What’s Getting In Your Way?
Barriers to Change
What gets in our way? There are so many available reasons to avoid change. And if we're not ready to do it, we are more than equipped to find as many reasons as possible to find ways around it. But what are some of the most common reasons we use to avoid approaching changing our behaviors?
Time (Count out 60 seconds while breathing to remind yourself how long it actually is):
Change can feel like trying to squeeze ONE MORE THING in an already busy day. Patterns are set and adding one more thing can seem impossible. But if we look at all the possibilities or permutations of how we can fit something into our already busy schedule we may find something that works. Ultimately we need to find the value in what we are trying to incorporate. If it doesn't have meaning, why would we work hard to make it fit? For example, let's say you're trying to fit in some exercise or physical activity intro your day. Maybe it's even by your Primary Care Physician's request. But you work 10 hour days, have 2 kids with their own outside activities, and you have to make dinner, help with homework, feed the cat; you get the idea.
For better or worse this is our modern life. But somewhere in there has to be time for you. So the ultimate question is where is there flexibility? And before you say its not there, let's take a beat and examine the activities of our day and rank the value they have for us. Is everything important and a must do activity? Ask yourself, do my daily activities serve the things that are important to me?
Once we take time to evaluate the things we do just because they are in the schedule, we may find that some things just aren't that important after all and can be removed to make way for something that has more value; something we are willing to work a little harder for to make fit into our hectic lives.
Other People (delegate and encourage others to build self-efficacy to free up time for you):
With all that said, other people are obviously part of the time equation. But they also impact other areas of our lives. Let's say you have decided to make a change to your daily diet and you want to start eating in a different way than your family or friends. This can be extremely difficult, especially if your habit is to share meals. Once again we need to look outside the paradigm of the meal or meals in question and look for where a change flex could occur.
Travel (strategize and plan for the anticipated obstacles. Be accepting if situations are not ideal):
Travel is hard. It upsets our routines, takes time out of our control and makes sticking to our goals seem impossible. The important thing with travel is to accept that some things are out of our control. Our behavior change goals are just that; goals. If we falter for a couple days or a week due to a vacation or extended work trip, we are not starting back at ground zero. It's just a break in the cycle of change. We need to be good to ourselves and understand that our job as agents of change is to find where we can be flexible. Before your trips ask yourself, how could I incorporate some of my behavior change goals into this trip and feel like I'm still maintining a sense of my overall goal? Sticking to something, even if your "program" falls apart is better than nothing.