When you give something up completely there is a hardstop and it becomes finite. However, if you keep having some wins, eventually the sum of all the small wins equates to a big gain. Moreover, inadvertently these small gains convert to positive habits and become a lifestyle.
Small wins may not seem like a big achievement. For example, a daily 10 minute walk in the park, replacing soda with water at lunch and reading 5 minutes before bed, do not seem like much. But before you know it, these incremental shifts will be impactful habits in the long run.
Have you heard the saying, “If I got a dime every time I heard someone say that, I’d be a millionaire”? Such is the same concept with small wins. Every time you make a small shift towards a goal and work towards that, in the long run it becomes a good habit.
In the book, The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, he shares the importance of habitual habits and their impact on your life and more importantly your brain. He believes that if you give yourself a goal, habits start changing. In his findings he shares, “one set of neurological patterns had been overridden by new patterns”. In essence, as habits change so does your mind.
Small Gains are less intimidating and easily attainable. For example, losing 30 lbs seems overwhelming. It is much easier to push it off as a New Year’s Resolution. However, if you give yourself a goal of losing 5 lbs, you feel more motivated to initiate the process sooner than later. As you lose the 5 lbs, you can repeat the process and before you know it, you will have lost the 30 lbs.
Small Gains are a great way to jump start a positive change in your life. It seems less of a commitment although its impact has the power to become a great habit. It keeps you going in the right direction and keeps you motivated.