I ran into a friend of mine the other day, and our subject turned to exercise, I asked her if she was still going to her yoga classes and her face fell.
"No," she said.
Then she cocked her head and added, "Well, I'm going once a week, but I was going three times.'
The coach in me had to pick her up on this.
"So you're going to yoga once a week!" I said.
'Well, yeah..."
'Brilliant!"
One of the key factors in our self esteem is following through on the things we ask of ourselves. If we do what we say we were going to do, we feel good about ourselves. If we don't, we take a knock, and this can affect our motivation, our mood and make it difficult for us to feel positive. This in turn impacts on how we approach other things in our lives
Part of the problem is we ask too much of ourselves in the first place. In this case, getting to yoga three times a week is a big commitment. How about you say you will go once, and give yourself a pat on the back if you do? If you get there more often, it's a bonus and an energy rush!!
With exams on the horizon for the young people out there, this becomes a really key point. It is crucial to stay motivated and positive as you face day after day of revision. If you set realistic targets for each day, and complete the work you say you want to do , you will get a feel good factor that sets you up for the next one. If you ask yourself to revise an entire subject in 45 minutes and don't manage it, you finish the day feeling frustrated and like you have let yourself down.
Those extra few minutes to plan your revision realistically can pay huge dividends when you congratulate yourself at the end of each day, and in turn determine how you work towards the exams as a whole.
We can all use a little realism to help create a can-do attitude...
So, how can you change what you're asking of yourself to set yourself up to succeed??