I know we all have dreams and desires to reach a higher level, to obtain wins we aren’t experiencing yet, and to be able to have the life we dream of. The reality is that it's all possible and it’s all based on choices.

I know this sounds too simple and to some, you may think that choices can’t fix what you are going through. The truth is, they can. We all have the same amount of time in the day, yet others get so much more accomplished than most.

Why is it like this? It’s about choices. We all, at every moment that we are awake, make choices and all the choices we make, no matter how small they might be, affect our ability to grow or move up.

The problem is that most of us don’t realize we are making some of the choices we make, and going deeper than that, most don’t know or understand they're making the choices they do, they don’t even realize what they're doing.

So let's start with recognizing choices. This takes being aware of everything you do on a daily bases. I know it sounds like a lot of work but it is necessary if you want to make a change. The fact that you are reading this is a choice you made, following or not following the advice will be another choice. Why you chose to read this is something you should ask yourself, why you decide to follow or not follow the advice, ask yourself for the reason and be honest with yourself about it.

Now one of the problems that people face when trying to make a change is they want to change everything overnight, be a completely different person with no ramping up. For a very small percentage of people, this will work. However, for the majority of the rest of us, we change drastically by changing incrementally.

We need to first decide what we want to change and why exactly we want to change it. Is it for a desire to obtain a positive result or to influence positivity in some aspect of our lives or is it simply to say we did it cause everyone else is? If it is the second statement, then the likelihood of that change sticking is minor.

Remember, we need to have the desire to want to change, then the reason why we want to change and a clear mental picture of what our lives or days will look like if and when we make that change.

What do you do when you finally pinpoint when you are making a choice that takes you away from your desired goal/path? The first thing you do is make sure that you catch yourself making that choice, then you make sure you track yourself and how many times you make that choice. It doesn’t have to be an exact number that you are writing down, it just has to be an awareness of the frequency that you are making that choice.

The next thing is to start being aware of what is happening at the time that you go to make the choice, you need to think back and be aware of what happened before that put you in the mental state to make that choice. Once you figure that out, this will be something you might want to write down. Then you create a list of these triggers, that's what they are called triggers. They are triggering something inside you that is telling your brain make "x" choice. Most of the time we aren’t aware of what these triggers are and might need someone that observes you, that you respect and trust with advice like this, to be honest with you about what they see in you when you are making this choice or before you make it.

This has to be a completely honest moment and you need to be open to realizing that you may be doing something that you don’t feel comfortable admitting or saying out loud.

When you can do the above and find out why you are being triggered before making choices that you know aren’t probably the best choices, then you can address those triggers and do something to change your patterns. Also determining what they are will help you to dig deep into why you are being triggered.

I know this sounds like a lot of mumbo-jumbo but these are true facts and best practices if you are really looking to make a change.

Here are a couple of other things you should keep in mind when trying to make a change and have it stick. It takes a minimum of 21 days to install a new habit in our minds and daily activity. It can take longer but in reality, the minimum is 21 days for any kind of long term change.

Also, if it takes 30 days for example; understand that the first 10 days will always be the hardest. The second 10 days you’ll start to get a little momentum and see some improvement but you will still have resistance and it will still be hard. Finally, the last 10 days you will have real momentum and be on the downhill to adding this new positive habit/mindset to your permanent state of being.

Remember, before this though, you have to know in your mind clearly, I mean crystal clear, that the change you want is possible. You have to believe this with your entire being. If you have any kind of doubt it will show up in your business and or personal life.

Start with writing down in as much detail as possible what your ideal day looks like. I learn this from coaches I’ve had before and multiple ones use this. Describe everything in detail and read it 5 times. Once you do, keep reading this every day at least once a day. Visualize living this life you have in your mind and ask yourself every time you are faced with making a choice; does this bring me closer or take me further away from my ideal day and life?

Remember repetition and discipline lead to crazy success and mastery.