Transform Your Behavior Painlessly by Using the 5-Minute Success Strategy

by: Nandang S Nugraha | Total views: 86 | Word Count: 976 | View PDF | Print View

 by: Della Menechella

Recently, I coached a young woman whom I’ll call Mary
about how to make critical lifestyle changes. Mary had always struggled
with her weight. She had no control over her eating and she could not
maintain a consistent exercise program. That’s when I suggested that
Mary try the 5-Minute Success Strategy to help her overcome her problem
behavior. The beauty of this strategy is that you can use it both to
eliminate an unwanted behavior and establish a desired one.

STOPPING WHAT YOU DON’T WANT

I told Mary that anytime she felt compelled to eat when
she wasn’t hungry, she was to commit to not eating for 5 minutes. If
she still felt the urge to wolf down unwanted calories after the 5
minutes had passed, she was to refrain from eating for another 5
minutes. Often, one or two 5-minute sessions are sufficient to allow
the urge to pass. However, if Mary still felt that she had to eat, I
told her to continue to commit to not eating for 5 minutes at a time
until the urge disappeared.

I used this strategy personally when I decided to quit
smoking. In the days of the dinosaurs when I quit smoking, nicotine
withdrawal aids did not exist. The only way someone who was addicted to
cigarettes could successfully quit (make no bones about it – I was
smoking up to 2 packs a day and was definitely addicted to nicotine)
was through sheer determination and strength of will. Of course, a few
mind games were also useful and that’s mainly what I used.

For a long-time smoker, the urge to have a cigarette is
often overwhelming. When I made the decision to become a non-smoker,
the thought of never being able to smoke again brought sheer terror to
my mind. It seemed like an impossible task that I was certain I could
not achieve. So I decided not to quit forever. I would just focus on
not smoking for the next 5 minutes. Sometimes I had to not smoke 5
minutes at a time for six straight times in a row. But each time, I
only focused on not smoking for a measly 5 minutes. This might seem
like a simplistic mind game, but it worked for me. I have been smoke
free for 24 years and I have never had a relapse.

What would you like to stop doing? Would you like to
stop blowing up when the people on your team don’t meet their
commitments? Do you want to stop getting stressed when you find
yourself having to wait for other people? When you want to eliminate an
unwanted behavior, don’t focus on changing it forever. Just stop doing
it for 5 minutes at a time.

ACHIEVING WHAT YOU DO WANT

Getting back to Mary, I told her to begin some sort of
exercise program (after getting clearance from her doctor). She had
tried to maintain exercise programs in the past, but invariably she
came up with excuses and quit. Once again, I pulled out my 5-Minute
Strategy. I told Mary to commit to doing some type of physical activity
every day for 5 minutes. If she started to come up with an excuse for
one type of activity such as walking (“My back hurts, I can’t walk.”),
then she was to switch to something else (“You can ride a bike.”) The
idea was for her resist every excuse for not doing what she wanted to
do for at least 5 minutes. When people commit to doing something no
matter what happens, they realize after they begin it, that it isn’t as
difficult as they had imagined.

I use this strategy with my running program. I am
trying to reach a point where I can run 60 minutes straight. The mere
thought of it boggles my mind. When I think of me being able to run 60
minutes at one time, the first thing that comes to my mind is, “No way!
You’ll never be able to do that.” That’s when I pull out my 5-minute
strategy. Each week I build my distance by 5 minutes.

Last week, I went from running 30 minutes straight to
35 minutes without stopping. On the first day that I am scheduled to
increase the running time, I don’t focus on the new target because then
all of my doubts begin to surface. What I do is focus on the amount of
time that I have already been able to run successfully. So last week
when I began my run, I was only planning on running 30 minutes, which I
knew I could achieve since I had already run it several times before.
When I got to the point where I had run 30 minutes, then I decided to
run for only 5 more minutes, because running for only 5 minutes is
easy. Net result? I ran straight for 35 minutes, which was really my
goal. It’s another mind game, but it gets results.

What do you want to achieve on a regular basis? Do you
want to become more computer savvy? Do you want to get more organized
in your work? Then focus on building the new skills and behavior by
using 5-minute increments. Commit to doing the new behavior for only 5
minutes. Then you can add another 5 minute segment, and then another,
and before you know it, you will have adopted the desired behavior.

The 5-Minute Success Strategy may seem simplistic, but
it is a powerful technique that can allow you to take control of your
behavior and your destiny. Most people do not make changes easily. They
fall back on patterns that are familiar. When you use this strategy,
you are making small changes that will allow you to transform your
behavior in an easy, natural, painless manner.

About the Author

Della Menechella is a speaker, author, and trainer who inspires people to achieve greater success from the inside out. She is a contributing author to Thriving in the Midst of Change and the author of the videotape The Twelve Commandments of Goal Setting. She can be reached at della@dellamenechella.com. Subscribe to free Peak Performance Pointers e-zine - send blank e-mail to mailto:subscribe@dellamenechella.com.

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