Choosing the right behavioural strategies

WHILE it has been said countless times before, it's true as ever that "the mind is a funny thing". This is particularly true when it comes to motivation and the daily struggles we face wherein we want to do something, or stop doing something, but simply can't summon adequate willpower, motivation, energy or impetus to see it through.

We generally realise that the only real obstacle preventing action is ourselves. The result is that we are left feeling deflated. There may be the sense that we are hopeless procrastinators or simply incompetent dreamers.

So, here we have a situation where we want something, but don't fully try to achieve it, put up our own barriers, and then we feel badly about it.

The mind is a funny thing, indeed. However, there are ways to work with the mind to gain greater compliance and yield more authority over it, so it can work to your advantage, leaving you feeling more empowered and better about yourself.

It was mentioned last week that self-talk is an incredibly powerful force that wields great power over how we act, how we feel and what we believe about ourselves.

To harness this force it is necessary to become aware of your self-talk and monitor it to ensure that it is helpful, hopeful, motivating, positive and empowering.

There are also many behavioural tricks that can be useful to help the mind dredge up the necessary motivation and sustain it.

The example I'll use to discuss some of these behavioural strategies is quitting smoking, since it is a common problem and one that might be particularly appropriate during Ramadhan. Many of the ideas I'll mention are those that a psychologist would use in working with a client who is displaying behaviours that are problematic. Essentially, they constitute a behaviour modification programme, serving to increase the frequency of desired behaviours such as exercising, or eliminate unwanted behaviours such as smoking.

The first step is to clearly write down (yes, actually pick up a pen and paper and write it down) a clear and comprehensive description of the problem behaviour. For example, you might describe how smoking is affecting your health, your children, your social life, your finances and the way you feel about yourself.

Next, clearly describe the specific behaviour you wish to modify. In the case of smoking cessation, you could write "Goal: To completely stop smoking by the end of the year". A good goal should be very specific (completely stop), measurable (you can record the number of cigarettes or puffs of tobacco), achievable, relevant (no smoking is relevant to this problem) and time-bound (by the end of the year).

A goal like smoking less is not functional as it does not meet the criteria above. Having done this, you should have a compelling goal that will help you solve the problem.

The second step is to take about a week to establish a baseline measure of the problem behaviour. You must record the frequency, intensity or duration of the problem behaviour.

You may even try to record these things according to setting. For example, record how many cigarettes you smoke in a day or in a week. If possible, monitor how many cigarettes you smoke in the car, at work, at home and when out with friends.

Pay attention to when you chain smoke and when you don't. Note who you are with when you smoke more and when you smoke less.

These recordings are essential as they form the baseline from which you will monitor your progress and note your success. It also helps to increase your awareness of the problem behaviour.

As you record this problem behaviour, pay attention to the thoughts and feelings you have, the setting and the other external stimuli.

The next step is to consider how this problem behaviour operates on you and maintains itself. It is very useful to write down the antecedents to the occurrence of the problem behaviour.

In other words, describe when you are likely to smoke. What are you doing, thinking and feeling before you smoke? Where does it occur most and who are you with?

Also write down the goal of the behaviour. What does smoking achieve for you? Does it ease your nerves, facilitate conversation or cure boredom? Knowing more about the problem gives you more understanding of "the enemy" as it were, and can be instrumental in helping you defeat it.

Keep in mind that all of these steps also apply to behaviours that you may wish to increase, like exercise, except that you'd think about and record all relevant information about the desired behaviour rather than the problem behaviour, and your goal is the increase rather than the decrease of the behaviour in question.

After you have completed these exercises, check here next week to learn the second part of the behaviour modification programme that can help you lose the feeling of being a helpless procrastinator or unmotivated dreamer while you gain control of your life.

The Brunei Times