Change. It’s something that everyone doesn’t like. You have to get rid of old habits and you have to quit something you’ve been doing the same for so long already. But the signals are clear: you can’t go on this way. Taking the step to change can be scary, but also really tough. How do you start actual change? And maybe even more importantly: how do you persist?

Make a plan

Usually, everything is perfectly lined up in our head and we know exactly what to do. It’s just taking that first step. To make this change a lot more real, you should write everything down. 

Write down the thing(s) you want to change. Maybe you want to be more positive. Or start exercising again. Or you want to save money for a trip around the world! Write down your personal goal. When would you have reached it? What do you need to reach it? What do you have to do to reach it? 

And what steps would it take? Create a realistic road map towards your goal, because doing everything in one big step is pretty much impossible!

Motivate yourself

Now comes the tough part: you have to actually do it. Try motivating yourself by writing down all the things how it will benefit you. You could for example create a list of pros and cons for both the short and the long term. Write everything down that comes to mind and especially remember why you should maintain this change! By writing everything down, you make it tangible, which is important for the process.

You could also externally motivate yourself. You can for example tell it to your mother/best friend/grandma, whoever you want. And ask for a little bit of support. Someone that supports you can be a really good push in the right direction.

On top of that you can make a deal with yourself. For example, buy a new phone when you’ve reached your goal. Or maybe a nice trip to a country far away for the weekend!

Remind and reward yourself

You’ve put everything in your power into reaching your goals. It costs a lot of energy and sometimes it can happen everything is not going that well anymore. Giving up seems to be close. Try reminding yourself why you are doing this constantly, because during the whole process you can lose your goal out of sight. Grab your list of pros and cons and call your mother for some mental support! Don’t forget to reward yourself for the effort you’ve put in all the hard work. It shouldn’t only cost blood, sweat and tears! Give yourself a nice treat, buy yourself a little gift or do something fun with some friends. You should compliment yourself for all the steps you’re taking. You would do the same for someone else right?

Monitor your progress

Your goal always seems to be in a far distance, until you’ve finally reached it. Why wouldn’t your keep track of your steps? At the start you should write down you’re on 0%. During the process you can keep track of your progress. The final 100% will become closer and closer and you’ll also know the steps you still have to take. Reaching your goal is amazing, but it’s the road towards it that makes it worth it!

NiceDay

Write down your plan of change in a diary registration in the NiceDay app. Also create a list of pros and cons and write down what you can do to motivate yourself. Keep track of when you will monitor your progress. You can even connect some rewards to certain points of progress!