After reading my post on assigning changes to one day of the week, you may still want to change something that is not easily assigned to a single day. In that case, just look for some other method of making it a routine. What is important is to prevent your goals from getting lost in the busy pace of your life.
Perhaps the change you want involves eating a healthier breakfast. In that case, some sort of reminder that you see when you wake up, get dressed, or leave for work could keep you on track. If your goal is to walk more often for exercise, then try keeping your walking shoes out where you will see them, (maybe even trip over them), instead of neatly storing them in your closet. There are as many possibilities as there are goals, but the key is to make things as simple and as routine as possible.
Maybe keeping a record of your progress will encourage you. For example some say if you are trying to lose weight, you should focus on diet changes and not weigh yourself more often than once a week. I think if you weigh yourself every day AND write that weight on a small calendar every day, you will stay more focused and make it a routine.
Finally make what you want to accomplish part of a positive mindset and keep it positive even if your progress is not as fast as you like. Nobody sticks to their goals 100% of the time. That is just part of being a normal person. Try to realize that even achieving your objectives only 60% of the time is better than viewing your progress as failing and going back to the old ways.
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My problem is that when I try to accept less than 100% and decide to be happy with 60% that 60%, over time, evolves into the new 100%, so I start sliding down to 60% of that… and so on.
For me its gotta be daily or not at all. I am curious to see if other people CAN manage a to walk that line between perfect and good enough without falling off like I do.
I understand what you are saying, JD. It is most important that a person figures out what works best for them so they have the greatest chance of success.
I guess I realized long ago that I can not be perfect. I used to beat myself up about slipping off the goals, but now I have become more relaxed about it. It seems if I don’t view a slip as a “failure”, it is easier to get back on track.
For example, my youngest recently turned 13. She got a HUGE Costco cake for her birthday, something I would not normally eat. I ended up not being able to resist and had a piece at lunch 2 or 3 days in a row. Of course, I realized that the white flour and sugar was really dragging me down a few hours later. I had a bit of a chuckle at my slip, but now I am good to go many months without the thought of ever eating something like that!
-Will