I recently watched this talk by Matt Cutts on TED that talked about starting something new for 30 days and I was inspired.
So the idea is you think of something you’ve always wanted to do, and try it for the next 30 days. Why 30 days? Well 30 days is just long enough to build a habit, after the 30 days you’ll know whether the new thing you’ve tried to incorporate into your life has now become part of your life or whether it didn’t stick for you.
Deciding what to change
I particularly agree with his statement “When I made small sustainable changes, they were more likely to stick”. It’s important to just think of one thing you want to change and commit to it for 30 days. Picking the right challenge is key, too small and you might as well not have bothered, too big and you’ll fail to do it for 30 days. But if you get it just right, what might seem like a stretch at the beginning, will become part of your normal life by the end of the month.
What will you get out of it?
Well according to Matt, you’ll learn to appreciate each day, and make every day memorable. You see it’s not only about the change you make, but the fact that you’ve made it. You’ll become the kind of person who decides what they want and goes after it. Plus as an added benefit you might actually like some of your changes. The body is incredible at adapting so if you decide to give yourself a fitness challenge, by the end of the month, your body will have adapted to having that in your life, allowing you to take on something new.
Don’t wait
We always put things off, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll think ’30 day challenge, well I’ll have to wait till the beginning of next month’ but we’ve got to break this cycle of putting stuff off. So don’t wait till next month, next week or even tomorrow, choose your challenge and start today – life’s too short.
Let me know in the comments how you get on and what challenges you set yourself, tip: if you share your challenge with someone, you’re much more likely to stick with it!
