How to floss regularly, and getting other things done
In a recent post, I outlined a 10-step process for making new habits stick. I want to share an example of what this looks like in practice. Let's get serious about flossing.
But before we sink our teeth into this one, here's a review of the 10 steps (more detail on each of these in the post):
Identify the behaviour you want to change.
Understand your reasons for why you want to make this change.
Get on board with your reasons.
Understand why you haven't changed this previously.
Recognise what's different now.
Generate a list of options for what you could do instead.
Pick the option(s) that you think will be the most successful for you.
Make a list of everything that could prevent you from following through with the option(s).
Come up with a strategy to neutralise every obstacle in the list.
Give it a try!
Historically, I have been a haphazard flosser at best. I really hated the task. It is not fun and it doesn't speak to my freedom-seeking, rebellious nature. There's nothing cool or edgy about flossing. At the end of a hard day, when my brain is tired and seeks freedom from all obligations, it seemed like one more thing I didn't want to do.
I decided to work on this with my coach. No topic is too small to be coached on, and in fact, this small challenge turned out to be a great representative example of a larger pattern in my life.
My reasons for wanting to get great at flossing regularly were clear. I want to keep my excellent teeth into old age and I've had gum problems in the past that I do not wish to revisit. The opportunity cost of doing nothing could be very expensive! These are great reasons and I'm 100% on board with them.
The reasons why I wasn't a successful flosser in the past are too many to mention here, but they can be summed up as: the time that I was doing this (late at night), my emotional state (tired, wanting to be free of tasks) and the way I was approaching this (not making it more interesting or rewarding) all were not serving me well.
I came up with all sorts of strategies to make the new habit stick, ranging from flossing in the morning or afternoon, flossing while doing something else, gamifying the task, holding myself accountable to others, and other methods too silly to mention.
In the end, I chose to try flossing in the morning instead and see how many days I could keep it up. I recognised that I might forget to do this first thing (obstacle!) and so I prevented that by placing the floss in front of my toothbrush stand.
It turns out that by only changing one small thing (the time of day, and therefore my emotional state), I've been able to floss every day, without fail, for seven months straight. Even when I moved house in February, I made sure to pack the floss in a special place so that I could easily set up the bathroom for the first morning in the new place. I was on a streak and didn’t want to break it, especially for completely preventable reasons (see step #9)!
There are two main takeaways from this experience that I want to share:
The process works. If you don't cut corners and truly explore each step, you will be able to get the results you want.
Coaching is the most effective way to raise awareness, integrate behaviour, and make it stick. This is because the act of reflecting with someone, talking it through, and then letting your brain do the rest of the processing outside of the session is incredibly powerful.
If you've experienced the transformative benefits of coaching, you know why it's the fast track to getting the outcomes you want. If you haven't yet, book a free discovery call with me to find out how I can help you get to where you want to go.
