I received a book a few days ago that someone
recommended me to read, called Influencer: The New Science of Leading
Change by Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, David
Maxfield, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler. These are the best-selling
Authors of another book, Crucial Conversations which I have yet to read
but I think it is next!
In the "Influencer" book, there are THREE areas where influencers operate with great skill:
"1) Focus and Measure: Influencers are crystal clear about the result
they are trying to achieve and are zealous about measuring it.
2)
Find Vital Behaviors: Influencers focus on high-leverage behaviors that
drive results. More specifically, they focus on the two or three vital
actions that produce the greatest amount of change.
3) Engage all
six sources of influence: Influencers break from the pack by
overdetermining change. Where most of us apply a favorite tool or two to
our important challenges, influencers identify all of the varied forces
that are shaping the behavior they want to change and then get them
working FOR rather than AGAINST them. And now for the really good news.
According to our research, by getting six different sources of influence
to work in their favor, influencers increase their odds of success
tenfold."
This is a pretty awesome book so far! I realize that I
have been the MAJOR INFLUENCER of MY OWN BEHAVIOR during this process
of getting healthy! I've employed ALL THREE of the areas discussed
above! Without even knowing I was doing anything formal LOL!
Because if you think about it, the FIRST PERSON we need to influence in
order to CHANGE OUR OWN LIVES is......OURSELVES. And I know by
experience I was a tough nut to crack.
Take #1: I have always
said we need to be CRYSTAL CLEAR about where we are HEADED in this
process of getting healthy. Not some vague ambition about "I wanna lose
weight...I really really wanna lose weight.." which is so uninspiring to
me I want to run away when I hear it. No. Crystal clear on the POSITIVE
OUTCOME we want to achieve. Not what we want to LOSE. What we want to
GAIN. Specifics, people, SPECIFICS. Crystal clarity means you can see
the intricate detail. Even "to get healthy" is pretty vague, so I had to
go about defining EXACTLY what that meant FOR ME. WHAT did "getting
healthy" mean? So I did that.
Then #2: Finding vital behaviors.
I knew that if I didn't absolutely retool and redirect a few vital
behaviors which were sending me in the WRONG direction I would never
achieve lasting change. Therefore I INTRODUCED Habits of Health in to my
life. I made them SO ROUTINE in my life as to repeat them DAILY with
ease. Incremental, sustainable changes that I could bring INTO my life. I
didn't focus on the behaviors I wanted OUT of my life, those habits of
disease, but I focused on BRINGING IN habits of HEALTH which necessarily
edged out the habits of disease because the two habits could not exist
simultaneously in my life.
Finally, #3: The six sources they refer to as they expand this concept are:
*Personal Motivation
*Personal Ability
*Social Motivation
*Social Ability
*Structural Motivation
*Structural Ability
I'll break these down for you:
*Personal Motivation = Do I ENJOY the process of getting healthy?
*Personal Ability = Can I physically do what I want to do?
*Social Motivation = do others encourage me to enact the wrong behaviors?
*Social Ability = Do others encourage me to success?
*Structural Motivation = Am I surrounding myself with "things" that are
enabling my performance, or am I surrounding myself with "things" that
are disabling performance? Ask are the things I surround myself with, or
the things I reward myself with encouraging success or encouraging
behaviors that will sabotage my success?
*Structural Ability =
"environment" can either enable or disable performance. To examine this
source, ask does my environment enable me for success?
One of
the biggest hindrances I found in both my own journey and helping others
is #1, personal motivation. Do I enjoy the process of getting healthy?
This is an absolutely foundational question to answer for ourselves.
Because if we allow ourselves to continue viewing this process as one
big bummer, one big restriction, one big deprivation, then it will
ABSOLUTELY remain that for us and we won't even have an opportunity or
desire to establish the other 5 sources to harness them for success.
We won't want to. Why do something we don't want to do? After all, we
live in a free country, right? We don't LIKE being uncomfortable. We
don't LIKE doing things we perceive as CHORES. BUMMERS. KILL-JOYS. And
let's face it, we can only hold our breath (another unpleasant task) for
SO LONG before we have to burst out of the water and get some oxygen.
If our oxygen is yummy nummy food, then that is exactly what we will
reach for in SPADES when we come up for air. If our oxygen is AWESOME
HEALTH then we will continue doing the behaviors that will enable us to
REMAIN in optimal health once we GET there.
So, the FIRST step
in utilizing all 6 sources of inspiration/motivation on your journey to
health is to GET HAPPY in the PROCESS. Make PEACE with your limitations
and find JOY in your journey.
No Eyores here is what I'm
sayin'. Can you hear him now, in his Eyore voice? "Ho-hum, another
bummer day doing another bummer diet, life is full of disappointment and
deprivation..."
Wow this blog has run long but I am just
excited about what I'm learning and how I can apply it to my journey! I
may edit later and add thoughts, but my brain is full and no more words
will come out right now LOL.
Rinse and Repeat!
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