Jessie wanted to stop a bad, decade-long habit: she wanted to stop snacking after 8 pm.
She tried willpower, brushing her teeth right after dinner, going to bed earlier – all of which failed.
Until a friend suggested using the Jerry Seinfeld technique, aka “Don’t break the chain.”
According to a rumor, Seinfeld told a young wannabe comedian that if he were serious about his goal, he had to commit to writing jokes every single day.
Seinfeld stumbled on the idea to motivate himself. He used a large wall calendar. Every day he would write comedy, he would cross that date with a large red X. After 7 days, he had a 7 day chain of red Xs.
“Write every day” became “Don’t break the chain.”
A “fluffy”, intangible goal became a visual, practical one.
You can use this strategy to reach personal goals:
. Eating healthy every day
. Working out daily
. Reading 10 or 20 pages
. Taking a power nap
. Writing in your journal daily
You can also use this technique to reach professional goals:
. Mentoring a colleague
. Drinking 8 cups of water at work
. No coffee after 10 am
. Learning something new
. Actually sitting down to eat lunch
You can use a wall calendar like Seinfeld, or you can download a free app on your phone or tablet, or you can print a free online template.
Simply search “Don’t break the chain” and choose what you think will be the most useful.
Then choose your daily goal, and don’t break the chain!
If you would like to learn how Chronos can help you and your team regain time and sanity, reach out to us. Simply click on the Discovery Call button above or visit www.ChronosVet.com
Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Fear Free certified
Co-Founder of Chronos LLC