Exercising self-discipline
SUSAN JOHNSTON is an example of someone who does well meeting her goals because of
self-discipline. She regularly goes to a Cambridge gym, for example, behavior that she has made routine. Now she is leveraging that self-discipline muscle to start a freelance writing career, which takes more focus from her in order to keep on track, because it’s a relatively new goal.
(Aram Boghosian Photo for The Boston Globe)We all know that most people don't keep their New Year's resolutions. There are a lot of things that will help you keep them. But here's one you might not have thought of: Money.
That's right. People who are paid to reach their goals are better at reaching them. This is why we typically can meet deadlines for work but not self-imposed deadlines. And that's why movie stars can stay rail-thin, while the rest of us have a harder time losing weight: A movie star's livelihood is based on how he or she looks.
So, if you can think like a movie star, and decide that your livelihood depends on meeting your goal, then you'll probably meet it.
Here are some mental gymnastics to that end: People who meet one goal can meet more goals because self-discipline is a muscle that gets stronger and stronger. Additionally, most of our career goals depend on self-discipline. So, we can all tell ourselves that if we meet our one goal, whatever it is, we will have more successful careers and thereby make a lot more money.
Susan Johnston is an example of someone who does well meeting her goals because of self-discipline. She goes to the gym, for example, behavior that she has made routine. Now she is leveraging that self-discipline muscle to start a freelance writing career, which takes more focus from her in order to keep on track, because it's a relatively new goal.
For those of you still trying to work that self-discipline muscle to meet your goals, here are some tips.
1. State your goals positively.
Pick one goal, and meet it, and the others will come faster. But be careful with that first goal, because the way you state your goal is half the battle of changing your behavior. Choosing your goal is harder than reaching it, because you have to have a lot of self-knowledge in order to really commit to changing something. But once you are sure the goal is worth your time and energy, get a positive mantra in your head. You can't structure that change if you are telling yourself only what not to do. You also need to tell yourself what behavior you will start doing every day in order to meet your goal.
2. State your goals in a measurable way.
Many unmet goals are impossible to meet: They are so broad that you can't tell on a day-to-day basis if you're getting there. "Go to the gym" is not a goal. "Go to the gym five days a week after work, for an hour" is a goal.
3. Write the goal down every day, and post it on your wall.
One of the reasons this works is that changing our behavior takes intense focus and writing down our goals reminds our brains. Writing the goals down and putting reminders of the goals all over your work and home will help. Johnston accomplishes this through her blog, where she writes about meeting her professional goals for an audience of readers who are also trying to meet similar goals.
4. Commit to three weeks.
The hardest part of changing behavior is that your brain is addicted to the bad behavior. If you force yourself to change your behavior for three weeks, your brain will start to develop more dopamine in response to the behavior to which you are trying to change, according to Monika Fleshner, a neuroimmuno-physiologist at the University of Colorado at Boulder. For example, your brain will start to release dopamine when it thinks about going to the gym instead of when it thinks about ditching the gym.
5. Structure your day around your goal - every day.
You need to know the night before how you are going to meet your goal the next day.
You also have to organize your days around avoiding the dopamine triggers of the behavior you're trying to avoid. For example, if you don't want to eat fries, drive three blocks out of your way to avoid your regular
6. Make some new friends to go with your new behavior.
People who don't change their behavior tend to justify it by saying that it's socially acceptable, according to Cindy Jardine, a professor at the University of Alberta who studies public health. This is why, for instance, if you have fat friends, you are likely to be fat. So travel in circles where the behavior you want to change is not accepted. Do you want to lose weight? Meet someone who is already at the gym. Do you want to be a writer? Check out Susan's blog: The Urban Muse. Find like-minded people and they will help you to be the person you want to be in 2008 - and beyond.
Penelope Trunk is the author of "Brazen Careerist: The New Rules for Success." Read her blog at blog.penelopetrunk.com.
