Patrik Edblad's Blog, page 23

How to Meditate & Be Mindful in 2016: Advice From 8 Experts

Meditators have been claiming many benefits of their practice for millennia and in recent years scientists have been finding strong evidence to back these claims.

Studies have shown that a regular meditation practice is an effective treatment for stress, worry, lack of focus, relationship problems, addictions and much more.

In surprisingly little time, it can lead to a quieter and more peaceful state of mind, sharper mental focus, increased creativity, better relationships and an overall greater sense of wellbeing.

Because of all these benefits, meditation is one of those habits I find myself recommending over and over again to clients and friends.

But how do you meditate an effective and sustainable way?

That’s what I reached out and asked the finest meditation and mindfulness experts on coach.me.

[Note from Patrik: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you sign up for coaching, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost for you. Make sure to use the promo code ‘PATRIKWEEK‘ to get the first week for free! This code will work regardless of which coach you choose to work with.]

What would be your number one advice for someone who wants to meditate and be mindful in 2016?

“First, get your motivation straight. Read up on the benefits, and understand what meditation can do for you, how it can help you in your core values and goals in life. Then choose a technique. I recommend either concentrating on the movement of your breath, on repeating a mantra, or on the space between the eyebrows. Alternatively, you can use guided meditations from apps such as Insight Timer and Headspace. Start with as little as 5min every day. Don’t meditate longer than your motivation for it allows. Increase 1-2 every week, until you arrive at your ideal length. Do it everyday – have a “never zero” approach. Having a set time and place is useful in building the habit. Keep your expectations low, and do the practice for it’s on sake – like you do when taking a shower.”

— Giovanni Dienstmann, Live and Dare

 

“Create serenity time for yourself by switching off all electronic devices (phones, computers, TVs…) for 20 minutes every day.

What’s Needed:

Markers or pencil crayons

Coloring book (there are many unique all ages coloring books these days)

A comfortable location (e.g. living room floor, window seat…)

The How:

1. Befriend your breathing by taking even breaths, deeply from the belly, in and out through the nose, feeling it throughout your body after each color selection:

Negative Thoughts: Greys & blacks
Positive Thoughts: Reds & oranges
Neutral Thoughts: Greens & blues

2. Acknowledge and name your thoughts, then let them go”

— Melanie Christian, Forward Muse Solutions

 

“You have almost certainly heard of the benefits of meditation, it truly is a superpower for dealing with modern life. As a result there could be countless reasons as to why you should meditate. But what is yours? It is all about a clear goal. You need to be able to answer why, for how long and how you are going to start meditating. This will sustain motivation beyond the first week of January after which all your friends will be relapsing on their resolutions. TOTAL CLARITY over your goals will ensure your new 2016 meditation habit actually sticks.”

— Ben Whittle, Superhuman Willpower

 

“Making time for meditation and mindfulness has proven to be a key to success for me. I recommend meditation in the morning because you can get it in before the usual interruptions of life. The morning practice also sets the tone for the day because it allows you to approach the day calmly and peacefully. Mindfulness can happen anywhere and anytime. One simple trick is using your smartphone alarm to schedule a mindfulness break in the morning and the evening. When the alarm goes off just take a few deep intentional breathes to reset your mood, energy and attitude.”

— Jeff Shannon, Ax & Yoke

 

“Whenever you are attempting to start any new habit, making it small and easy so you can be consistent is the first goal. This is definitely true for meditation. Even though, you may feel tempted to think, ‘I’ll start later when life slows down or when this project is finished because then I’ll be in the right mindset’… Don’t wait! The best time to start is now. Plus, by starting small you can get past those early objections and just do it. You’ll be surprised how even one minute will change your connection with yourself and things around you.”

— Nathan Sudds, Change Fear

 

“My number one advice for anyone seeking to learn how to meditate and quiet the mind in 2016 is to keep it SIMPLE.

Although there are many forms of meditation the good news is that it doesn’t require fancy equipment or a trip half way around the globe to sit in silence on a mountain top to get started. If you are alive, breathing and committed to starting with just 5 minutes a day I promise you this will become a healthy habit you can build on for years to come. The beauty of meditation is that it could be done anywhere morning, noon and sunset or whenever feeling tired or nervous.

