Create a new Attitude for Success

An Attitude for Success! Part I

Do you alternate between being “good” at sticking to a sensible eating plan and being “bad” when you slip? It’s a frustrating but common cycle for most of us, especially when we consider the self-defeating attitudes that labeling and acknowledging our “badness” create when it comes to food.  Many psychologists know that behavior modification strategies--rather than diets--can help us break this self-defeating cycle and make lasting lifestyle changes.

What is behavior modification? It begins with a change in self-talk and thought, which helps us change our attitudes about our eating, our bodies, and our weight, which helps us change our behavior. In terms of weight loss, our behavior will be reflected by how we feel inside, which will be reflected in how we appear on the outside. When we feel good about ourselves, we can’t help but be attractive to others. THIS is the ultimate goal—to feel better about ourselves inside, so that our bodies and personae will reflect confidence and light to others.

Be Supportive, Not Critical.
People lose weight at different rates. Weight may drop off quickly at first and then plateau, or vice versa. Your body composition may change, although your weight may stay the same.  The important thing is that long-term healthy behavior gets results.
Reassure yourself that you are working hard and remember that hard work pays off. Don’t judge your progress by your weight; instead, acknowledge that during the day or week you engaged in behaviors that will be rewarded down the road.

Set a Game Plan
You may know exactly what you want to achieve but not have a set plan to achieve it.
This is where I see many people fail.  They have great intentions but lack the action steps and action for success.

1. Set your Goals
2. Make you Plan
3. Take Action

This is an emotionally healthy start.  Have a great day.

How to move a mountain

Here are a few steps to maximizing your potential:

1. Reflect on your life: Spend 10 - 20 minutes daily eflecting. Open up your mind and just think, analyze, consider, ponder, contemplate, imagine, visualize and dream. Capture these thoughts by writing them down so you can re-read later. As Albert Einstein said –“Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”
2. Become an optimist: If you’ve been stuck on negative thinking, you’ve only created an anchor in your life that’s keeping you down. Always look for the positive in every situation.
3. Set a goal: Set a lofty goal that stretches you outside of your comfort zone. As Napoleon Hill said – “A goal is a dream with a deadline”
4. Define who your role models are: Once you’ve identified them, model yourself after them. If you don’t, you’ll pick up bad habits from all the wrong people.
5. Be grateful: Having an attitude of gratitude invites even better things to come into your life. Life cannot be fun if you are angry and emotional all of the time.
6. Become a life-long learner: Let your mind be the sponge it was created to be – commit to learn something new every day. Read a book and/or watch an entertaining and educational TV show.
7. Embrace change: It’s impossible to reach your full potential if you’re not willing to change. Come to the realization that change is good!
8. All you need is patience (yahh ahhh): Change takes time. Take responsibility for your choices and know that you choose to become part of the process or fight the process.  Either way, change will STILL take time.