Top 10 tips to enable change

I want to lose my weight
I want to drink more water
I want to improve my work life balance
I want to be better at managing my time
I want to eat healthy food
I want to be more social, an extrovert

Everybody has atleast one thing in the back of their mind that when changed would make their life better. But only a few create a proper goal, a timeline, have discipline to execute and successfully make a sustaining change in their behavior. SMART (Specific Measurable Attainable Relevant Timebound) goal is a great tool in setting yourself towards an achievable goal. Everybody start with a great goal and motivation but most of them fail.

There are many reasons why change is difficult

1. We are incapable of visualizing the long term consequence of our status quo behavior and simulate the impact of long term consequence.

2. Lack of reinforcement of our change thought - Our motivation level drops exponentially

3. A change in one behavior might require a break in our regular routing increasing the friction to change

Below are some tips on how to enable change.

Top 10 tips to enable change

1. Work on only 1 change at a time

2. Recruit a change coach - It can be your friend, spouse or anybody who takes an interest in you.

3. Hire a professional change coach

4. Have a visual banner to reinforce your change thought in your room. Verbalize what you want to be and where you want to be.

5. Set a change reminder in your mobile phone

6. Implement small changes first. If you want to create a habit of exercise, start by exercising at home first and move to a gym after you create the habit of exercising

7. Decrease the change friction by reducing the deviation from your routine.
Eg. If you want to go to gym to exercise, select a gym that is on your way to home from work. Or select a gym close to your work place or home.

8. Conceal your new change by  embedding it into an activity that you really love to do or an activity that is already a habit.
Eg: If you read a book everyday at night keep your night pills on top of the book that you read

9. Use easy tools to track - a simple whiteboard is very effective. Automatic tracking is the best method but very few tools are available for this.

10. Gamify - Mobile apps help in encouraging change. Eg: HabitStreak, Lift