You could be sitting in silence, brushing your teeth or in walking down a busy street the key is being fully present, mindful, breathing properly and breaking the bad habit of shallowing breathing. Once you decide to start utilizing these simple techniques get ready to accept the benefits of feeling healthy, stress-free and peaceful.”

— Herman Olivera, HermanOlivera.com

 

“You don’t know what you’re supposed to do. So what can you do? Well, if you don’t know what you’re supposed to do, you watch. You simply watch what is going on. This is the beginning of meditation. In fact, you can’t do meditation. You become aware of being. Give yourself this gift, some time to just sit and watch what happens. Learn to know yourself and you will discover wonders.”

— Dennis Swennen, DennisSwennen.com

 

“My advice for someone who wants to get into meditation in 2016 is to start slow. Meditation is not hard if you go at a steady pace. The same thoughts that are telling you meditation is hard are the same ones that will be released during meditation. So to take it slow I suggest starting with just 5-10 minutes a day and when you find yourself wanting a longer practice (and you will know) then add more time in 5 minute intervals. And lastly to finish off I suggest doing the practice first thing in the morning. This starts the day on a super positive note.”

— Brendan Liebeskind, CoachBL.com

Stay Tuned for More Awesome Advice!

This article is part of my series on How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution With Coach.me.

If you enjoyed this advice on how to be more productive in 2016 — stay tuned for more on how to:

Be more productive
Get fit and healthy
And enjoy life to the fullest

Join my newsletter right now so you don’t miss out on this great advice!

When you sign up, you’ll also get a free copy of my ebook ‘Free Ebook: The Science of Willpower – Proven Strategies to Beat Procrastination & Get Big Things Done‘ so you can get to work on your New Years Resolution with resilience and resolve this year.

I’ll see you on the other side!

Thanks to all the awesome meditation & mindfulness coaches for sharing their expertise in this article!

Footnote

The image at the top of this article was created by Joel Lindmark.

The post How to Meditate & Be Mindful in 2016: Advice From 8 Experts appeared first on Selfication.

How to Get Fit & Healthy in 2016: Advice From 14 Experts

Getting fit and healthy is perhaps the New Years Resolution most people love to hate.

Most of us are all too familiar with the scenario of starting out strong but then seeing all your good intention fizzle out in a matter of weeks (or days) and returning to square one.

So, how can we avoid this outcome? How do you become one of those people who stick to their workout plan long after everyone else seem to have forgotten about their gym membership?

The brilliant health and fitness coaches from coach.me have the answers!

[Note from Patrik: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you sign up for coaching, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost for you. Make sure to use the promo code ‘PATRIKWEEK‘ to get the first week for free! This code will work regardless of which coach you choose to work with.]

What would be your number one advice for someone who wants to get fit and healthy in 2016?

“Plan for longevity. Treat your future self with compassion. What is your likely state in 20 or 30 years if you continue on your current path? You can start making better choices right now that will make all the difference. Learn how the brain functions and figure out what works for you. Coach.me is a terrific tool. Small habits performed consistently, make a lasting difference. Create strong boundaries – it is easier to stick to habits (say eliminating gluten) when you do them consistently without exception and avoid negotiating with yourself.”

— Sue Sames

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“I believe there are 3 PILLARS to health and fitness… Nutrition, Exercise, and Sleep! I help clients eat a Whole Food/Paleo style diet and make it a DELICIOUS lifestyle not a “diet”. I teach clients to find a workout schedule that fits into their lifestyle and helps them reach their goal. I believe a mix of cardio and strength will get anyone into shape and make them feel more energy and confidence. Sleep is the basis for all health. I help clients to figure out the hours they need and how to get the best quality of sleep using apps, bedtime routines, and nutrition.”

— Meghan Kennihan, Train With Meghan

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­“Every journey starts with a small step, and the easier the step, the better. Not much time, but a gym near work? Do a short workout during lunch time. Enjoy walking? Park ten minutes’ walk away from work. No child care? Dance to a DVD or do bodyweight exercises. You can do this! A coach can help you identify that crucial first step and believe in you when you find it hard to believe in yourself.”

— Maria Wolters, The eHealth Tech Doctor

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“My number one piece of advice to Get Fit & Healthy in 2016 would be to break down the ultimate goal into smaller goals for each month. The idea of being fit and healthy can be abstract and overwhelming at first. By breaking it down into twelve smaller goals (one for each month) they build on each other and by the end of the year you’ll be a new and improved version of yourself!”

