We internalize what we do consistently.
If we consistently avoid effort, we will internalize lack of initiative. If we consistently reach out to others with love, we will internalize warmth and caring. Change begins with doing. Simply shifting goals or mindsets will not produce lasting change.
Notice how athletes work out in structured routines. Surgeons learn their craft by following evidence-based procedures and following these faithfully. Performing artists master their craft through feedback and repetition. When practice and performance are process-based, something important happens psychologically: We internalize a sense of discipline and self-control. Consistency of preparation and practice creates consistency of performance.
To change ourselves psychologically, we can start with just one improvement we wish to make and create a routine for implementing that shift every single day. If I want to internalize a sense of physical fitness, I can go to the gym daily and challenge my limits in terms of flexibility, aerobics, and strength. If I want to internalize discipline in my trading, I can use backtests and performance reviews to create rules for when to take trades, where to enter/exit, etc. Following rules each day leads me to internalize a sense of control. Pushing my limits each day reinforces a sense of growth and achievement.
Choose one goal and do one thing to achieve that goal daily for a month. Then take on a second goal for a month, etc. and add that to the first. Then a third goal, a fourth--and soon you internalize a sense of progress, achievement, and self-control.
We don't change by thinking new things. We do new things and shift how we think and feel.
What one thing will you do consistently this week to be your best version of yourself?
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