Make quick, easy, specific moves to achieve your goals

Psychologists who specialize in behavioral change often use the term intervention.

That word might sound overly clinical and dramatic to most. Images of the drug addicted person being confronted by a group of friends or family members often comes to mind.

But an intervention simply describes an action taken to improve a situation. It doesn’t have to be perfect to be effective. Nor does it have to be clinical, complicated or overwhelming.

Interventions help people along a spectrum of functioning. They can be quick, easy, specific activities that help us achieve our goals.

For example, have you ever found yourself doubting your ability to make progress on a project?

The intervention you might try in that scenario is called the futurizing. It’s when you catch yourself in the act of making superfluous complaints and redirect that energy more usefully.

Rather than allowing the doubt get a grip on you, you debate it for a change. Attaching your desired outcome to your identity by announcing to yourself, sorry, but people like me do things like this.

Then, the moment after you actually make progress on your project, you close the loop. And you can feel proud of that step you took by marking it down on your victory log.

That’s an intervention. You took action to improve your situation.

Here’s another one.

Think about some of your unhealthiest habits that make it hard to get stay on track with your creative goals consistently. Perhaps everyone in your office eats fast food each day for lunch, and it’s hard to resist the social pressure to eat healthy. And then you end up crashing in the early afternoon, making it hard to focus on your work.

The intervention you might try in that scenario is called relocation. This is when you reduce your exposure to the kinds of situations and surroundings that enable you in the wrong direction.

Rather than putting yourself in a helpless position of temptation, you physically leave the office fifteen minutes before normal lunch time to proactively pick up healthier food for yourself. That way you can overcome the psychological cues and associative triggers usually trip you up.

When the rest of your coworkers come back to the lunch room with their friend chicken and biscuits, you’ll already be enjoying your salad. And when lunchtime is over, you’ll feel nourished, connected and ready to get back to work.

That’s an intervention too. A simple act taken to improve a situation.

This is the heart of what personal creativity management is all about. You advocate for yourself on a moment to moment basis. Making quick, easy, specific moves that help you achieve your goals.

No psychology degree required.

What interventions have been most helpful for your own behavioral change?