— Aryn Baker, Aryn Baker Wellness

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“Decide what fit and healthy means to you – exactly, specifically. Don’t set a New Years resolution for be fit and healthy. That’s right do not. Instead, make a decision to be fit and healthy. Just like you make a decision to reply or not to an email, or to buy something in a grocery store, make a decision to be fit and healthy. Whatever number of days a week you decide to act on this, do it upon waking. As your fit activities become a habit, you can change when you act on them to a time you like better.”

— Patricia Weber, Patricia-Weber.com

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“Commit to just 3 things: getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night; eating more vegetables; and getting regular exercise! For us to feel energised and happy, to be productive and creative our bodies and brains need a healthy combination of sleep, good food (and water) and exercise.”

— Julie Harris

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“My best advice for getting fit & healthy in 2016 can be summed up in three words: Eat. Real. Food. Forget bars, shakes, and diet replacements. Avoid ‘low-fat’, gluten-free &’dairy-free’ alternatives which are usually frankenfoods or highly processed. Just look at your shopping cart and make sure it’s mostly veggies with as many colors as you can find. Add some fruit, nuts & seeds. Always buy the best quality meat & fish you can and get the majority of carbs from starchy veg, roots & tubers. I promise you that this one simple tip will transform your health in 2016.”

— Ronan McClelland

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“One of the easiest and simplest ways to get fit and healthy for the new year is by building up a consistent walking habit. Walking is low impact both on your body and on your schedule, while keeping you active, no matter your level. There are so many great ways to integrate it to your existing daily routine, without it becoming a burden.”

— Aylon Pesso, Protein And Produce

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“Willpower gets a bad rap when it comes to getting fit. My greatest advice to getting and staying fit this 2016 is to create a written structured plan. Maintaining willpower is easy when you have the infrastructure in place to support your goals. Here are my top tips for for making a top-notch fitness plan.

– Understand your goal – know precisely what your goal is and how you will measure it.

– Have foresight – Have a general written plan for reaching your goal in the long-term and make a very specific plan for each week ahead.

– Engage in prospective hindsight – Look over your week as if it has happened. Identify potential stumbling blocks and make back-up plans to keep you moving along.

– Be accountable – Some people need to be accountable to others, some to themselves, others need to feel like nobody believes in them. Whatever your style, find a way to be supported to keep going when times are tough.

Put these tips into practice for a joyful and healthy 2016.”

— Todd M. Smith, enLiven Wellness & Performance Coaching

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“My number one advice would be getting enough restorative sleep, by taking into account both the quantity and quality of it. We spend a third of our lives sleeping. Sleep is as important as food.Keeping a consistent daily schedule is the key. Once you have figured out the sleep you need to be well-rested (not less than 7 hours), you must choose your waking-up time, and then, count backwards in order to know when you should be in bed. Finally, establishing a bedtime and a morning routine are also essential.”

— Julia Antonio, A Better You Project

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“Start small. Start with something little you can easily achieve. 20 squats per week? Thrice? Or doing one work out a week? It may seem little, but consistency is key. Even if you don’t feel like doing so, it’s only the 20 squats or the one 30min work out.

If you set your goals too high, chances are you demotivate yourself. Always reach your weekly goal – but if you feel like it (and I encourage you to do so) do more! Your body will thank you for doing that 52+ times in 2016!”

— Serey Mao, SereyMao.com

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“The biggest problem that prevents people from getting fit and healthy is that they know what to do in general (eat better, exercise more), but not what to do specifically. This leads to frustration when they don’t get results. The single best thing you can do to get fit and healthy in 2016 is to find a coach that can show you exactly what to do. Not only will they be able to guide you to a diet and exercise plan made for you, but they will also hold you accountable and keep you on your path to results!”

— Greg Freebury, Freebury’s QS60

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“The best way to get more fit is to simply START exercising. One exercise, with some warm up stretches, is all you need to get started. Right now, do some light stretching, pick ONE exercise (jumping jacks, crunches, push-ups, etc.) and repeat the exercise until you can’t do it anymore. That’s it! You’ve started exercising. Tomorrow, pick a different exercise. Continue this each day.

