Immerse Yourself

"The percentage of people who are motivated to the point that they totally immerse themselves in worthwhile pursuits is shockingly small. Far too many of them now spend nearly half their waking hours propped up in front of the tube.
I don't believe in dumbing myself down by watching long hours of TV pap. Why? To win, I need ammunition - new words, new meanings, new uses!"
- Michihiro Matsumoto (from Samurai Strategies, 42 Martial Secrets from Musashi's Book Of Five Rings by Boye Lafayette De Mente)

It's one thing to make changes in  your life. It's something else entirely to KEEP those changes. Keeping to your goals and not back-sliding will more than likely be your biggest challenge.
Think I'm wrong? Consider the woman who decided to finally shed those extra pounds so she could fit into that itsy-bitsy-teeny-weeny-yellow polka dot bikini. She works out faithfully everyday, hits the treadmill, does her yoga, eats her veggies and fruits. The pounds drop off and she's feeling great about herself.

Then, she skips a day. Time off for good behavior she says. She deserves a day off she says. That bowl of ice cream won't be a bad thing because she'll work out twice as hard tomorrow she says. A couple more days go by and she's replaced her workout videos with Sitcom Re-runs and Reality shows. Soon she stops caring about her itsy-bitsy bikini altogether and settles for a moo-moo because somewhere along the way she was told that she should love and accept herself just the way she is.

Ouch! I don't know about you but I firmly believe that the instant we let our guard down, we've either failed or are about to fail in keeping to our goals.

You have to keep yourself surrounded and focused on the end result. Keep your eyes on the prize. Ensconce yourself in your objectives every second of every minute of every hour of every day. Want to get in shape? Surround yourself with imagery and articles pertaining to healthy people and lifestyles. Need to get out of debt? Go to the library (cuz you can't afford to buy books. You're in debt remember?) Check out every book, audio-book, CD and magazine pertaining to finances and money management available. Read books by authors who have successfully overcome financial crisis and become millionaires.

You have to be absorbed in your objectives otherwise when that first idle moment arrives and your guard is down I can promise you that temptation will show up at your door telling you to lighten up for a day, it won't hurt, you deserve a break. If you listen to that and become lazy you will have lost the battle. Can you still win the war? Possibly. But only if you get back on track and immerse yourself totally and completely. Keep your eyes, ears and thoughts on your objectives and temptation to let your guard down will appear less and less enticing as you move closer and closer to your goals.