Will, Won't and Want Power

It's been 42 days since I shared my Lent sacrifice and lifestyle change to abstain from the cafeteria at work. 

No sausage breakfast, no cheeseburgers, no soup, no salad, no coffee, no second coffee, no third coffee (yes, those days have happened). 

I'm quite proud to announce that I was successful! 

I stayed true to my goals and not only didn't swipe the card at work for 40 days, but also re-formed my favorite routines:

:: Planned grocery shopping

:: Food prep

:: Meal prep 

:: Tupperware game so strong

:: Coffee grinding 

:: Consistency

You might say that it took a lot of willpower, but it also took a lot of won't-power and want-power too.

What's that? They're awesome tips from The Willpower Instinct. If you don't know, I don't often read novels, but rather self-help, psychology, documentary style books that help me learn a little more about the world around me. That's irrelevant to this post, but let me explain what I've learned. 

The actual concept in the book suggest that we use "will, won't and want" separately toward different goals, but I found the three used together working toward the same goal to be three times as effective. 

For me to be successful with lent, I not only had to give up something. I had to form a new habit and had to have a reason for why I wanted that. 

I had an "I won't", I had an "I will" and had an "I want."

"I won't buy any food or beverage from the cafeteria at work for 40 days"

"I will commit to preparing meals for work and brewing coffee at my desk"

"I want to a) be successful, b) form a new habit, c) save money, d) blog about it later"

There was a three-pronged attack on the goal I set out for myself, and by building this foundation I was able to get everything I wanted out of the 40 days. I felt more deeply invested in the commitment because it had layers. To let one ball drop was to let three drop. It made the investment and the cost of breaking the commitment that much stronger which I believe is what made me successful. 

While I'm not planning to be dramatic and never return to the cafeteria at work, I do plan to learn from the last 42 days and understand that willpower is best served with won't and want power as well. I'm also only 9 pages into the book and already achieved this much insight, so expect my understanding of willpower to grow even harder and for this topic to appear again someday. Lucky you! 

What about you, what's a goal of yours that you're going to get after with the "will, won't, want power" method? 

40 Days of Change

Ah, Lent. 

While very meaningful religiously it's also an opportunity for a second go at New Year's Resolutions for those of us who fell off the wagon. I didn't make any resolutions this year with too much uncertainty rolling around in my world, but I suppose I've subconsciously made steps forward in loving myself, taking better care and getting in touch with the good ones. 

Something I've been wanting to introduce back into my life is my passion for meal prep. I used to be so great with it but over time I've lacked the kick in the pants to do it. Plus - with a cafeteria at work that serves magnificence like this, that kick in the pants probably wouldn't even make a difference.

Rather than picking something I know I can't do, or at least would struggle with (like no instagram, no selfies, no gum, no phone in bed, two hands on the wheel while driving to name a few) - I chose to give up the cafeteria at work for 40 days.

This might not seem like much, but where I work they serve everything from breakfast, lunch, dinner, coffee, smoothies, ice cream, beer - actually anything. I'm often found there 2-3 times per day getting my daily coffee, daily sausage + eggs breakfast and most-daily $5 bunless cheeseburger combo - and sometimes even second coffee in the afternoon.

To drop the cafeteria is a true lifestyle change. It means organization, meal planning, food prep, creativity, a strong tupperware game, a strong dishwasher game, a strong bragging about how much I love bringing my own food from home game and obviously a ton of will power to not swipe my card a single time at work until April 6th.

As a result of my Lent goals my house smells like bacon and my fridge is full of cooked meats, vegetables and easy staples for me to throw into tupperware. It's a wonderful feeling to be organized and fully decisive about your nutrition, and I'm sure it'll also be a wonderful feeling once I realize how much money I'll actually save in the process.

Are you observing Lent? What could you never give up for 40 days?

This was my "I could never give these things up" post from last year. All still true. And you still get Rick Rolled.

Keep it 100, you guys.

Never Gonna Give You Up

With people giving up things for Lent, making March goals and preparing for the change of the seasons, I felt like I needed to join in.

I've always tried to participate in Lent in one way or another. It's been years on years since I stepped foot into a church for anything other than a wedding or a funeral, but I still like to pretend participate. I'd like to think that I can give a few things up for 40 days until that easter bunny hops his way by my house and leaves me some plastic eggs with quarters and jelly beans inside, can't I?

As I sat down and started to brainstorm meaningful things I could give up, the ideas just kept coming. With each and every one I wrote out I'd find myself laughing - thinking how ridiculous I was to think it would be a small miracle to even give these things up for a week. I know you're just dying to see what I can't live without!

+ Gum. 

I'm an addict. I stress chew gum and *try* to limit myself to fifteen sticks per day. I'm thankful that Costco sells 14 packs for under $9. I know this isn't good for me and I'm trying, k?

+ Alcohol on weeknights. 

This would have normally been a breeze, but seeing that I'm single and dating* I choose to go out on weeknights so that I can at least have work as my reason to not stay out all night. Seems like less trouble right? 

*yes I know Friday I said dude detox, what I really meant was emotional connection detox...dating is perfectly fine.

+ The Snooze Button.

Until I get a normal sleep schedule back, I'm going to hit that snooze at least 10x (on 3 total devices) each morning. Sorry AsapSCIENCE

+ Selfies.

So I read yesterday that a selfie a week is about the limit a lady should take of herself. There's no shame in my game according to my instagram feed the last few weeks! (Plus snapchat, duh).

+ Outfit Repeats.

This is one I really want to try to do, especially since I just cleaned out my closet this past weekend. I'm going to actively try it but I can't commit to anything just yet. Stay tuned!

+ Cheese.

You dirty, dirty cheese. I can't quit you. Paleo 90% to allow for 10% cheese/alcohol blend. Judge if you must, I've tried and I had a struggle of a time saying no to the stuff in my mouth (twss). 

+ Not use iPhone photos in blog posts.

Guys I have a DSLR but I can't even find the last post I used a non iPhone, non-insta photo. I'd love to give this a try but oops, I already failed twice in this post alone!

Yep, never gonna give those up! What can't you quit?

Play me out, Rick!