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What are You Quitting for?
By Fred H. Kelley
Have you ever asked yourself what you are quitting for? Why is it that you are quitting smoking?
Are you quitting for your health? Your doctor? Your family? Your pocketbook?
What's that? You don't really know for sure why you are quitting? I hope you DO know why you are quitting. Every smoker should have a reason for quitting. You may have some vague thoughts in your mind that you are quitting because "it's bad for me" or because "my wife wants me to."
I'm here to tell you today to get CLEAR in your mind EXACTLY why you are quitting.
Yes, you know smoking is bad for you. But that never stopped you from smoking before, did it? You knew you could save money, smell better, feel better, etc., etc. if you quit smoking, but you didn't quit. Why not? Perhaps you didn't truly give yourself enough clearly defined reasons for quitting.
Here's a quick exercise that I'd like you to complete: Grab a piece of paper and pencil, and along the left side of the page write down a reason why you want to quit smoking. Skip down a few lines and write down another reason, and so on, until you've got five reasons. What are you quitting for? Health, wealth, smellth? (Yeah, I just made that up but it rhymes).
Now, below each reason, write down the BENEFITS of this reason. Write as many as you can think of. Be very descriptive.
For example:
Reason: Smell better
Benefits: People will enjoy being around me more often. I can get more dates. I won't offend my clients. I can get a better job.
Reason: Feel better
Benefits: Feeling better is its on benefit. If I feel better I can do more and better work. I can stop taking so much medicine. I can save money by not having to go to my doctor all the time. I'll have more energy. Getting up in the morning will be so much easier.
You see? Do this for all five of YOUR reasons. Come up with as many benefits as you can.
The last step is to take these benefits and turn them into what I call "reality cards." A reality card is an index card on which you write statements of "fact." Take the benefits you've written down and turn them into statements of fact. Write these statements of fact on index cards.
For example:
The benefit "I can get a better job" becomes "I have a better job because I quit smoking." The benefit "I'll have more energy" becomes "Ever since I quit smoking I have incredible amounts of energy!"
Write the statements of fact as exciting, motivating messages to yourself. Even though you haven't yet quit smoking, I call these "statements of fact" because they are stated as if you already achieved the goal and attained the benefit of the goal. Put one statement of fact on each index card. Read your "reality cards" at least three times per day. Also, you should read them whenever you get a craving to smoke. Use a rubberband to attach the cards to your pack of cigarettes. That way you'll see and read them whenever you want to smoke.
Make sure you know what you are quitting for and you'll find it much easier to resists your next craving.
** Article © Copyright Fred Kelley of QuitSmoking.com. Visit the web site at http://www.quitsmoking.com
for great information and products designed to help you quit smoking.
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