How the Little Things Can Create Meaningful Change

In this episode, Syfko shares insights and advice around approaches for making sustainable changes to our health and wellness, including the following:

• The collective conversation around the start of a new year is around “needing” to change, with many asking themselves, What do I need to change? Because this feeling can come from a dark space (e.g., something you don’t like about yourself), Syfko encourages instead coming at it from a more positive approach like, I’m called to start taking action and earning this new way of life for myself.
• The little things are momentary wins or daily victories that we need to build a relationship with if we expect change to become long-term and lifestyle-oriented.
• Celebrating little wins can be as simple as telling yourself, I did a great job today. I showed up.
• Syfko says it can be helpful to compartmentalize your days, especially the bookends of your days: Be especially intentional about how you start and end them. For example, take 10 or 20 minutes first thing in the morning to read, write, meditate, or reflect while also nourishing your body with some water and/or greens powder. Set an intention for how your day will begin versus just jumping into your to-dos. And even if the uncontrollable happens during the day, give yourself time before going to sleep to also be intentional.
• Habit stacking can allow for sustainable behavior change. Syfko encourages picking one to two habits at a time to work on and regularly checking in with yourself to assess how you’re feeling about them. She emphasizes the importance of having emotional confidence and belief in the action before you continue to add new additional habits.
• It generally takes about 10,000 repetitions to get to mastery, which means creating a new pattern is minimally going to take about 90 days, according to Syfko.
• Consistency always beats intensity.
• Trusting the process isn’t about living your best days yesterday, says Syfko, but rather about being present and open to the flow of moving in a new direction.
• Syfko believes community is the most important thing that we often underestimate. She often refers to an African proverb that states, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
• When we don’t have enough to believe in, we need to reach for/rely on other people’s belief in us, Syfko says.
• “Practice makes permanent” is a phrase Syfko quotes from one of her mentors; it means we need to be aware of the decisions we’re making because we’re rooting habits and patterns, whether consciously or unconsciously.
• There’s no one-size-fits-all plan, process, or journey. It’s your journey — and it’s one that is special and unique.