Paradigm Shift – A Healthy Lifestyle
It’s almost new year’s eve. Right about now, everyone’s new year’s resolution is probably filled up. The things you would like to do better next year is probably almost the same as the last. And getting a healthy lifestyle is probably one of those recurring wishes for most of us. This reminds me of a story I once read. One day in the month of January, a member of a gym went to its manager irate and complained. He said that with the expensive fee they were paying for the gym, why weren’t there more machines. Even the 16 treadmills were not enough because each had a long wait time. The manager remained calm and even laughed while telling him that he should give it a month. In a month’s time, even less than a month, the number of people in the gym will decrease. True enough, before the month of January ended, people going to the gym became less and less. Apparently, these were people who probably made a resolution to exercise and in the beginning they did. But soon, they quit.
To be honest, I can only guess at the reason for their disappearance from the gym. They may have found a better way to lose weight but I doubt that. If I met and asked them why, they would probably give one excuse or two. The most common excuse would probably be “I was too busy, I had no time.” But I’m not buying that. I think it’s probably because they were not truly committed. People who are committed make time for their commitment. They invest and give themselves to it. These people probably needed a paradigm shift.
Paradigm Shifting is not an easy task. Why? Because you need to get down and dirty. You need to conquer your old paradigm, your faulty way of thinking. Then, you replace it with a new one, a more enlightened one. You also need to find a strong “why”. You need to figure out a powerful reason for doing it. It has to be something moving and motivating for you. More importantly, it must compel you to action. Otherwise, it is impotent and you will fail at creating new, lifelong change.
Conquering your mindset or belief system is like battling with yourself. You must be vigilant because sometimes we fail to notice the little seemingly innocent acts that lead us back to our old way of thinking or habits. For example, going to the gym. The decision to go or not to go the gym after a hard days work is a battle in itself. It is so easy to excuse yourself from it but once you start, you will soon end up skipping it altogether. If you decide to exercise, eat the right food, get enough sleep and refrain from bad habits like smoking and drinking, then you must keep on renewing your commitment to it and choose it everyday.
And so, shifting your paradigm requires a lot of effort. Acquiring a healthy lifestyle is a broad and challenging task but it is not an impossible one. Shifting from your unhealthy lifestyle to a healthy one will not only allow you to have a more fulfilling and longer life, but it will improve the quality of your everyday experience.