The Habit You Need to Create a New, Improved You

When I was pregnant with my son, one night at 10:30 pm, I open the freezer. After looking for a couple of minutes, I pull out some ice cream and put two chocolate chunk scoops in a bowl and start eating. Yuuuuumy! It is soooo good.

The next night, at 10:30 pm, I do the same thing. But this time I choose mocha almond fudge and make it three scoops with hot fudge. Oh my. It is divine.

By the following week, I have had a date every night with ice cream at 10:30 pm.

Throughout my pregnancy, I have seven scoops of ice cream and seven cookies, seven days a week, for seven months.

After my son is born, it doesn’t stop. I do, however, decrease the amount to three scoops of ice cream. So now it was three scoops of ice cream and three cookies, seven days a week, for five years.

One night at 10:30 pm, I get up from my chair and walk to the freezer, like I have done thousands of times before. I hold open that freezer just staring at the ice cream.

Without grabbing anything, I close the freezer, look at the bowl of fruit on the counter, and say out loud, “I need to start eating more fruit.”

Then I hear, “Mama, if you want to be better, you have to change your mind.”

Surprised, not knowing where that came from, I look down and see my five-year-old son standing there.

“What did you say?”

“If you want to be better, you have to change your mind.”

Wow! It hits me right in the face!

You wouldn’t know I am eating that much ice cream. It doesn’t manifest in an outward appearance. But I know I can be making a better choice for my internal self.

He’s right. If I want to be a better version of me, I need to change my mind…to change my thoughts and therefore do something new and different. This is about breaking bad habits.

I open the refrigerator, look around inside and think, What can I eat that’s fast and even a bit healthier?

I see my son’s yogurt. Ugh. I don’t really like yogurt.

My son’s words ring in my head, “If you want to be better, you have to change your mind.”

I take one yogurt and a string cheese and eat them both.

The next night, as though on auto-pilot, I open the freezer and then as though I realize what I am doing for the first time, I close it. Instead, I go to the fridge and grab a yogurt and string cheese.

And every day after that for the past 14 months, I consciously choose what I’m going to eat as my nightly snack. I’m no longer on auto pilot, doing the same thing that I had been doing. But it took something to jolt me out of this unconsciousness.

Now, I’ve created a new habit. Yes, I still love my ice cream, but I limit it. Two scoops, twice a week. And very rarely have cookies.

This new habit has allowed me to:

1. Have more energy (and I already had a ton)

2. Feel better about my choices

3. Know that if I could change that, I could change ANYTHING

4. Realize just because I’ve done something for years doesn’t mean I need to keep doing it

5. Know it’s one thing I’m doing to ensure I’ll live longer

Why do I share this story with you?

What are you on auto-pilot on in your life or business? How are you developing habits? What do you need to change that you don’t have the drive or motivation to change?

I didn’t have the motivation to change my ice cream habit. After all, I wasn’t gaining weight and it tasted good. What could be better?!

However, what I did know is that although I couldn’t see the effect (through weight gain), it doesn’t mean it’s wasn’t doing harm. It doesn’t mean it’s the best choice. I had to figure out how to stop bad habits.

What habit isn’t serving you? What would it take to change that habit?

Jerk your thoughts out of the status quo…the way you’ve been thinking. This is the habit you need to create a new, improved you, deeper relationships, more clients, stronger team, or a growth organization.

Ask yourself…is this the best thing for me, for my organization, team, health, and kids. Will this move me closer to being here longer or move me away from it?

Sometimes it takes someone else jerking us out of out robot-like living. Changing habits begins with you. When you become more aware of yourself, your actions, and your habits, you can interrupt your own thought patterns to create new habits that ignite and empower the newer, and improved version of you.