5 Tips to help create lasting change

Breaking current habits and committing to lasting change can be extremely difficult for everyone. All around the world, people are facing the same struggles whilst committing to change in their lives. Our commitment to better ourselves through change is an ongoing process so don’t put yourself down if there are a couple of slip-ups on the way. Change can be hard, and it won’t happen overnight, but if you persevere it is possible. It can even help with common problems such as low mood or stress and anxiety.

So here are 5 tips you can try to help create lasting change in your life.

Set Reminders

Setting yourself reminders can be a very simple yet effective tool to help keep you on track. This can be done as pop-ups on your phone or by writing them down on sticky notes and leaving them somewhere around the house like a fridge or a mirror. Do whatever works for you!

Alongside setting these reminders of what you want to change you can also write down reminders on why you want to commit to this change. What is the motivation behind you wanting to do this? What life values will they help you follow? Maybe journaling your progress could help with this. Whatever your motivation, keeping this in mind can help you focus on maintaining your desired lasting change.

Reward Yourself

To help motivate you, try and plan regular rewards into your routine to celebrate what you have achieved. Whilst committing to change you may experience some discomfort, so planning something special for hitting important milestones can help drive you. This could be celebrating your achievement by congratulating yourself or you might prefer something like treating yourself to an ice cream or a long and relaxing bath.

However, I think the biggest reward will be seeing all your hard work pay off by reaching your goals for change.

Be in good company

Sometimes you need that little support to help you achieve your goals. This could be family or friends to help motivate you, someone who shares a similar goal, a support group or even a therapist to help you navigate these new changes.

Any change that is worth making is going to be challenging so having that extra support can make all the difference.

Forgive any setbacks

Occasionally we experience setbacks and that’s okay. It isn’t always a straight path to success, but setbacks don’t define you or your journey. It can be challenging dealing with the disappointment of things not going to plan but try to treat yourself with compassion and kindness if you do slip up. Ask yourself what your best friend would say to you, or what you would say to your best friend.  Gently unhook from any harsh criticisms and focus on this more compassionate perspective.

If you hit a barrier, take it as an opportunity to re-group and focus on why you wanted to make this change. You do not have to be hard on yourself to learn from things that do not go well, you can focus on what you can learn from it and how you can move forward.

One step at a time

Whatever you decide to focus on, it is important to take it one step at a time. If we don’t, it can become quickly overwhelming and we are more likely to give up. Having an end goal is a good starting point but can you break this down into smaller steps to achieve it? Breaking it down into smaller goals can help motivate you and allow you to track your progress.

If you would like to talk more about making changes you could consider some support. It may be a friend or relative but if you think psychology could help contact us at hello@nepsychology-co-uk.stackstaging.com, call 07870 241970 or contact us.