Oops! There Goes Another Rubber Tree Plant!

Did you ever have this happen? You decide to adopt a new healthful habit, say, taking better care of your hair. So, you come up with a plan--you decide to give up chemical filled hair products and to massage your scalp every morning. Then, you put your plan to work. After a couple of days you actually begin to see positive results. Your hair is silky and more resilient; it's soft and appears to be thicker and more manageable. All is well, and you continue with your plan for 5...7...9 days. Then, suddenly, out of the blue you inexplicably drop your plan. First, one day is skipped...just. this. once. Then, two days are skipped. Eventually, you're not working your plan at all. Weeks later your plan is history, and you're right back where you started. 

What happened??

Well, I've learned that this is an absolutely normal step in the quest for cultivating a new habit. It's called "rubber banding." You've snapped back to old habits, like a rubber band snaps back to its original state after being stretched. 

There are many reasons this happens. It could be psychological: you crave the familiar; it could be practically-oriented: your plan was too much, too soon; or it was too cumbersome, or too expensive (money-wise, time-wise). What ever the reason for your rubber banding, it's important to know that it's perfectly normal. It's a step in the process of change and, therefore, should not only be expected, but planned for, too.

The solution? Do what that little old ant did: Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again!

Rubber banding shouldn't be viewed as failure, but rather, the opportunity to fine tune your plan to make it simpler and more effective, more you. It offers a chance for greater self-awareness and effectiveness. 

So, the next time you put a plan into practice, include time for rubber banding and a period of re-adjustment. Keep stretching your 'rubber band' again and again, until it snaps back less and less. Eventually, your new habit will take on a new shape and one day you'll find that it's natural to you. You can't imagine going back to your old ways!

OoPs! tHeRe GoEs AnOtHeR rUbBeR tReE pLaNt....!