FOCUS ON THE RHYTHMS
Most of us have areas in our life that we want to change or grow in. Change typically happens in our lives in two primary ways.
The first way is through a substantial event. A situation that forces us to use focus with high attention or high intensity. These are the events that we never forget. When we cross the finish line of a marathon or witness the birth of a child, these moments literally rewire parts of our brain, causing new neurological pathways to form. These new pathways then allow us to perform in different ways. For example, this is what helps a new mother almost instantly recognize the cry of her child. New pathways in her brain have been rewired based upon the massive event that she has gone through.
The second and more common way for us to change our actions is through small, consistent behavioral changes over time. This type of change doesn't come with sirens or days that make the history books. Instead, it is a series of purposeful steps done over and over. For this type of change to be successful, the steps need to be small and with great attention to the reward and reinforcement. Over time science has shown that this too can rewire the brain, causing new neurological pathways, so the action that required great intentionality then has now become a regular part of our lives.
Now think about how you have typically tried to make a change in your life. If you are like me, it wasn't with a HUGE event, and it also wasn't through small intentional steps. Most of the time, we try to achieve significant changes in a short amount of time without a corresponding event and without clear, intentional steps. While some people have been able to have some success with this, most of us have not. The truth is, changing outward behavior without changing our inward thinking leads to frustration and disappointment. This is because we haven't given our brains an opportunity to rewire in a way that the new action becomes our norm.
This is why I want us to focus on rhythms in our lives. Small steps that, if done over time, have the power to bring significant change. Some of these challenges will be easy for you, and others might be hard. My goal is to present a challenge every month with some thoughts on how this rhythm could impact your life. After reading the challenge, you can decide if and how you would like to participate. Here is the format you could use:
1. Read the challenge.
2. Reflect on the possible benefits this challenge could bring to your life.
3. Write down what your purposed action steps will be for that month, and your reason behind it.
4. Share it with three people who are in your life and consider inviting them to the challenge as well.
The goal of this is not a massive change for two weeks and then reverting to old ways. The goal is to take small steps that literally will rewire our brains over time, leading us to become the best version of ourselves that we can be.
-Greg