Photo by Cristofer Maximilian on Unsplash

You’re ready to make a change, to put your plan to action. Your goal aligns with your long-term health and wellness vision and you are energized to get started. Congratulations! This is a big deal and you’re on your way.

Before you jump into action, let’s make sure your underlying motivations are going to fuel you throughout the ups and downs of the behavior change process. Remember, life happens! There will be days when the demands of your schedule and the events happening in the world around you start to grind you down and all you want to do is hide your head in the sand or curl up under a blanket and rest. That’s okay! Behavior change is an ongoing process. But we want to make sure that after you’ve taken that rest, your motivations for change are strong enough to overcome any inertia that tries to slow you down.

How can you do that? Start by writing down a list of your motivations for change. Split them into two columns: (1) Intrinsic motivations, (2) Extrinsic motivations. Intrinsic motivation is when you are drawn to do something because to do so is rewarding in itself (I feel better, the activity is enjoyable, it aligns with the kind of person I want to be, I feel proud of myself). Extrinsic motivation is driven by a desire to avoid punishment (shame, consequences, loss of something/someone important) or to receive an external reward (money, prize, recognition, etc.). While extrinsic motivators are great at jump starting an action, especially one that is particularly challenging at first, the intrinsic motivators keep us going for the long haul. They are both valuable at different times for different reasons, but you want to make sure you aren’t only relying on extrinsic motivators.

Next, you’ll want to articulate how your goal aligns not only with your long-term vision for ideal health and wellness, but how it aligns with your core values. When you can connect your behavior change goal to values that are important to you, the change itself represents an embodiment of the kind of person you most want to be. This activity focuses on the deeper purpose and meaning of your goal, building on your intrinsic motivations for change. This can be a pretty powerful source of motivation when your energy or desire to change is waning, and you’d rather sit on the couch binging Netflix with a bag of Doritos or a pint of Ben & Jerry’s.

Consider creating physical representations of your core values and placing them in prominent spaces in your house/office/car as a reminder of what matters most to you. Periodically throughout your behavior change journey, remember to come back to your list of motivators and core values and reflect on the larger meaning and purpose behind your goal. These periodic reflections will fill up your tank when you’re most in need of a motivation boost. You’ve got this!

Core Values Worksheet

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