Well, let it be said early and often that I’m an individual in need of improvement.  A lot of it.  I’d like to think I’m no different than the rest of us, but, really, who knows?  Either way, I have a few habit-establishment goals I’m trying to accomplish, and I’ve failed at a few of them more than once.  So, what’s the best way to ensure success?  Heck if I know.

There are two separate schools of thought: one that you should hold yourself accountable to the universe so you can keep on track with your new habits, and another that suggests keeping quiet might actually be the true secret to success.

Which one actually works?  Let’s see.  But first, a little background:

State your intention!  Be accountable!

About.com has one of the best quick sum-ups I’ve read on setting intentions.  Essentially, the process is boiled down to four steps:

1. Get clear about something you want and write it down.

2. Share your intention with someone in a way that will supportively hold you accountable to taking action.

3. Do something today to demonstrate your commitment to your intention.

4. Acknowledge that you did what you said you would and then, take the next step.

-Marcia Weider, The Power of Intention – Four Steps For Setting An Intention

If you read a lot of the personal development blogs out there, you’ll find that setting intentions to achieve goals or establish new habits is very popular advice.  I’ve honestly never tried it; as an introvert, one of my least favorite things to do when socializing is to talk about myself and my accomplishments.  I also like to think I can pride myself on my self-sufficiency.  So, suffice to say, this isn’t an approach I’ve ever used, or I’ve ever seen myself using.

Until now.

Keep quiet if you actually want to succeed!

Lifehacker, needless to say, advises the opposite.

A more detailed examination of the whys of keeping goals to yourself actually seems a bit counter-intuitive, and the exact opposite of why I’d think you’d want to stay silent.  Personally, this is my more favored approach, mostly because I hate looking like an idiot when I don’t succeed.  And I really, really, really hate admitting weakness to the external world, even to my friends.

But that’s not the problem.  This is:

Announcing your plans to others satisfies your self-identity just enough that you’re less motivated to do the hard work needed.

In 1933, W. Mahler found that if a person announced the solution to a problem, and was acknowledged by others, it was now in the brain as a “social reality”, even if the solution hadn’t actually been achieved.

So, your mind thinks you’re already through, that you’re already successful.  You’ve already completed the action or established the habit, even if you’ve just primed yourself to take action in your mind.  Your social reality is your true external reality.

I can buy this, completely.  I have a nasty tendency to think through all angles of any problem I’ve approached, and by assessing all of the possible actions I can take, or by establishing a mental plan, I think I’ve completed all of the necessary external work to solve it.  Besides, doing the actual work is boooring.  Anything that assists my brain in deceiving itself that the work is already done is a bad, bad, bad thing.  Horrible.  Terrible.  You get the picture.

So, which actually works?

We’re about to find out.  Beginning today, I’m launching a personal experiment to see which approach is best with two habits I’m hoping to establish.

• Writing journal entries five times a week.
• Another goal I’ve failed at each time I’ve tried: I’m looking to repeat this activity four times a week.

To track this, I’ll be using the ultra-simple “Don’t Break the Chain” method.  The journal entries will be indicated with a red X, and the other habit with a blue X in my lovely calendar.

Pretty, isn’t it?

Why, “Don’t Break the Chain?”  I stink at actual documentation.  This appeals to my utter loathing of writing things down about as much as can reasonably be accommodated if I’m going to actually track anything.  Seriously, just using typical recording methods most people use to track anything requires a whole new habit to form.  Ugh.

Ideally, you’ll see nine X marks, four red and five blue at the end of a successful week.

Setting my journaling intention

I intend to write for ten minutes, five times a week using my journaling program.  I’ll be using Digital Diary, a Windows 8 app.  My subjects will come from my journal jar: a plastic reach-in tub that holds about 200+ prompts I printed out from various websites.

Just reach on in and get a handful of insight!

The advantages to this habit are supposedly to gain inner insight, to introspect (as if I don’t do enough of that already!), and to gain a greater grasp of what makes you tick.  Supposedly, miracles can happen if you write enough, or your life gels, and all of a sudden the universe makes sense or something.  Either way, you’re supposed to get something beyond your usual ordinary perspective by writing about yourself regularly.  Should be amusing, methinks.  If any insight arises from this habit, I’ll be sure to share it.

And in a few minutes, I’ll make my first entry into my new journal.  I’ll report my success (or not) on Monday, February 4.  If I fail, yell at me virtually in the comments section below.

…and here we go!

For further reading: Shhh! Keeping Quiet May Help You Achieve Your Goals by Derek and The Power of Intention: Four Steps For Setting An Intention by Marcia Weider