You don’t need a gym membership. You don’t need special shoes. All you need is yourself and a few minutes. Making changes in your life are hard and so we want them to be as EASY as possible. And everybody is at a different physical level. So it’s important to work with where you are at. Start small and build up from there.

I’ve created a simple workout plan based on this premise to get myself in shape as well as many of m clients. If you want a more thorough guide to exercising in a simple way that works with your limitations, check out the plan here – Happy Holidays!”

— Rob Kovacs, Rob Kovacs Music

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“My number one tip for getting fit and healthy, is to make small sustainable changes, build on momentum and ultimately, eat real food, move your body, play and sleep.”

— Dena Loijos

Stay Tuned for More Awesome Advice!

This article is part of my series on How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution With Coach.me.

If you enjoyed this advice on how to be more productive in 2016 — stay tuned for more on how to:

Be more productive
Meditate and be mindful
And enjoy life to the fullest

Join my newsletter right now so you don’t miss out on this great advice!

When you sign up, you’ll also get a free copy of my ebook ‘Free Ebook: The Science of Willpower – Proven Strategies to Beat Procrastination & Get Big Things Done‘ so you can get to work on your New Years Resolution with resilience and resolve this year.

I’ll see you on the other side!

Thanks to all the awesome health & fitness coaches for sharing their expertise in this article!

Footnote

The image at the top of this article was created by Joel Lindmark.

The post How to Get Fit & Healthy in 2016: Advice From 14 Experts appeared first on Selfication.

How to Be More Productive in 2016: Advice From 14 Experts

Time is our most precious resource. Once we’ve spent it, we can never get it back.

With that in mind, it makes sense to spend our time on what’s most essential in our lives, and to do it in as effectively as possible.

So how do we do that? How do we stay highly productive so we can make progress on our most important goals (without going crazy in the process)?

That’s what I wanted to know when I reached out to the finest productivity experts on coach.me and asked for their advice.

Practicing what they preach, they got back to me FAST with some really great advice.

[Note from Patrik: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you sign up for coaching, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost for you. Make sure to use the promo code ‘PATRIKWEEK‘ to get the first week for free! This code will work regardless of which coach you choose to work with.]

What would be your number one advice for someone who wants to be more productive in 2016?

“They say 40% of each and every day is simply a set of learned habit you blindly follow. From the place you have lunch everyday to the gym workout you do at 5pm every night to the chocolate cake you gorge on every Saturday night. If you want to truly be productive harness the power of habits to propel you into success in 2016. For instance, I made it a habit to write on Quora each day for 48 days and after simply doing it for a short time but keeping it consistent I was able to break 1,000,000 views on my answers. Now after missing writing for even one day on Quora it feels weird to me. Habits are those actions you take that if you miss them something doesn’t feel quite right. Your life is a collective of these choices you have made in the past and if they don’t reflect your current goals actively choose them and you’ll find you won’t recognize yourself in 3 months.”

— Imran Esmail, Escape Your Desk Job

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“The number one change that I recommend to boost productivity is to plan your day the evening before. What meetings or obligations do you have to prepare for? What tasks are you planning to complete tomorrow, and within that list, what are your top three high priority items that represent your long-term goals? Spend the evening planning ahead (when mental energy is exhausted) so that in the morning you can tackle those high priority items with more self discipline, creativity, and enthusiasm. You can hit the ground running and make an impact before the daily distractions of everyday life start to surface.”

— Rob Filardo

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“Everyone one starts off super motivated when they begin to tackle a new project or goal. However, they often taper off over time. It becomes ‘work’, or maybe life gets in the way. My advice to someone who might be encountering a slow down is to just do something every day, no matter how small, that is a step toward their goal. Motivation fluctuates, but building the habit that you’ll do something every day will go a long way towards maintaining and building momentum when you can get back into it at full speed.”

— Roger Herzler, UpSparq.com

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“Are you BUSY? Or are you PRODUCTIVE? Busy people get manipulated by time, whereas high performers control their time. We hear it all the time, busy people complaining about being TOO BUSY. Well, have you ever heard a productive person complain about being TOO PRODUCTIVE? Being busy is an indicator of time management. Productivity is manifested through a purpose. Stop waiting for a miracle to happen before taking action, stop looking for others to inspire you, because if you can’t inspire yourself to take action then your dreams aren’t big enough! So are you busy or are you productive?”

