If you work in a veterinary practice or in the pet industry or in a business that supplies goods or services to the industry and you have something to say - why not become a 'Guest Blogger'?
For more information click here to read our: Guidelines for Guest Bloggers
Then, in Part 2, we uncovered the power of habits and how they’re the engine that drives us toward our goals.
Now, it’s time to supercharge those habits with rituals and rewards to ensure your sustained success!
Let’s be honest – self-discipline is hard.
It’s easy to stick to our goals when we’re paying attention, but most of our day runs on autopilot. Ever find yourself grabbing a snack without thinking? Or scrolling through your phone even though you swore you’d be asleep by now?
That’s the power of our subconscious – and it can either work for us or against us.
We need to design our environment in a way that supports our new habits.
Let’s start with a simple example – food.
The concept of “out of sight, out of mind” is huge here. If you don’t buy junk food, you won’t eat junk food. But it’s not just about willpower at the grocery store.
It’s about creating new rituals that make good habits easier.
Rituals are what help you shift that environment:
The trick is to design your space and routine to make the good habits automatic. When your environment supports your goals, you won’t have to rely on self-discipline, which we all know can be fleeting at times!
Here are some simple examples of rituals to support your habits:
Habit: Drink more water.
Ritual: Always have a jug of water on your desk.
Habit: Take your vitamins regularly.
Ritual: Keep them next to your toothbrush so you remember them every morning.
Habit: Build stronger connections with clients.
Ritual: Keep notes on what your clients have shared so you can follow up next time.
The truth is habits alone aren’t enough: Rituals provide the structure you need to make those habits stick.
Now, let’s talk about the final piece of the puzzle – motivation and reward.
We all love instant gratification, don’t we? It’s why unhealthy habits like eating chocolate are so much easier to stick to than eating healthy, fibre-packed meals. You get a quick dopamine hit from that piece of cake, while the benefits of eating a nutritious meal might not appear until weeks later.
This is why we need to build a reward system into our goals.
Waiting for the long-term payoff is tough, so we need to create small, rewarding moments along the way.
Here’s an idea to track your progress:
Grab 30 sticky notes, write a date on each until you reach the end of the month, and stick them on your wall. Every day you follow through with your new ritual, place a big checkmark on the sticky note.
It may seem small, but these small wins trigger a sense of accomplishment and help fuel your motivation.
And don’t forget to create a ritual around this too! Keep that marker close by so checking off your progress becomes part of the system itself.
To summarise our journey, here’s the winning formula to achieving your goals:
Remember, the real challenge isn’t setting the goal – it’s setting up the system that helps you achieve it. Habits, rituals, and rewards are the building blocks of that system, and when they’re in place, you’re unstoppable.
Now, take what you’ve learned, put your new rituals into practice, and watch your goals become reality!
Paul is the founding principal of the Lincoln Institute and is a highly sought-after executive coach, facilitator and keynote presenter with a focus on stimulating organisational team and individual leadership potential. Paul is a graduate of the Australian Defence Force Academy, University of New South Wales, the Royal Military College Duntroon and was awarded the prestigious Sasakawa Leadership Scholarship by the Australian Graduate School of Management’s Executive MBA program.
Connect with Paul:
As veterinary professionals, it's important that we equip pet owners with effective strategies to alleviate their dogs' anxiety caused by fireworks during the festive season. As the festive season approaches, the anticipation of fireworks displays becomes a source of...
