Almost all of us have recurring points of failure. Times when we go left instead of right. Zig instead of zag. Ironically, we usually know what we’re supposed to do at these moments but for one reason or another we drop the ball.
I’m talking about the times when we know we should be starting a workout but remain on the couch. Or when we have a healthy meal all lined up at home but choose to get take-out instead.
I’m no different. I recognize that I have a few key points throughout my day that end up affecting what I achieve. It’s almost embarrassing to talk about where I tend to fail most often but here it goes.
Just like a lot of people, mid-day I get pretty hungry. To address my hunger, get tons of nutrition and feel full, I have a go-to smoothie. My smoothie consists of frozen berries, banana, healthy seeds, spices, protein and peanut butter powder. It takes all of 3 minutes to make and I actually really enjoy it!
So why do I sometimes skip the smoothie and eat something else instead (usually not healthy)? The answer is hunger. If I’m busy and decide to delay my smoothie until later, my hunger starts to intensify and I’ll quickly eat something else. For whatever reason I can’t seem to wait 3 minutes for my smoothie to be made.
I picked up on this bizarre pattern some time ago. You might ask why I can’t just man up and do the smoothie no matter what. I ask myself the same question. The key thing to realize is just how fragile these moments are and how big of an impact they can have on your day.
I’m sure everyone can think of decisions in their life that had a major impact. Like randomly calling that person who gave you their phone number. Maybe they are your spouse now. Or maybe you apply to a job you are unsure about. You might spend the next 30 years with that company.
Those are major examples. But chances are there are little moments like that happening all the time. Are they points of failure for you or points of strength? That all depends on how you can control and master the key moment.