Have Your Cake and Eat It Too

Have Your Cake and Eat It Too!It’s true!You can lose weight, have the relationship you desire, and a career or job that is fulfilling and still have your cake, and eat it, too! No, this is not an empty promise of dreams that never come true or about eating mini cupcakes or fat free cookies.  It is reality.  It can be your reality.It is about small, tiny, steps, in the correct direction. One tiny step begins with a tiny question. If you want to lose weight successfully, ask yourself “What small, tiny step could I take that might help me lose weight?”If you want your life long partner, ask, “What small, tiny step could I take, that will allow me to meet them?”If you want that fabulous job or career, ask, “What small, tiny step could I take to get it?You might say, “Eat less; go to a party, fill out an application.”BUZZ. Nope. Try again. These are too general in making a beginning statement. It is hard to begin, achieve and sustain effort with these too general, broad steps.  Get more detailed.  Get SIMPLER.“Avoid cake.”“Go to a job fair.”“Join an online dating service.”BUZZ. Nope again. These are more concrete but still not simple enough for a first step towards a big goal. The gentle first step is not to avoid cake. If it were that easy we’d all be thin. Try again, this time even tinier and more focused.“Eat Less cake.”Almost there!“What small, tiny step could I take that might help me lose weight?”How about, eat the cake and toss out the first bite? (the last bite is too hard)That’s it! We simply want to eliminate any resistence to change you may have. The teeniest, tiniest first step, like throwing the first bite of cake out (that’s all!) will do so. It is the first step toward gentle, permanent portion control and weight loss. Here are a few other gentle, first step examples:

  • Take one item out of your shopping cart before you check out.
  • File one paper at the end of your work day to organize yourself better for tomorrow.
  • Bill one more minute a day in your billable hours.
  • Pour out the first sip of your drink tonight to cut back on alcohol consumption.
  • If you are in conflict with someone, spend one minute a day thinking about something positive about them.
  • Put on a new lipstick
  • Spend one minute scanning an online jobsite.

The list of beginning first steps is endless.When you make your first step, even a real small, gentle one, you give yourself a real shot at success. You want to experience the joy and emotion of success, so make the first one a small one you can do.The size of the step is inconsequential because it is the feeling of success you want to experience.  Once you experience the feeling of success you can then decide when and where it is appropriate for you to take the next.You will know when the time is right for that next step, too. Always stay focused on the process being fun, effortless and almost automatic. If it is less than any of these qualities, then use the “first step” process again. You are in charge of your pace of change.What is your first small step?