There are actually three things you can count on in life: death, taxes, and systems failing.

That’s not quite true…

Some things stick…I always brush my teeth twice a day, for instance.  I can’t NOT do it… I feel icky if I don’t.

But the routines we implement, also known as ‘resolutions’?  Working out everyday, meditating, keeping a journal, making three sales calls a day…trust me.  At some point, they go off the rails…

Unless…

We accept that fact, and adapt to it.  Several things here are key: Noting the pain we feel when we give up, accounting for momentum reboots, applying variations, and TIMING.

Timing is key.

What is automatic for you?  Whether it’s brushing your teeth, or taking medication, immediately before or after is where the new habit belongs, as a natural prelude or follow up.   You start to connect the two, so that when part of the routine breaks down, you feel…icky (pain, remember?)

Sometimes systems just get boring. Or you get caught up in the urgency of something else (same thing).
If you have ADHD, this will sound counter-intuitive but…

Structure is your friend.

You resist it but think about the last time you were on a roll….you were probably held by it in some way…for instance, you were learning something you really liked, and kept at it day after day.  That’s how it got easy.

Try mixing things up if you need to.  Maybe you need to work out before you meditate one day and vis versa the next….maybe you need to tack a reward on afterwards..(or even before, so you feel like you need to pay it off!)

Life is not static.  There is no ‘set it and forget’ when it comes to self-development.  The only thing you can  really count on is hitting the reset button….learn to be creative about it and  you’ll be fine!  In fact, see that reset as a challenge, rather than a failure.