choice…getting a slice of pizza at Costco. They are like a quarter of an extra-large pizza which equates to about 500 calories and a bunch of unhealthy fats and carbs if I share the slice with the husband. I was at the window looking at the types of slices they had, “I mean if I share it with him, it will be ok because I am not eating the whole thing, right?” Had the piece all picked out, then I thought to myself, “I was good at eating healthy yesterday, why would I stop today? This is only going to make me feel guilty.” I opted not to get the slice and went home and ate chicken, sweet potatoes and applesauce.

The bad choice that showed the day before…At the restaurant, could have waited for service and ordered some fried bar food and a coke. I thought to myself, “I planned to eat healthy and try to drop a couple of pounds. If I eat this, I will spend the money on the food and it will make me feel bad about not sticking to my goals.” We left, went to the grocery store, grabbed chicken breasts and went home and sautéed those babies up with some asparagus, peppers and onions. Had a salad and some sweet potatoes on the side. Fantastic and I didn’t have to feel guilty one bit!

I take 1 minute in my head to think about the choice I would have made, how it would affect what I am trying to accomplish, then course correct to stay within what I really want. Yeah that greasy bar food or fatty piece of pizza would have given me my 5 minutes of taste satisfaction, but it would have also given me guilt and indigestion 🙂

Same can be done when it comes to smoking or drinking…All you have to do is think, I have made it 1 hour, or 2 hours without one, why start now? I have made it a full day without one, why would I have one now and start over? I’ll feel terrible about myself, feel terrible physically and undo all the good I have done so far!

If you fall off your plan and slip up, acknowledge it, forgive yourself and move on. Get back to the good. Everyone makes a mistake or two, however if you are doing it constantly, then maybe you need to re-evaluate your goals and set a smaller goal so you can be successful. It is the little things, the little wins, that help you be successful. Be proud of your little things so you can be proud of the big thing it accomplishes over time!