Monday's are change days for me in my mission. These have been the hardest posts I make each week. You would think it may be easy since I am in no doubt making many changes from the old-unhealthy me to the new-healthier me. When it comes to this post it is not just about changes, but about a sincere commitment to that change. As well they are meant to be beyond the obvious, e.g. eating better, getting in some exercise, etc. This is only my 4th change and identifying impacting changes that really define a new me are not no-brainer's, I take them seriously.
This week's change may not seem like a real change to some at first but instead a want or a goal, however it definitely is a change for me.
Change 4...
- REWARD MYSELF FOR SUCCESS
What I've been missing is a discipline to identify that bridge between my health behaviors (good and bad) and which are in my best interest and that of my family both today and in the future. Rewards may be part if that bridge, that discipline, I'll need to sustain momentum and motivation through to the end of this mission and then maintain a healthy lifestyle forever onward.
Is self-reward really necessary? Can't I just get it done without a 'carrot' to chase? Perhaps, probably, or; maybe not. Let me try and add a hint of I am placing self-reward into perspective. Here I am talking about rewards for healthy behavior. What about my professional behavior? My career is filled with plenty of risk and thus plenty of consequence & reward is present. I've done well to attain much reward. Why? Because I've always known what my efforts can bring me if I work smart; the tangible financial gain and the intangible sense of being valued if not necessary. Knowing these rewards are there to be had, I've chased them. Same could be said for my behavior towards family and marriage. The tangible fulfillment of the want for love & companionship, and the intangible sense of pride from providing for the needs of those I love. Knowing these rewards are there to be had, I've worked smart at being a good husband and father.
So, what about being healthy? As all of us driven to lose weight have made the decision to learn what healthy behaviors are and finally acknowledged the tangible and intangible benefits of being healthy are there to be had if we want them. But, for whatever reason, as clear and righteous as those benefits are now becoming apart of us; we've really known them for years but ignored them until recently. For some of us decades of ignorance is in our wake. Together we could fill hundreds of blog pages listing these benefits. But listing them is not my intent here. My intent with committing to a new change weekly is to forge behaviors that will increase my chance of succeeding in my health mission so that my health becomes as great as the successes I have achieved in career and marriage.
I chose to see myself as victorious!
I acknowledge my accomplishments by celebrating my successes small & large in ways that motivate me to go on and achieve my ultimate goal.
I control who I am, I've acknowledged that several times in this blog. Part of that acknowledgement means realizing I control what makes me feel good and keeps me going for more.
There you have it, my change for week four; I will reward myself for success.
What about the actual rewards. Oh worry not, my mind is in hyper-drive working through that detail believe me. Those thoughts aren't ready to put on paper and share yet, but they will be very soon; later this week soon. I've all but decided to set up rewards as I achieve each 10% mark in my mission; for me 10% = 12 pounds. As I am close to that first mark now, I have to get this nailed this week. Stay tuned...
How about you, do you reward your successes and if so how?
Responsibility 199... Gotta Do It!!
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Through my journey I've set big goals for myself. I wish I had set smaller rewards/goals as well. It would have been fun and maybe quicker going had I don't that. So I'm excited about hearing about your goals/rewards for yourself. I enjoyed reading this post. You are doing great Patrick.
ReplyDeleteThis post has also inspired me to set some kind of rewards for myself now that I'm in maintenance. Thanks for the idea.
That reward thing .....hits very closely on the 'do I deserve it' thing -- I truly find rewarding myself difficult. I find it hard to justify. I know its nuts. If it were anyone else I see it totally, just MEEEE that somehow doesn't deserve it. HOWEVERRRRRRR!!!.....I have to start somewhere, thinking better of myself. I have to make a dent in it somewhere. 50lbs is coming up....surely that deserves some recognition -- darn it, thats not the same as reward is it....sigh. Will have to seriously think about that one Patrick - but I will let you know. Honest Injun!
ReplyDeleteThis was an excellent post Patrick. Your posts are always so insightful. I never think of rewarding myself. Honestly i usually can't afford to reward myself, about the cheapest reward i can think of is, you guessed it,, food!! Im going to think about this some more. Thank you for challenging me to change my thinking. Your a great inspiration. have a wonderful day!!
ReplyDeleteDawn,
ReplyDeleteGot my rewards ready and about to post them for Day 24. I can't wait until I get into a maintenance mode, that’s at least a year away. But interested in what you come up with for maintenance rewards. Good point - Rewards don’t need to just be for losing weight, but also for maintaining healthy habits.
Blue,
Your 50lbs is coming up, ....surely that deserves some recognition, self-reward, call it what you want. You deserve to do whatever it is that will make you feel good about yourself, keep you motivated and getting healthy. Look forward to hearing how you celebrate the big 50 lost!
Trina,
Thanks for the kind words. I enjoy blogging my way healthy and am grateful for the support I've found here. Dawn, Blue & you are some of the blogs I check regularly and find inspiration from myself and I am really appreciate those who stop by here and share their thoughts. As I see it where ever we can get inspiration then that’s where we ought to be.
Rewards, I am not sure rewards are necessary for anyone, for some they are likely to help and others they could actually be counter-productive if they are unrealistic in their goal setting and rewarding. The reward ought not to be the real reason we do this, it should only be an aid in the process. So each person has to consider self-rewarding carefully I believe. You raise interesting thoughts with regards to affording reward & food as a reward. My opinion is that food ought not to be a reward. In general it seems counter-productive. But given some thought, never say never, it could be used perhaps in an example where let's say you absolutely love a certain type of healthy food, e.g. Salmon. You could set a reward where you'll have salmon for dinner as soon as you lose that next 5 pounds, or 10… until then you can't deprive yourself of fish so you enjoy other fish you like, but your favorite fish has to be earned. Now, as for affordability, definitely rewards should not cause a person financial stress. I recall reading where someone came up with some cheap or no-cost rewards. One was where she really wanted to re-arrange her living room. So she did, but not until she hit a reward mark. That was free, and it was something she wanted that she knew would make her happy, so she set out to earn it. Another was where she hadn't read a particular book yet by her favorite author. She had asked for a copy for her birthday or Christmas but nobody bought it for her. So she set it as a goal for a reward, and when she hit that mark, she went to the library and checked it out, read it and returned it. No cost reward, again something she liked, wanted, and something that motivated her. For a low-cost reward she did similar to the book with a movie she had never seen but had meant to long ago. When she hit that particular mark she rented it for a couple dollars, watch it, loved it, and returned it. So my friend, if you feel rewards will help you, you can use them even if affordability is a consideration.
Thanks everyone!