Effective Change Takes Commitment and Hard Work

Just saying you want to break a habit will never make it happen. As soon as you find yourself in a stressful situation, chances are you will revert. The key is to change your mindset. That will allow your new beliefs to reframe your decision making process. Never become overly focused on your goals. Instead, focus on developing healthy habits to replace those that have already proven to be ineffective. You might have heard that it takes twenty-one days to make a habit stick. That's a myth. A good habit is not formed by repeating a process "x" number of times but develops alongside your change of mindset.

The following list of changes can help you to develop the right mindset to match your particular situation:

• Assume Change Can Happen - Your mindset was formed through prior experiences and emotional milestones, so acknowledge the fact that your mindset needs an adjustment before you set new goals.
• Start with Yourself - Following someone else's approach is never copying. Instead, it is the art of taking something that works and getting the inspiration you need to personalize your mindset.
• Select an Attainable Goal - If you start with less, get started and accept that it will make your journey more rewarding.
• Follow the Best Advice - There is always more information available than is needed. Finding and following the best advice is the answer. Everything else is a waste of your time.
• Don't Talk About It... Take Action - Hanging out in a doubting social circle of people with fixed-mindsets will act as an echo chamber for discussing bad ideas.
• Focus on Your Pace Only - Some people mistakenly proclaim that motivation and willpower is all that's needed to affect change. Change your mindset and avoid the need for white-knuckling your way to success.
• Create the Momentum - Changing your mindset doesn't happen by chance... it happens by choice and investing in a new mindset creates positive results.

Philosopher and self-help guru Wayne Dyer warns, "Never underestimate your power to change yourself; never overestimate your power to change others." Having a fixed mindset rather than a growth mindset has huge implications when it comes to how motivated someone is when confronted by a personal need for a change in his or her attitude or behavior. Your mindset is a complete collection of your beliefs, thoughts and knowledge about yourself and the world you live in. Your attitude is the filter that determines how you receive information and react to it. In fact, you may already know that it is time to take action and change things in your life. Change takes vision, commitment and hard work.