102 | Commitments and Action

Posted on July 16, 2009 - by Jus

102 | Commitments and Action

So today’s class was part two of Commitment vs Trying. What became clear to me is that I will be able to identify what my clients are commited to not by their words, but by their actions. It is very easy for us all to say the ‘right’ thing… “I’m commited to spending more time with my kids” or “I’m commited to living a healthier lifestyle” – but if I am working ridiculous hours and I’m buying junk food every time I am at the store – am I really commited, or am I just trying?

The class today threw down the gauntlet – remove the word TRY from your vocabulary. Wow, how powerful is that? No more “I’ll try to do…” or “I’ll try to be…” – instead commit to the solution or the goal. Say “I will be…” or “I am going to do…”

Ultimately we all have a choice in what we decide to commit ourselves to. For me, I am commited to finishing my course by June 2010. The next step is to support myself in that commitment, support myself in driving the action that is required for that commitment. For me, that was creating a Google calendar that I can see all the class timetables at a glance in my own time zone. It is diarising the dates and times that I think will work with my work & family schedule and making the time to do these, and being prepared for the classes also.

For other people, the support or structure required to honor a commitment might be:

Commitment : “I will exercise four times a week”
Problem : “I dislike exercise”
Opportunity : “I enjoy being around people”
Structure to support action in commitment? Start a running group with friends so that exercise becomes a social activity.

Commitment : “I will spend more time with my kids”
Problem : “I am always so distracted, I find it hard to focus on my kids”
Opportunity : “My kids appreciate even the smallest amount on undivided one-on-one attention”
Structure to support action in commitment? Allocate 10 minutes per day in which I play a ‘game’ with my child, without any distractions.

Being commited and creating structures for yourself to honor that commitment is a very mindful way to approach life. I really enjoyed the class today and I’m looking forward to the next one!

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