Why is changing a behavior such a challenge? We attempt to lose weight, balance our budget and get organized…and in the beginning it appears to work. However, over time, we often find ourselves going back and doing what we’ve always done and then wondering…why didn’t I change?
Change is a challenge because you’re up against a highly skilled opponent…the chatter-in-your-head that is determined to keep you where we are.
The following is an excerpt from my book, Your Guide to…A Better Way of THINKING.
John and Noah are the primary characters and are having a conversation about, “what pulls us back to the way we were.”
”So the present moment holds peace in place,” said John?
“Just like an orthodontic retainer,” Noah said with a smile.
“That’s an interesting combination― orthodontics and inner peace,” John replied.
Noah tapped on his front teeth. “As a young adult, I wore braces. Upon their removal, my doctor explained that wearing a retainer was necessary to maintain the position of my teeth.”
“What would happen if you didn’t wear the retainer?” John inquired, remembering friends in school who had to wear those pesky things.
“I presented my doctor with the same question. ‘Each tooth,’ he said, ‘is in a socket of bone suspended by tiny ligaments. When a tooth is straightened, these ligaments become stretched. Over time, they will detach and reattach in a perpendicular fashion. However, if the tooth is not retained in its new position, there are enough stretched ligaments in place that will pull the tooth back to the way it was.’ ”
“So when I allow my attention to leave the present moment, my chatter will pull me back to the way I was?”
“Precisely…because our egos do not want us to change.”
To learn more about the mental factors that faciliate change and those that do not, checkout my podcast and video by clicking on MASTERPIECES TAKE TIME.