How are your New Year Resolutions going? Do you need an incentive?

Ask any millionaire, and they’ll tell you that being wealthy is a lifestyle. You’ll get the same response from fitness experts, industry leaders, and influential people. A person is only a culmination of their good and bad habits, and there is a ton of evidence to support that.      

Of course, not everybody wants to be a millionaire or to lose 40 pounds before the year ends. However, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t form new habits this year. The thing about habits is that they are very difficult to form and even harder to break, but the payoff from creating and keeping good habits is immense, and bad habits can have a truly destructive impact.       

Think about the chronic smoker who started out with two cigarettes a day and is now smoking two entire packs every single day. In the same breath, think about the person who started 2018 as an overweight individual, but has now lost all their excess weight and still goes to the gym three times a week. The difference between these people is simple: they picked up different habits at the beginning of the year.      

The science behind habit-forming has been studied for years. Researchers at Cornell University say that the average adult human being makes roughly 35,000 conscious decisions each day. 200 of these decisions are made on the choice of food alone! It is, therefore, no surprise that once we’ve reached our decision-making capacity, we automatically resort to our habits. This is why it is super important to create good habits because otherwise your default action after a long, stressful day of making decisions would be resorting to “bad habits.”     

How to Create New Healthy Habits and Make Them Stick      

On paper, forming habits is quite straightforward. Want a better-looking body? Exercise frequently. Want to be smarter than your classmates? Study more often. Want to be rich and successful? Make it a habit of managing your time and money. It sounds easy, but it isn’t because ultimately our habit-forming abilities are hinged on our willpower.       

Willpower is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. Adapt it to tough situations, and it gets even stronger. However, push too hard, and willpower collapses too. In the end, willpower is best used in short, effective bursts. Therefore, the best way to create new habits is by making it as simple as possible to retain the habit. How do you achieve this?      

Identify the Habit You Wish to Form, then Break It Down Into Little Steps      

If you want to achieve a specific goal by the end of the year, think about the process first. See how you can break it into bite-sized sections that you will easily remember to do each day. For example, if it’s a better body you want, focus on getting every day’s exercise done no matter what it takes. If you want to be a better writer, focus on reaching your targeted word count every day.        Focusing on the goal will only get you discouraged, but paying attention to the steps will keep you focused on doing your part every day.      

Expect Failure, and Learn From It      

The truth is that you will slip and fall along the way. There is no way around failure, but there is a surefire way to get past it, and that is to keep going. Accept failure, not as a sign of your lack of strength, but as a test of your resolve. The best part about moving on from failure is that you become so used to failing that it no longer has the power to stop you from achieving your goals.       

In 2019, try and create at least one good habit and stick with it for the rest of the year. Whether it is going to sleep earlier, working out regularly, or eating better, a good habit sticks with you for life, and you will be reaping its benefits long after your body becomes adapted to it.

 Mayfair, we care

Most people working in offices or working as drivers, can sit all day without doing much movement or exercise.

Sitting all day can cause major back problems and lead to posture issues not to mention pain. Sitting has become the new smoking as far as resultant health issues are concerned but some of us have little choice but to sit down for most of the day.

We are all aware of the importance of getting up and moving regularly but in reality, work gets in the way and we don’t have time to do what we know we should.

However, for those of us at desks or when the vehicle is stationary there is a new technique created by Dell – Maree Day who is a biochemics and posture expert.

Her advice is as follows.

·       Move half forward on the seat so that your feet are flat on the floor directly under your knees and your back is not touching the back of the chair.

·       Look straight ahead and sit up tall with relaxed arms to restore the natural curve of your spine. In this position you should find your eyes level with the top third of your computers monitor if you have it in the correct position (which many of us don’t!).

·       Practice the invisible breathing technique. Breathing in deeply and as you breathe out think ‘sternum through towards your spine’. As you think this thought you will feel your deep abdominal muscles doing their job, flattening and narrowing your waist. Repeat these 5 to 6 times every hour. “Within days you will feel your abs strengthening and your posture will already have improved” says Day

These postures will activate every one of your muscles so you will breath, sit, stand, move and exercise better transforming your posture and body shape day says.

Mayfair, we care.

Source – The Invisible Exercise by Dell-Maree Day

How resilient are you?

Does the smallest setback in your business or personal life become a major drama? And does a major setback in your personal or business life become a total catastrophe?

How easy do you find it to bounce back from adversity? Some people seem to have amazing resilience to bounce back from personal or business failure but for others it can be far more difficult and potentially lead to significant health issues.

By showing external resilience it does not mean that you are unaffected by events, more that they have worked out how to deal with setbacks and have strong coping mechanisms as a result.

We can all work on our capability to bounce back from adversity. Here are seven hints and tips that will help.

Be happy with excellent even though you’re striving for superb.

There really is no such thing as total perfection so settling for completion of the project that is very good, or excellent, will reduce your stress levels and enable you to move on to the next project.

Take time out.

Even in the busiest of days it is important to give yourself some “me time“. This might involve reading, a hobby or exercise.

Do something different.

By signing up for a course at the local college or Joining a local sports club you will develop your relationships with others and boost your physical and mental well-being. 

Spend time with positive people.

It is widely known that some people can suck the energy out of the room; these people are known as mood hoovers and you should avoid them at all costs! Surround yourself with supportive friends and positive acquaintances. This is good for confidence and your own belief in yourself.

Keep active.

Staying in good health is important for resilience therefore aim for 30 minutes a day of moderate activity.

Talking.

Good relationships are key to resilience and there is nothing better than A good chat with a good friend or relative to affect the quality of your relationships.

Time is a healer.

Remember that no matter how bad things might seem at the moment due to a business failing or relationship breakdown, such bad times to pass And you will emerge a stronger person in due course.

Please note however that if you are experiencing extreme distress on an ongoing basis then you should seek professional help as well as taking the advice above.

 Mayfair, we care

Will make them, don’t we? We promise ourselves that we will exercise more, drink less, eat less and eat healthily, lose weight and stop smoking as well as a multitude of other resolutions.

But how many of us keep the promises that we’ve made to ourselves? It is said that by the second week of February over 80% of new year resolutions have been broken.

So, what’s the secret of keeping a successful resolution?

One top tip is not to make too many resolutions.

Choose the most important one or one that you are confident about and feel strongly about and stick with it. Concentrating on one resolution is easier than two, three, four or more because then it becomes very, very difficult and you are likely to be disheartened if you are failing on even one of them.

Have smart targets.

S – be specific and set yourself a target. If you want to exercise more perhaps this might be 20 minutes per day. If weight loss it might be a specific number of pounds / kilos in a week etc etc.

M – be sure that you measure your achievements. Keep a note of your progress against your goals and know when you need to work that little bit harder if you’re not on target.

A – be accountable to someone else. Tell another person which might be a family member, or a work colleague, what your goal is and ask them to check progress with you on a regular basis.

R – be realistic.  Is your goal realistic? If it’s not realistic you will become discouraged and the resolution will fail. If you are realistic you have a better chance of success and then can set new goals to the next level when you have achieved your target.

T – make your resolution time bound. When do you want to achieve your goal by? Will it be a three-month project, six months or more? A time bound goal is crucial for success.

So please be good to yourself in 2019 and if you follow the advice above you will have a better chance of success than the 80% of people who don’t make it past the second week of February.