Making the tough choices

People have difficulty making the tough choices in life. Even things that seem so easy on the surface like getting out and meeting more people, varying your routine and incorporating more vegetables into your diet can seem daunting to some people.  Why? I think there are a couple reasons.

One, people like to feel comfortable.  It's that old pain/pleasure theory Tony Robbins banters about, people want to feel pleasure more often than pain.  Seems natural doesn't it. Our routines and habits are comfortable to us.  Comfort is pleasurable and ergo, our habits and routines are etched in stone.  (I DO like using words like daunting and ergo! :-))

Momentum and inertia are properties we learn in Physics that apply in our personal lives as well.  Any attempt at change has to overcome these two forces, which are very real.  People can adapt in many different ways to stay within their comfort zone and to avoid change, even in the most radical circumstances.

Truth is, we can all live our dreams and have the life, or feelings we desire.  If this is true, then why aren't more people happy?  I believe the reason is inside ourselves.  All of us, everyone, pretends that it is people, things and situations outside ourselves that are preventing us from achieving our dreams. We tell ourselves we don't have enough money, contacts, looks, intelligence, etc. to have what we want.  In truth, we are lying to ourselves and making excuses so that we don't have to change yet.  We are avoiding the tough choices.

Grabbing something new often means letting go of something old.  We own the old stuff and don't want to lose it.

How do we make the tough choices?  Three things, attitude, systems and practice.  Attitude, because we have to act with intention and we need an attitude that supports that.  Secondly, we need a system that incorporates our desired change.  Lastly, we need to practice new habits and routines, for most of us this is best using a "Baby Steps" approach.