Have you ever wondered what it is going to take to finally motivate you to quit smoking?
So what would motivate you to want to quit smoking?
It is very individual for each person. Most of the people that I talk to say:
- “I really love smoking…it is the only thing that I do for myself…”
- “It is my companion…my lover…my best friend…”
- “It is my way to relax…my way to deal with stress…”
- “It is always there for me…my quiet time…”
- “…and so why would I want to give up all of that!”
What was the main reason you decided to start smoking in the very beginning?
Let’s take a look at the top reasons that people start smoking.
- Peer pressure or to fit into a group or environment.
- Rebellion.
- To look older, more sophisticated, or cool.
Is the peer group still pressuring you to smoke? I bet now those same people, if they are still around, are pressuring you to quit.
Are you still hanging around smoky environments? Chances are, you are not. Because more and more places are now smoke-free.
Are you still rebelling against the same people? Probably not…..now you are probably rebelling because people are telling you where to smoke and how long you can be there.
Are you still trying to look older? Doubtful… Most people say…“yeah, I guess it worked to make me look older”…especially once those tell-tale smoker’s wrinkles set in.
Do you still think it makes you look sophisticated? Probably not.
So what I have noticed, having taught this for many years, is…
If you take the original reason someone started and reverse it, the new reason will motivate them to quit.
Think of it this way. If something will motivate you one time, it will motivate you again.
So you can now use the reason that motivated you to start smoking, in reverse, to help motivate you to quit smoking.
For instance, if you started for peer pressure, now let that peer pressure work for you to pressure you to quit (sort of pressuring you the other way). Let the people that want you to quit be a part of your quitting experience.
Maybe your environment has changed. Maybe your environment is now smoke-free. Maybe it is even a hassle now to go and have a cigarette. If your environment has changed, let that be a motivator for you.
If you started for rebellion, let that rebellion work for you. For instance, you might not be rebelling against the same people anymore, but in order to have a cigarette you have to go outside to smoke, or it might be a big hassle to smoke. So you can rebel against all the restrictions and let that be a motivator for you.
If you started smoking to look older, guess what, it worked! Now, you don’t want to look older and have all of those craggy wrinkles. Now you want to look younger and you know if you quit you would look younger, and would not have those deep crevices that smoking creates. If you started smoking to look older, now you can quit smoking to look younger and more rejuvenated. Let that work for you to motivate you.
Remember—
The way you do anything is
the way you do everything.
If it will motivate you one time, it will motivate you again, and it will actually help YOU quit smoking.
