How Sticky Notes Boosted My Fitness

If you’re like me and you think about making a change you think about going big or going home, you think it needs to be radical to make a difference. The incredible stories we read and hear are filled with bold actions. Yet, those are the exceptions, not the rule. Exciting stories arise out of bold action, not baby steps that lead to sustainable success.

This winter I put the baby step idea to the test. I was moving my body some weeks and not others and I wanted to build a new habit of being consistently physically active.

The things that made creating a new habit hard were:
1. I didn’t have (or want) a consistent time of day to be active, and
2. I didn’t want to limit myself to one kind of activity.

I wanted a habit and I also wanted the flexibility of choosing what I wanted to do and when. How could I possibly create a habit?

I realized the habit wouldn’t be the physical activity itself, my habit would be deciding. Before I could do anything I had to decide what activity I would do that day and when.

The habit I created was: As soon as I walk upstairs I pull a sticky note out of the drawer and write the physical activity that I want to do that day and when I would do it and stick it on the counter.
That’s it.

It didn’t matter if I actually did the physical activity or if I did it at the time I decided. That wasn’t the habit. The habit was the act of decision-making. Every day that I wrote down my decision I celebrated myself and I felt a little lift of success. Doing this simple step is what I consider success and every time I do it I maintain my new habit.

As you might imagine, once I make a choice of what I want to do and when I will do it I exponentially increase the likelihood of following-through and being active. And when I do it’s a bonus.

The trick is to allow this simple first step to not be the means to “the real” end and instead to embrace it fully as the end itself. That means that more is not the goal - if you do more that’s fine. What you really acknowledge and focus on is implementing and celebrating the first baby step. Create success and momentum in the most simple actions and embrace that as enough.

On a related note...

The idea of not overlooking the smallest changes is the principle behind the blockbuster book, Atomic Habits by James Clear. It's a great quick read on the basic principles of creating habits. If you're looking for the short version check out his article here about the value of accumulating change 1% at a time.

Note: The above link directs you to the book and is an affiliate link. If you make a purchase you don't pay a penny more and I get a small commission that supports my business. Thanks!

In other words...

"Courage doesn't always roar."
-Mary Ann Radmacher

"The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success
but significance - and then even the small steps and little victories
along your path will take on greater meaning."
- Oprah Winfrey

A good question...

What would make this simple?

Until Next Sunday,

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