Who Will Win?
It doesn’t matter if you have been on a self-improvement journey your whole life, or just since you made your resolutions on January 1st. It’s You vs. You in a battle royale.
This contest is so important to understand, because for the rest of your life you will be challenged with one thing or another, right? I mean, it’s not as if you can say, “Okay, I’ve gone to the gym today. I’m all set for the year! I’m good to go!”
Nope. No dice. It doesn’t work that way. But then, you knew that.
See, here’s the thing. Most of those habits you want to change? They are not really that hard.
No, seriously, the act of what you need to “do-or-not-do” is usually pretty simple.
For example, eating less is not hard. It’s simply a matter of not putting that dessert in your mouth. One less trip to the buffet is actually less EFFORT. But the effort is not the biggest thing in the way, is it?
It’s you.
There is also nothing particularly difficult about the inherent act of driving your car to the gym. Or walking inside. Or even sweating for 45 minutes. In the big scheme of things, it is not a backbreaking endeavor, right? Again — It’s you.
You are probably in your own way. Why do we do this to ourselves? You’re certainly not alone in this struggle. Most of the people you know are in a similar battle. Maybe all of them.
So, why is this happening, and what can you do about it? Well, that’s the rub, isn’t it? But you have to start the process. Take action.
Taking action can be so very difficult sometimes. A terrific book to get you on your way is The Art of Taking Action by Gregg Krech. That’s a good start.
There’s also a great article by Thomas Oppong called Your Future Self is The Enemy of Your Best Self (How to OverCome Your Present Bias). Forgive his long title and just read it. It’s all about overcoming what he calls “the resistance mindset”. It’s about a five-minute read, so you can knock it down pretty easily. I’d love to hear what you think about it. (Leave your comments below)