— Angelo Liloc, AngeloLiloc.com

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“Here’s the one of many little tweaks I’ve made this year, that has had the biggest positive impact on my productivity in 2015: Inbox Pause. Get the Inbox Pause plugin for Gmail. It moves your email to your inbox only at specified times. I set mine to 11:00 am and 6:00 pm, where I go into my inbox and clean it all at once. The email-free time before and after is priceless. If you want me to teach you how this works live, plus 12 more changes to help you focus, check out this bonus for Selfication readers.”

— Niklas Goeke, NiklasGoeke.com

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“Put no more than 3 action items on your to do list each day. One of those actions is your number one priority. This is the first action on the list. The one thing that you will do first. Start nothing new before you finished this action. It will take some effort to do this. You will change from wanting to get as much as possible done to actually getting your most important thing done.

From efficiently checking items of your todo list to effectively doing the most important thing that you need to do one day at a time. Enjoy your new light todo list.”

— Erno Hannink, #1 Coaching Biz

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“Here’s my ‘SEED Strategic Model‘ and it is a strategic framework to skyrocket your productivity:

– Strengths: what are your strengths & capabilities? Work on increasing awareness on what you are good at or skills that you need to acquire. Know what your best working hours are and spend more time there.

– Environment: how is your environment affecting your productivity? Develop an awareness on this and find out what are the distractions or people affecting your current productivity.

– Expectations: do you have high goals/high expectations? if the goals are the fuels, expectation could really be the break, so be careful with your expectations.

– Development: what’s your level of action today? Reorganize your time for email checking, social networks or multi-tasking. Small changes mean big results. Start small by better planning, limit the number of times to check emails, more uni-tasking.

Plant the SEED to maximize your productivity.”

— Costin Ciora, My Productivity Kit

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“It’s easy to be really busy knocking stuff off your to-do list but actually achieve very little.  To boost your result and maintain balance, get to know why you are doing everything on there – where does it fit into your life? The best way to do this is to take an hour to map your life roles (e.g. partner, parent, businessman, student) and your goals in each.  If a task or project doesn’t fit those roles and goals, WHY ARE YOU DOING IT?  This helps you say “NO” to unimportant things. Have a great 2016!”

— James Elliott, Productiv.

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“Realize that feeling good now is not the answer to long term happiness. Long term happiness, success and peace come when we can overcome the urge for instant gratification. Instead of running away from our feelings we need to face them head-on. Be aware of these feelings and stay with them. Trying to fight or ignore them will only make you more resistant to action.

Identify the negative effects of delaying the task: ‘I end up leaving it until the last minute and I’ll be in a panic’ or ‘It’s stressful to feel like something is left undone.’ Recognize the benefits of starting now: ‘I’ll be free to go out and do what I enjoy, without the guilt and worry about the unfinished task”. Just start! Starting is the hardest thing to do. Break down the big goal into smaller manageable sub-tasks and just start with the easiest task. Once you’re in the flow, the goal will take care of itself.”

— Grant Watson

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“The top advice ‘how to increase productivity’ from me is simple: use correct planning and time management. That’s all you need to work productively on any goal you have. Correct planning means you can plan everything for any period of time and control your way with checkpoints, which you figured out during planning. Make your first step – note all you want to achieve in 10, 5, 3 years. Than for a year and divide step-by-step for every month, week and day. And never forget to plan your entertainment!”

— Liudmyla Kovalova, KLC Group

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“Simplify your life and cut back on being busy. This will allow you to focus on what really matters. If your days and weeks are jam-packed full of continual activity, you’re probably being pulled in too many directions. Simplifying means you reduce or eliminate activities that are often distractions, obligations or inefficiencies. Continually look for ways to simplify your days and simplify the way you do things. Free up your time and energy so that you can dedicate it to your long-term goals and to things that are really important for you.”

— Nigel Cook, Holding Your Feet to the Fire

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“There is no silver bullet for productivity improvement. Your advances are going to come from a variety of sources. My simple advice is to give yourself permission to say “no”. You’re going to be asked to do things that distract you and detract from your goals. Don’t do them. Politely say “no”, and get back to work. You may have to give up some short-term gains, but in the long term your ability to say “no” will enable you to focus on things that matter.”

— Marshall Hughes, Managerpedia

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“Set a maximum of 3-6 priorities for your day, to make your day more productive and less stressful.

