Don’t change everything
Last summer I lost fifteen pounds in three months. It was easy. I just clicked.
I didn’t count the calories of everything I ate. I did one calculation. One pound equals 3500 calories. Cut 500 calories a day and I’ll lose a pound a week. Click.
I looked at breakfast. I changed cereals and slightly reduced the portion, dropped the two pieces of toast and butter, and swapped twelve ounces of orange juice for eight of tomato juice. Yeah, I thought, I can do that. Never missed the old breakfast. That was 300 calories. Click.
I cut out bread, except for sandwiches, and I cut down on sweets. Figured that was about 200 calories a day. Click.
Then I did everything else like I always did. No other meal changes, no exercise. I didn’t write anything down or keep calorie records; I only recorded my weight every Monday morning when I woke up.
I lost one pound per week for fifteen weeks.
This is not about weight loss. You can do the same thing with your life.
Big changes come from small commitments
If you try to change your whole life, you won’t keep it up. Find the few small changes—the few clicks—that you CAN keep up, and let them change your whole life over time.
Commit to big things, but also commit to the small pieces that make up the big things. If you commit to the right small pieces, you reach the big thing.
You commit to your marriage—a big thing. You click by committing to find one sincere compliment per day to give your spouse. You click by committing to hold hands and pray together for two minutes after breakfast and dinner. Then let the clicks add up over time. Add more clicks later.
Small, easy solutions can crack (and avoid) big problems
Our car would not start. We tried to jump it, stared under the hood, called the experts; the battery cable was loose. Click. Without one small solution we have a 2,000 pound paperweight.
Our home air conditioning died. How many thousands of dollars is that going to be? Ended up it was a broken wire on the system on-off switch. Click.
Your 9-year old will not sit still to do homework. The whole family is tortured in the discipline war. You let him sit on a bouncy exercise ball and suddenly he’s wiggling and doing homework. Click.
What three small changes can you commit to right now?
Changes that over time will move you toward your hope?
Are you waiting on hope, or are you committed to it?
Click
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This is a great reminder. :-)
Posted by: Round World | Friday, October 21, 2011 at 08:48 AM