I love the fresh start of a new year.

But let’s be honest.

All of the resolutions, goals, intentions, planning, and choosing our “word of the year” can sometimes be accompanied by mild panic and the pressure of falling short of those expectations we’ve set for ourselves.

It’s kind of funny that we somehow believe we’ll be an entirely different person with an altogether different set of behaviors come January 1st.

As if we didn’t just drag our same old December brain into January with us!

Listen, I’m all for setting big goals and chasing after those dreams, but I’m also realistic about how our minds work, as well as the tools for sustainable success.

It’s why I’m not at all surprised when I have a really great session with a client, and she leaves our call “motivated, inspired, and excited to take action,” only to show up the following week having done a complete 180, feeling somewhat down in the dumps because she “lost her motivation.”

It’s also the reason why I know that most people, by the end of January, will have abandoned their new diet, exercise routines, and other newly implemented habits, or why, after a few “bad days” turn into a few “bad weeks,” the proverbial towel gets thrown in.

This is why over the next few weeks, I’m sharing some simple mindset shifts you can take with you into the year ahead.

Mindset shifts that I hope will help you in avoiding some of the most common pitfalls when it comes to achieving health, weight, and wellness goals (or really, any type of goal).

If you’re someone who struggles with that “all or nothing” mentality, be sure to follow along!

Mindset Shift: Motivation isn’t a prerequisite to taking action.

A fresh start can undoubtedly bring with it a renewed feeling of both motivation and inspiration.

While both can be helpful in the beginning as we integrate new habits or behaviors into our daily routine, at some point, that motivation “well” runs dry.

But the truth is we don’t just “lose” our motivation.

We create motivation with the thoughts that we’re thinking.

Specific thoughts produce the feeling of motivation.

Often when we “lose our motivation,” it’s because our thinking has shifted; we’re no longer focused on the thoughts that made us feel motivated previously.

Or, the same thoughts that previously produced feelings of motivation no longer is doing the trick for us.

This could be for many reasons—it’s no longer a believable thought, or the novelty has just worn off.

One Option (But not always favorable)

So one option would be to find a new thought that re-creates that feeling of motivation (or inspiration) in you that propels you to take the action you want to take.

That may do the trick sometimes.

But let’s face it.

It can also be really hard some days.

Life is pretty 50/50. Have you noticed?

We have good days, and we have bad days.

Upsetting things happen.

Plans fall through.

We get run down.

When this happens, “drumming up” the feeling of motivation isn’t necessarily something we feel like doing, or even want to do, for that matter.

So here’s what I want to offer instead.

A more realistic Approach

First—Plan on it.

In other words, consider that there’s a *very* strong possibility that you might be unmotivated to do “the thing” that you want to do when the time rolls around, but commit to doing it anyway.

By all means, set yourself up for success however you can: lay the exercise clothes out the night before or stock your kitchen with healthy food options, etc.

But please don’t believe that something has gone terribly wrong when the time rolls around to do your exercise or prepare yourself the healthy meal, and you feel “unmotivated.”

Second—Understand that you can feel unmotivated and still take action towards your goals.

Yes, it’s a thing!

Consider all of the other areas in your life where this is true for you.

For example, maybe you get up and go to work every day.

You probably don’t always feel like it, but you do it because there are other feelings driving your behavior besides feelings of “motivation” or “inspiration.”

Maybe you’re driven by a feeling of responsibility—to your family, to your clients and customers, your team, or to yourself.

Other examples of feelings that might drive action are:

• Determined
• Courageous
• Curious
• Confident

Consider the thoughts that create these feelings in you.

Of course, the specific thoughts will be different for everyone, but the following are examples that could produce the associated feeling below.

Example # 1: Feeling Determined

Example #2: Feeling Courageous

• No matter how many times I fail, I won’t stop showing up for myself.
• I know that the feeling of accomplishing (insert whatever action you don’t feel like doing) will far outweigh any discomfort I’m feeling right now.
• I’m going to show myself what I’m capable of.
• I want to be an example of what’s possible.
• I can get through this—this is not such a big deal in the grand scheme of things.

Putting it into action

Brainstorm your own list of compelling thoughts (or borrow the ones above) that promote the feelings that propel you to take the action you want.

In his books, Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art, Turning Pro, and Do the Work, pointedly talks about The Amateur vs the Professional Mindset.

I’m totally paraphrasing here, but he speaks about how the amateur waits around to feel inspired before getting to work while the professional gets to work and shows up even when she “doesn’t feel like it.” And this habit is what ultimately gets someone to that “pro-level.”

As we all know, life sometimes takes unexpected turns.

Sometimes you might only be able to muster the bare minimum.

Just remember that feeling motivated or inspired (or even feeling “good,” for that matter) isn’t a prerequisite for taking action towards your goals.

In fact, the actions that you’re avoiding (i.e. moving your body, cooking healthy meals, taking a break from wine, going to bed earlier, being nice to yourself, etc.) might just be the exact things you need to support yourself during those trying times.

Wishing you a wonderful New Year!

Love Elaine

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