This allows you to:

1 — Determine your most important tasks (MIT’s) that need to get done that day

2 — Set realistic expectations for what you can accomplish in a day

3 — Stay focused throughout the day

4 — Stay motivated throughout the day

5 — Enjoy a feeling of accomplishment at the end of the day

6 — Rest and recharge

By focusing on your priorities throughout the day, you can rest at the end of each day in the satisfaction that you’ve accomplished your most important tasks for the day.”

— Chris Remus, Just Rolling With It

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“To be productive in 2016 focus on the important and not the urgent. As the new year rolls in, we start thinking of all the things we want to accomplish. So staying on task and avoiding distractions may just be the hardest part of accomplishing your goals. But if you really want to be productive, you’ve got to make it a point to do fewer things. Again doing the important and not the urgent can be the single most important step to becoming productive. Keep your end goal in mind and everyday do something to move yourself forward to a more productive year.”

— Susan Hildebrand

Stay Tuned for More Awesome Advice!

This article is part of my series on How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution With Coach.me.

If you enjoyed this advice on how to be more productive in 2016 — stay tuned for more on how to:

Get fit and healthy
Meditate and be mindful
And enjoy life to the fullest

Join my newsletter right now so you don’t miss out on this great advice!

When you sign up, you’ll also get a free copy of my ebook ‘Free Ebook: The Science of Willpower – Proven Strategies to Beat Procrastination & Get Big Things Done‘ so you can get to work on your New Years Resolution with resilience and resolve this year.

I’ll see you on the other side!

Thanks to all the awesome productivity coaches for sharing their expertise in this article!

Footnote

The image at the top of this article was created by Joel Lindmark.

The post How to Be More Productive in 2016: Advice From 14 Experts appeared first on Selfication.

How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution With Coach.me

Aaaah… New Years Eve. That magical time of year that brings with it a clean slate and the opportunity to create some massive change in our lives.

Or does it?

Well… not really. After all our commitments to better discipline, healthier choices and explosive productivity have been made, no more than 8 percent of people successfully achieve their resolutions every year (1).

In fact, New Years Resolutions has become quiet a burden for a lot of people. Something you do just for the sake of it, even though all your past failures has made you feel like any real change is impossible for you.

But it’s not. You see, what separates the 8 percent who make their resolutions stick isn’t superhuman levels of willpower or some innate drive that helps them move mountains.

No, what separates them is their strategy for change. Because once you’ve uncovered a system that works for you, it’s actually quite simple to use it over and over again, year after year, to make all your most desired goals a reality.

This is why I find the science of human behavior so fascinating — it continually finds out and tests these strategies so that we can take the best of the best and try them in our own lives.

How Coach.me Helps Keep Your New Years Resolution

One service that cleverly leverages the power of behavioral science and effectively helps you create your own strategy for change is coach.me. I’ve been using this app for years and I recommend it to anyone who’s serious about creating sustainable change in their life.

Over the years, it’s helped me establish and maintain habits like regular exercise and stretching, daily meditation, studying, reading and listening to audiobooks as well as writing at least 500 words a day (which has allowed me to regularly write articles like this one). There are several reasons why coach.me is such a powerful tool:

It provides you with a trigger. As I’ve written about many times before (for example in The Ultimate Science-Based Guide to Creating Habits that Sticks), one of the most crucial components for making a habit stick is a trigger. Simply put, this is a cue that reminds you to do your habit. I have my entire workday planned out in coach.me so I always know what I’m supposed to be doing. This helps me avoid decision fatigue so I can spend my mental energy on more important tasks than figuring out what to do next.


It gives you immediate and long-term rewards. Whenever you check in on one of your habits in coach.me, the app gives gives you an immediate reward by telling you your current streak and giving you a high five when you reach certain milestones. This is a great way to give yourself a small reward which helps to reinforce your positive behavior.


It tracks your progress. Coach.me logs all your habits and keeps track of how long your current streak is in each of them. This is very helpful because rigorously tracking what your habits tends to provide you with greater self-control for maintaining it (2). The streaks coach.me tracks is especially helpful as you won’t want to break them — especially when you’ve managed to build a long chain of successful check-ins.


