20 Ways to Prepare Yourself For Success in Your 21-Day Challenge - Part 1

For some people, facing and surmounting a challenge is as simple as just doing it.

These are the lucky few who can decide to accomplish something and immediately begin accomplishing it.

Want to write a book? They sit down and begin writing.

Get the girl? They go up and talk to her.

Most people aren’t like this. Most people need tips, tricks, tools, and concrete strategies.

They require more than the simple inspiration that lies within to get moving and actively pursue the goal – whatever it may be.

And even if that internal motivation exists, the tools and tips can still help activate and enable it.

That’s why I’ve compiled 20 ways to set yourself up for success in the upcoming 21 Days No Complain Challenge With Dr. Jerry - the First  Because I know that feeling.

While I’m lucky enough to do the things I want to do and hardworking enough to often succeed at them, it doesn’t always come easy.

There’s a lot that comes before “just doing it.” We all need a little help getting started.

Don’t think you need to employ all 20 strategies, though. In fact, trying to might just overwhelm you and impede your progress.

You might need five, six, just one, or even none! 

Use what works, what’s applicable to your personal struggles, and discard the rest.

General

1. Enlist a friend to join you.

It’s one thing to stay accountable to yourself – not the greatest motivator for some people, because failing to follow through means the only person you’re offending or letting down is yourself.

But when failing means failing a trusted, loving friend or relative who has pledged to also complete a challenge at your side, failure hits harder.

You know how your folks could always make you feel really bad by saying they “weren’t mad as much as disappointed in you”?

Failing a friend is kind of like that. It hurts, and in order to avoid the pain, you’ll probably stick with the challenge.

2. Make your challenge public.

Has anyone watched the mid 2000s HBO show Rome? Ian McNeice played the town crier who would announce news and political developments, basically serving as an expository vehicle to keep viewers up to date on the show’s complex storyline.

I’ve got to imagine that he’d also be a great way to hold people accountable for their challenges by letting their social circles in on it.

We don’t really have town criers anymore (unfortunately), but we can make our challenges public through Facebook, Twitter, forums or good ol’ fashioned face to face contact.

3. Reward yourself for incremental successes.

We aren’t dogs, but we do respond to conditioning.

Every time you succeed along your journey, give yourself a little reward.

Not Hershey’s Kisses, not a cronut, not McDonald’s fries, mind you.

Contribute a few bucks to a vacation fund. Watch an episode of your favorite TV show.

Take a couple hours to go for a hike. 

Eat a slice or two of bacon.

Reward your animal side with something you enjoy (as long as it doesn’t conflict with the spirit and intent of your challenge, like the aforementioned cronut) to establish a positive association with hard work.

4. Print out a calendar and plan your challenge, day by day.

21 days might seem like a long time, but it’ll go faster than you think. Don’t let it get away from you. Get ahead of it from the very start by planning – meticulously or loosely – your approach for the Challenge.

Fill out the calendar today, before it starts, and tick each day off as you complete it – but only if you stick to the schedule.

5. Start with a small win.

Big wins start small. When I’m sitting down to write a book, I don’t measure success by drafts, chapters, or even pages. If I can get a solid paragraph down, I’m happy. That’s a win. It’s not the win (I’m not sure such a thing even exists, to be honest) and it doesn’t mean I’m finished, but it’s a start.

As you approach the Challenge, break your goals up into little winnable bites, and then prepare to crush them.

And make sure to celebrate those wins. You don’t need to bust out the confetti, but you should acknowledge the small win (and give yourself one of those rewards mentioned earlier).

Thanks for reading this 

Part 2 is up tomorrow

Cheers

Dr. Jerry - the First Oguzie: JP

Challenge Director