You Really Can Change Anything
YOU CAN CHANGE, YOU CAN CHANGE
Creating change is easier than you think, and it's even easier than you think when you do a little math.
Like most people, my guess is you're making change harder than it really has to be, because most people think that change is just a thing of willpower, or skill that only some have been born with or have learned from someone along the way. But change is really more of a numbers game, and after looking into a number of online and print resources, I found that I was actually doing pretty well with my commitment to changing patterns or behaviors that I wanted to change most. I must have been doing something wrong somewhere because I still wasn't experiencing the success in some areas of my life that I wanted more out of. Like many, I wanted more!
THE PERSONAL SCIENCE OF SUCCESS
What the h*** does that mean?
After perusing the bookshelves at my local bookstore, I learned that behavioral change was being marketed and sold through buzzwords like "game-changers", "transformation", "identity", etc. I even saw one book that claimed change as "The Personal Science of Success". Excuse me, there's a science of success? Sign me up!
IT'S ALL IN THE NUMBERS
As a numbers person, the personal science of success attracted me because I was fascinated by the math of it all. Let me explain. If you took a sheet of paper and drew six boxes (see chart below), you could start to fill in each box with a unique tool, cutting-edge strategy, recycled thought, event, new skill, or person who could work together towards influencing your behavior to change. And after spending some time and uninterrupted thought on this exercise, I started to see the odds against me fade away. The math was actually working! All I had to do was stop and think about what and who my "change agents" were - or needed to be - if I wanted to finally feel the charm of success. Hallelujah!
Exercise:
Take a sheet of paper and draw six boxes. On the left hand side, write the words "structural", "Social" and "Personal" next to each box. Now on the top two boxes, write "Motivation" and "Ability".
From there, start filling in each box with a positive, empowering change you could make in each of these categories. For example, if your goal was to lose weight, you'd add a personal trainer in your "personal" box, a "workout buddy" or "outdoor activity" to your "social" box, and a three day a week workout routine to your "structural" box. Keep going so that you have at least three support items in each box. What will happen is that your vision for success in this area will start to become clear. Your brain will actually start to see a new future, and will continue to look for the driving supports needed for success in each of these areas
With regards to the "Ability" side of your chart, start to target goals that can be measured against your current state. Make sure you add goals that can be measured for success. Once you start to see calculated, documented success, momentum and even more success are almost inevitable. Keep going!
90 DAYS TO CHANGE ANYTHING?
Gary Vaynerchuk - a well-known entrepreneur, author and public speaker - once said, "consistency is your greatest vulnerability" and I could not agree more. I spent about 90 days testing my plan - or change plan, as described in the book, Change Anything. On a weekly and sometimes daily basis, I was tweaking, moving and shifting my environment or the tools I was using to impact change. I re-evaluated who I was spending time with, and I made subtle changes in how I received information (or what information I would actually allow myself to receive). I reached a new level of awareness around my personal, social and structural influences that supported change. And not just the short-term change that satiates you for about as long as a reality show's episode lasts. I was actually experiencing long-term change, and kept a diary of these experiences, just to prove my point.
The next time you find yourself thinking the thoughts or saying the words, "I just can't change", reconsider your strategy. Actually, reconsider your math. Take out a sheet of paper, draw six boxes. label them with a variety of personal, social and structural influences; then start to input your own ideas, suggestions and strategies. From there, just watch the numbers add up. And watch the odds fade away!
Enjoy Changing Anything (& Everything)!
Now, #goDo!