It has built-in social support and accountability. The Hawthorne Effect states that we tend to work harder and perform better when we know that we’re being observed (3). You’ve probably noticed this yourself: It tends to be much easier to push through a hard workout if a friend or trainer are counting your reps than if you’re alone in the gym. In fact, it’s easier to even show up at the gym at all if you know someone is expecting you to show up. If you can relate to this, it doesn’t mean you’re lazy — it just means you’re human. We’re a social species and as such we need other people to support us when we’re going after our goals. The coach.me app solves this by letting users give each other ‘props’ and commenting on others check-ins. If you want some extra support, accountability and guidance, you can also hire a coach.


Each habit has a Q & A section. If you get stuck, you can ask others how they dealt with the obstacle you’re facing in the Q & A-section of the particular habit. You can also help others by sharing your own advice.

How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions: Getting Started With Coach.me

If you’ve never used coach.me before, here’s a quick startup guide so you can start using this great tool to keep your New Years Resolutions this year. You can use coach.me on the web or on your phone using the iPhone or Android apps. Get started by registering an account on the coach.me homepage or through the app. Once you’re in, it’s time to set up your habit(s). Go to the dashboard click the + symbol on the top right. Here’s how that looks on the web, on Android, and on iOS respectively:





You’ll see several goal categories. Tap on a category to see popular habits related to that goal:

Here we’ll choose ‘Get Fit’ to see the plans and habits in that category:

You can search for habits, browse sub-categories or select habits directly from the list. Here’s we’ll scroll down and choose ‘Exercise’ – a basic habit with lots of participants. By choosing popular habits such as this one you ensure you’ll have plenty of opportunity to harness the power of social support and accountability in reaching your goals. Tap ‘Join’ to add the habit to your dashboard:

Once you’ve added the habit to your dashboard, you’ll see several options to make the most of the Coach.me features:

Here’s what each option does:

Get Props – Here’s where you can set privacy on this habit. Turning on privacy will hide your choice of this habit, and any check-ins and notes for it, from other users. Note, however, that if you post anything in the Q&A for this habit, your posts will be public, so someone could deduce that you are participating in it.
Set a Weekly Target – There are some habits you might want to do less than 7 days a week. Here’s where you can set your goal for the number of times a week you intend to complete it.
Get Reminded – Set reminders for when you’d like to get an email or device reminder for this habit.
Hire a Coach – Here’s where you can find coaches to help you stay accountable and reach success with your goals.

When you’re happy with how the options are set, it’s time to get down to business and start checking in.When you’ve completed your habit for the day, tap on it to get to the habit detail screen. You’ll see a big grey circle with a check mark. Tap that to check in, and it will turn solid green. You can also make a note about today’s check-in:

As you check in during the day, you’ll see your dashboard change to indicate what’s already been done. On iOS, checked items will drop to the bottom of the list:

Sometimes you might need to go back a day or two to add check-ins. You can back-date check-ins for the past week. On the web or Android, click/tap the down-arrow next to “Today” to select a different day. On iOS, you can tap the back arrow next to the date to move back a day at a time:

… And that’s the basics of Coach.me — add your habits and start checking in daily. It’s a very simple and user-friendly app and if you run into trouble you can always check out the Coach.me FAQ or ask me.

Hopefully I’ve piqued your interest about the coach.me platform. This app has been a huge help for me personally as well as my coaching clients when it comes to creating and maintaining new habits. If you decide to give it a try, I’m sure you’d be surprised by the results!

Coming Up: Advice From My Fellow Coach.me Coaches!

This article is the first in a short series on how to (finally) keep your New Years Resolutions. I encourage you to stick around, because in the next couple of days, I’m setting the stage for my fellow coach.me coaches to provide you with their best advice on how to approach 2016 to:

Be more productive
Get fit and healthy
Meditate and be mindful
And enjoy life to the fullest

Join my newsletter right now so you don’t miss out on this great advice!

When you sign up, you’ll also get a free copy of my ebook ‘Free Ebook: The Science of Willpower – Proven Strategies to Beat Procrastination & Get Big Things Done‘ so you can get to work on your New Years Resolution with resilience and resolve this year.

I’ll see you on the other side!

Footnotes

New Years Resolution Statistics
Better monitoring of food quantity makes self-control easier
What Is the Hawthorne Effect?

The instructions for getting started in this article were borrowed from the coach.me support pages.

The post How to Keep Your New Year’s Resolution With Coach.me appeared first on Selfication.