I started writing this email on the first day of spring. Happy spring! We think of spring as a time of moving ahead into new beginnings, rebirth, and change. We sometimes forget that the process of creating new beginnings, rebirth, and change can be messy! 

On the first day of spring, we experienced record rainfall. You know the saying, “April showers bring May flowers.” For the earth to nourish new growth there must be rain. Rain means wet clothes and soggy shoes, mud, and sometimes flooding. That's messy!

Sometimes we resist change because on some level we know that there will be something uncomfortable or messy about the process. One way to overcome resistance to change is to break the task down into tiny steps and begin by deliberately taking just the first tiny step.

He knew she had one half hour she could call her own and that she spent that watching television every evening. His suggestion was that she simply stand up and march in place for one minute of the 30 she spent in front of the TV. That’s it! Just one minute!

When he saw her the next week, she had successfully completed that assignment, and he noticed that her attitude had changed. She asked him, “What else can I do in one minute a day?” She was on her way!

Over the next months they worked together to build an exercise habit, minute-by-minute until her resistance to full aerobic workouts had dissolved. 

At least two things supported Julie’s success: 

First, she took tiny steps so as not to overwhelm her brain with the magnitude and disruption of change in her life. She eased into it so that the change was hardly noticeable.

Second, she had Dr. Maurer cheering her on as she moved ahead. It could be that Julie used Dr. Maurer as an “accountability coach,” someone to whom she would report her weekly accomplishing of her assignments. Or it could be that he served as more of a cheerleader, supporting her with positive feedback for each new step she took.

If you are seeking to create change in your life as you move ahead this spring, consider embracing the disorder or discomfort that may accompany that change, but also consider minimizing that disorder or discomfort by breaking the process down into tiny steps. Your brain may not even be alerted to what’s going on until you are well on your way and there is no longer anything to be alarmed about!