Self Sabotage
You know what you need to be doing.
You know you should read that book, write that article, listen to that audio, watch that video, call that client, and so on.
I learned about the self-help arena when I was in my late teens early 20s.
I was addicted to it. Who knew there were little steps I could take consistently that would alter the direction of my life? I loved listening to audios as I drove around in my car. I even kept a notebook with me so I could write things down that I liked or needed to learn. It expanded my mind in many ways and it was a space I was interested in. I saw tremendous improvements in myself, my attitude, and overall life as the days turned into months.
But as time went on I noticed I began turning it off.
I stopped listening to the audios, I stopped reading the books, I stopped writing notes and learning. It took some time to notice this pattern, but every few weeks I would take a few days off. And I could feel it. I wasn’t expanding and started noticing my attitude shifting.
Long story short, I reverted back to what was comfortable to me.
I related to the people that hated their jobs. Who was I to be anything better than what I am? My positive mindset would fade.
At first, the consistent improvement made me stretch and expand. It got me out of my comfort zone.
But then, I would get to a point that was so far out of my territory that I would shut down. My mind made me believe that self help wasn’t for me. I started self sabotaging my success. My mind wanted to surround itself with familiarity.
After a few days of taking a break, I realized what I needed to do.
So I went against what my mind was telling me. I continued listening to the audio and watching the videos. I took smaller steps. Essentially, I tricked my mind to believe I wasn’t out of my comfort zone.
The steps were so small that my mind didn’t notice the shift I was making.
A few minutes of audio each day got me further than listening to an entire book on tape in one sitting. It was information overload and my mind knew it. I learned what self sabotage was and learned how to notice when it was happening. More importantly, I learned how to trick my brain to allow me to keep growing.
The trick I learned was to take smaller bites and smaller steps.
Our brain helps keep us safe but there are ways to trick your brain.
Small, consistent steps over time will trick your brain.
