Hi Reader!
Both Linda and I used to smoke back in the day.
She eventually quit (easily I might add), but it took me a really long time to quit for good.
Not because I didn't try.
I really did.
Many times.
But there was one mistake I kept making.
Every time a craving showed up, I thought:
Oh no, I've failed. I couldn't stop the cravings.
And because I believed that, I gave up each time I got cravings and smoked again.
Then I felt bad about myself.
And the whole cycle started over again.
๐ The Realization That Changed Everything
One day, I started looking at it differently.
What if cravings weren't proof that I had failed?
What if they were simply part of quitting?
That sounds obvious now.
But for some reason, I had convinced myself that once I decided to quit, I shouldn't want a cigarette anymore.
And if I did...
Something had gone wrong. I had failed.
I think many people experience this.
Maybe you decide to start eating healthy and then you get thrown off by how badly you want a piece of chocolate.
And then you feel bad because you think you shouldn't be craving chocolate at all.
But of course you should get cravings. That's normal.
Just like getting cravings when you try to quit smoking is normal. ๐
๐ฟ I Also Had To Question My Own Story
I had another belief that kept me stuck.
I honestly thought I'd never be happy again as a non-smoker.
That life would somehow become bleak and miserable.
And what eventually changed my mind was questioning that story.
Every time I smoked, I'd ask myself:
๐ฌ Is this really that great?
๐ฌ Would my life really be so different without this?
๐ฌ Am I actually enjoying this... or am I just feeding an addiction?
Little by little, the story stopped making sense.
I realized I'd still be the same person.
The life I was afraid of losing was still there.
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I'd still laugh with friends.
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I'd still have coffee.
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I'd still enjoy life.
The only difference was that I'd be free from the nicotine addiction.
โจ Maybe We Don't Need To Fear Setbacks
Looking back, I think what really helped me most was accepting that difficult moments would come.
โ Cravings.
โ Doubt.
โ Bad days.
They weren't signs that I had failed.
They were simply part of the process.
And somehow, that made them much easier to handle.
๐ญ One Thought To Leave You With
I think we sometimes believe that struggle means we're doing something wrong.
But struggle is often a sign that we're doing something difficult.
And maybe we don't need to fear setbacks.
Maybe we just need to expect them.
Because when they arrive, we can simply say:
๐ฌ I knew this part might be hard.
And then keep going. ๐
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Now we're curious...
Have you ever changed your mind about something you once believed you couldn't live without?
๐ Hit reply and tell us. We read and reply to every answer.
Have a great week, Reader!
Founders of Courier Mind
P.S. Want to learn more about how to prepare for setbacks? Read our full article ๐
๐ช Why Visualizing Failure Makes WOOP Goal Setting So Powerfulโ
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