Is Determination Alone Enough to Change Those Bad Habits?

Most of us are taught that if we try hard enough we can accomplish any goal. But sometimes, when we’ve spent years training ourselves into a habit, determination isn’t going to be enough to change that pattern. Of course being determined is an essential ingredient in changing your habits but in my 12 years of mentoring and coaching entrepreneurs I can guarantee you, it’s not enough!

Here’s why…

Your habits are a direct result of your beliefs.

No matter how determined you are to do things right, if your beliefs are not congruent with the ACTION you need to take, no amount of pushing, forcing and challenging yourself will be sustainable. You’ll most likely see a change for a few days, a quick burst of momentum but within 10 – 21 days you will slide right back to those hold habits.

That’s because your core beliefs energetically match the actions you take (or don’t take).

Let’s say you realize you aren’t courageous enough to charge more for your offerings. But you look around and notice that many are charging more – a LOT more! So you think to yourself, “There is no way that could work for me – no one would ever pay me more.” Or you’ll ruminate about it for a while and come to the conclusion, “I just can’t do it – what if no one buys at that price?”

If we were to follow that line of thinking we’d probably uncover that on some deep level you have a limiting belief around what you are worth.

Here’s another example…

Your coach shows you how to organize your time more effectively. You KNOW what you should be doing each day to get traction but somehow every day you get sucked into a bunch of distractions and low pay off activities.

You know you SHOULD do things differently but you ARE NOT doing it. Why? Because deep down inside you are in conflict about success. You think you want to make more money or have a successful business but you’ve been carrying around this belief – what we might call a story – about what would happen!

You fear what you would have to give up – family time, your freedom, a hobby or maybe even your deep belief that you aren’t good enough.

You fear what people might think – you think you are better than they are or that you are evil.

And you might even worry that giving your business everything you’ve got could blow up. What if it DOESN’T work? What will people think?

So how does one actually change habits permanently then?

You’ve got to recode your beliefs in order to up-level the actions or habits you take. Sometimes you can shift instantly by becoming aware of the belief that is dictating your actions – sometimes you need guidance to identify and recode that belief.

If you would like guidance, check out this free training, How to Recode Your MoneyDNA for Automatic Success. In this free webinar, I’ll show you how to recode your beliefs so that you permanently transform your habits — and automatically do the right things to achieve higher levels of success.

Another approach is to make a list of all the beliefs, stories and excuses you tell yourself in order to keep that habit alive. Then, each time you catch yourself in your old habit, ask yourself, “What am I telling myself right now to keep this habit? Is it really true or am I just telling myself this?” That should help you break down the old habit. Be sure to instantly replace the old habit with a new one that is more aligned with your ideal outcome!