Last week we started the year off with this question:

“What one thing, if you were to gain a handle on it, would make a meaningful difference to the quality of your life at the end of 2022?”

January is the time of year that many of us take inventory of our lives and gauge whether we are on track or not. We have great intentions of making small adjustments or large course corrections, but often our efforts don’t reach the levels we were hoping for. We end up close to where we started off and come to the conclusion that this change thing really isn’t for me.

But wait! There is hope…

This year let’s approach it a bit differently.

Instead of focusing on the habits you want to establish, the weight you want to lose, the things you need to learn or the changes that need to be made, start here:

Think about the person you want to be.

At the end of 2022, what do you want to be known for? What do you want to feel like? What would you like to think about yourself? What is the image you want to portray? Who do you want to become?

Our behaviour tends to reflect what we believe about ourselves. Habits are rooted in identity. If you regard yourself as someone that is trustworthy, healthy, committed, worthy, organized or adventurous, your habits will reflect these behaviours. Similarly, if you think of yourself as being lazy, disorganized, a people pleaser, someone that gives up easily, your behaviours and habits will follow suit.

Habits don’t tend to stick when they are contrary to what we believe about ourselves.

Therefore, this year we will approach it the other way around. Here is the practical part of how to do this:

Think about the person you would like to be at the end of 2022. Pick one word, or two or three that align to this picture of yourself. These words could be anything, but make sure they are positively phrased. Use words like brave, honest, strong, reliable, generous, grateful, present, friendly – whatever resonates with you and reflect this picture of who you would like to be. Then put these words up where you can see them often (your phone background is a good spot).

Every time you see these words remind yourself of who you want to be and start identifying behaviours that reflect this identity.

Next week we will start talking about linking habits to this view of yourself and share some tips on how to make them stick.

As always, thank you for reading and ending your week on a high.

At PurposeWorks we are all about Making You and Your Work Rock. Our focus is on Organisational Health and Design, Employee Centered Culture, Leadership Development and Performance Coaching. For more information on how we can help you create a work environment that rocks, develop a great team, become an inspiring leader or unlock your personal excellence talk to us at info@purposeworks.co.za.