Old Habits Die Hard!
Have you ever wondered why you do things the way you do them? How is it that habit began and continued? Is what you’re doing still working for you? Sometimes the old habit doesn’t work so well in the current situation. If not, how do you change that habit? Practice, practice, practice…
Recently, I have been driving back and forth from my home to my mother’s to help her. I am often driving 5-6 hours each way, that is 10-12 hours per trip, two times per month. As a result I developed shoulder and neck pain on my left side. I tried a variety of things including exercise, heat, cold, and I even went to the Doctor. She said, “You have extreme muscle tightness in your left shoulder” – and asked, “What did you do?” I didn’t know until I realized that I always use my left hand to steer my car and I’m doing it without many breaks for up to 6 hours at a time. Then I wondered, being right handed, why I drive with my left hand. My first car was a Fiat 124 Spider (red, convertible – not important, but fun to remember), manual transmission. Of course I would steer with my left hand, the right hand was shifting gears! Every car since that one, until now, has been a manual transmission. Now, I don’t have to steer with my left hand all of the time, yet I still do. Not wanting to experience the shoulder and neck pain anymore, I began steering with my right hand and both hands. Wow, this feels weird! The more I practice, the more comfortable this becomes.
This can happen in your work as well. Skills that make us successful at one level, or in some situations, can become painful and make us less successful at another level. We have become practiced at using a skill or set of skills to achieve our goals. Many of my clients are moving up in their careers (woo hoo – congratulations!) and they have habits that made them successful when they worked alone (or in occasional teams). Now, they are in new positions, which because of increased demands, require them to work with mixed groups and a team where they need more to achieve their goals and those of the organization. When I ask, “Who can you work with to help you achieve your goals?” I often hear that there’s no one to help. Or, they’re used to doing it themselves and that’s how they’re successful. What might be possible if you changed? Imagine all of the great ideas and talent you could bring to the project if you engaged others! Maybe things you hadn’t even thought of would be part of this new and improved process. And, you’d achieve bigger and better things. Hmm?!
How do you change habits? After all, the adage, “Old habits die hard” is so true. It first takes awareness of the habit. This observation can come from you, a colleague, a friend, and a coach. Then, it takes PRACTICE of the new habit. Promise yourself, and another person, to practice your new habit every day for 30 days. Check in every day with how you feel and whether you are becoming more effective in using the new habit. What happens around you? Enjoy your new habit and the new you!
