Can't Get There From Here....Or Can You?

Welcome back to the second in a six-part series about Change.

Doctors James Prochaska, John Norcross and Carlo DiClemente have challenged and revolutionized the way we think about change. In their book Changing for Good, they have identified six stages of change (listed below) and offer suggestions of how to successfully move from one stage to the next.

This is quite different from most of our thinking which usually imagines us going from Point A - our current state, which might be smoking, overweight, stressed, depressed, drinking too much or maybe feeling stuck in life - to Point B, where we're not smoking, overweight, stressed, depressed, have our drinking under control and are blissfully happy with our work and partner and living a fulfilling life. We know what we're doing now and where we are, and we don't want to be there anymore.

So what do we do? Go on a diet maybe, throw out all our cigarettes or devise a system to cut down; we try to think happy thoughts and be grateful for what we have, and limit our drinking. We buy the books, read the articles and with great gusto enter into not practicing the behavior that's making us unhappy. We are motivated. We are committed.

Then Day 3 arrives. Or Day 4. Or maybe even Day 7 or 14. Our enthusiasm and motivation have waned, and suddenly we're back where we were - eating, smoking, depressed, stressed and with the added burden of feeling worse about ourselves and feeling more stuck than ever. What happened?

Each stage in the Cycle of Change has its own strategies for success and moving forward, so once you identify where you are in the cycle when you begin, you ensure a greater chance of success by applying the appropriate strategies. This is why it's important to know where you are in order to make sure you'll get where it is that you want to go!

This also suggests that we're always in a cycle of change. Sounds good to me. Change isn't a conveyer belt I need to hop onto - it's organic and ongoing. And, according to this system, it isn't a linear progression. We move in and out of different stages on our way to the success of the next stage. We need to look at the behavior we want to change, the goal we want to achieve in light of where we are in the Cycle of Change with that particular behavior. Once we can identify where we are then we can apply proven methods of support for that change.

When you look at change through this model, you can easily understand why we may have been (repeatedly) unsuccessful in the past: we've applied the wrong strategies for change to the wrong stage. We put the cart before the horse, so to speak.

Here are Prochaska's Six Stages of Change. Think about a change you want to make in your own life. Can you identify which stage you're in?

1. Precontemplation or Denial: Everything is fine just the way it is (in spite of what your
doctor, spouse, friends or workmates tell you!)
2. Contemplation: Beginning to acknowledge the problem.
3. Preparation: Planning to take action within the next 6 months
4. Action: Modifying behavior and surroundings
5. Maintenance: Sustaining new behavior
6. Termination: Former problem no longer presents a threat or temptation.

NEXT WEEK: We'll look at steps one and two, and some strategies for movement.