Your days of ice-cream-truck chasing are over. Get all the creamy popsicle flavor with none of the drippy, sticky popsicle mess. This shake is the perfect summer treat.
I thought this was appropriate since I'm starting my 30 Day Beard Growing Challenge again.
This blog was originally posted on August 27th of last year. Although my beard doesn't look like that yet.
The Power of Habit
That's the title of a book by Charles Duhigg. It's a very interesting book on how people create new habits or replace old ones. You really can't totally eliminate old habits, but you can replace existing ones.
Habits are based on a cue, activity, rewards system. Existing habits already have these defined. You receive some kind of cue, you do an activity without really thinking about it (the habit) and you receive some kind of reward. All three pieces are important. To change a habit you need to figure out what those three pieces are and to change the activity. There are several examples in the book and there are flowcharts on the website that show how to create or change habits.
Creating a new habit is similar, but you start with the activity, figure out what you will use as a trigger and what your reward will be.
There's a TED Talk that says basically that you can do anything for 30 days:
Conventional wisdom says it takes 21 days to create a habit but it's loosely based on an observation that it takes AT LEAST 21 days to create a habit. It may take 30 days to create a habit but it will probably take more. But try something for 30 days and you may be well on your way to creating a new habit...which is why 30 day challenges are so popular, whether it's my 30 day beard growing challenge:
Honestly, this one hasn't been too difficult. Or it may be this 30 day challenge that I'm starting on September 1st:
Now this one will require a bit more effort. To make it a habit I will need to add a cue and a reward. I think I will do mine first thing when I get up, but I won't use my alarm for a cue...I already have a habit of dragging my butt out of bed (I still haven't figured out what the reward is!). I will set another alarm 30 minutes later so I can read my email and check Facebook. This alarm will actually serve two purposes: to remind me to do the plank and to limit the amount of time I spend doing the other activities. What will my reward be? I don't know yet. It might just be the satisfaction of completing the challenge...after the 30 days is up I may need a new reward.
Often changing one habit or adding one new one has a cascading effect...many other habits are added or changed. The one habit is called a keystone habit.
So, let's kick September off with a 30 Day Plank Challenge and see if we can turn that into a new habit...maybe even a keystone habit! Who's with me?
I'm giving you a break from the 7 Secrets to Successful Follow Up since I like to get this post out at the beginning of the month! And for even more days to celebrate, check out the interesting days below.
Want to make the most out of your card sending on the go? All you need to do is download the SendOutCards iOS or Android app to your mobile device! This app is available to download for free and gives you the instant ability to act a prompting, anytime, anywhere. Experience an in depth look at all of the features available to you through the mobile app including new templates, layouts, fonts and more. Check out this thorough tutorial video now!
No summer is ever complete without a Bomb Pop or Fudgsicle from the ice cream truck... if you're a kid. But delicious hot-weather snacks aren't just for the young ones. These inventive frozen desserts are perfect for your next dinner party and you'll never settle for store-bought ice pops again! Continue reading.
From the PGA Championship and US Open to the world’s biggest food fight and world’s longest yard sale, there’s no shortage of fun things to do in August. Check out what you could be doing this month, then get out there and do it! Continue reading.
Here's an article about the 4 Communication styles. Take the quiz and find out which one you are. I'm sure that none of you are surprised that I'm an Analytical Communicator. The other 3 styles are: Intuitive, Functional and Personal.
There are 4 Communication Styles - and we are
born with one dominant style. Are you stepping into your role of being the
expert in your business? Depending on what your communication style is, whether
you may be new to your business or not, a lot of business people make the
mistake of not being the authority with their prospects. Let's view this from
the prospect's point of view - they have never been exposed to your product -
they meet you and are intrigued enough to meet you over coffee. If you use apologetic-type
language "I'm new to my business, so I don't know all of the
benefits" "I'm just learning myself", etc. this lack of
confidence gets mirrored from your prospect and you may hear "I need to
think about it". Claim your power in your business! Present the benefits,
ask for the order and then schedule your next exposure/appointment with your
prospect before you end the conversation. It's more rare that your prospect
will pursue you, they expect you to follow up.
The next several blog posts will feature one of the 7 Secrets to Effective Follow Up, starting today with Secret #1. These secrets were originally featured by Mary Swarts for her event by Jay McHugh back in May. She has kindly given me permission to share these tips for our events this month.
SECRET #1 - The best follow up system is the one you use consistently: daily, on purpose & with ease.
Whatever system you choose to use, make sure that it's something you can use consistently. One such system will be what Jay McHugh talks about when he comes to visit the San Francisco Bay Area in about 2 1/2 weeks. For more information check out these two Eventbrite pages:
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