You feel tempted…

Photo by Yulian Karadzhov on Unsplash

What do you want besides what is right in front of you?

This is a good practice all year, but especially during this season when there are more tempting choices than almost any other time of year. Choices that evoke memories, foods that are only made once a year, and selections that are significant parts of family traditions.

If you find yourself staring down a plate of Christmas cookies, ask yourself WHAT ELSE do you want for yourself - besides the cookies? Making a choice without a pause can leave us in a place where we forget WHAT MORE we want for ourselves.

Maybe you want to feel in control in the face of a plate of cookies. Maybe you are working on cutting back on carbs or sugar. Maybe you want to skip a cookie now so that you can have something even better later. Maybe you know that these cookies are not going to be that good - so you decide to pass. Maybe you are sick and tired of the showdown that comes up in your body when faced with particular choices. Maybe you decide that yes - you will have one or two of these cookies.

It almost doesn’t matter what you decide in the moment, AS LONG AS YOU TAKE THE PAUSE. The pause enables you to be thoughtful and conscious.

Doing this takes practice. Sometimes it will work, sometimes it will not - but over time, you will begin to “feel” what the right choice is. You will become an expert in being clear that the choice in the moment either works for your long term goals, or that it does not.

I spent decades and way too much energy battling plates, bags and boxes of cookies. The hard work over time has paid off because I have ease…I sometimes have the proverbial/literal cookies, sometimes I don’t. But, I am in charge of the cookies, not the other way around.