HabitForce!

Wanted to jot down a few thoughts tonight about the process of change. I think the HabitForce! structure is very powerful … the FAILURE and SUCCESS acronyms and the Three Rs — Recognize, Reject and Replace. It just occurred to me today to call this process something. It seems to me it’s a “Reprogramming” process … people are basically “Reprogramming” their HabitForce! As I’ve said many times, HabitForce! can work for you or against you; the trick is to make it work for you. That’s where the Reprogramming process comes in. That’s basically what the Three Rs are all about … Reprogramming a FAILURE habit with its “replacement” habit of SUCCESS. So that’s my thought for tonight — January 13, 2006. I’ll be calling this process “Reprogramming” HabitForce! so it works for you not against you.

Well … the Dallas KLLI interview didn’t happen last night after all. It was going to be a taped interview anyway. Not live. The host called me and we’re rescheduled to tape the interview next Wednesday for broadcast the following Sunday morning. A bit disappointing but these things happen. The host was very apologetic. Apparently an important piece of equipment was moved or broken or something. So the Dallas radio gig will be a next-week story. I’m still waiting to hear what became of the CNN Radio interview I taped earlier this week. I’m hoping that piece will be distributed far and wide. More on that later when I hear something. This coming week I have an interview sceduled for Monday morning with a radio station in Mitchell South Dakota. Actually, I did an interview with this host back in November or December, but I’m talking about a different angle now … more focused on New Year’s goals. I really like this concept of getting a “HabitForce! Check Up from the Neck Up” as a way to start the personal transformation process. I also have two interviews scheduled for Tuesday. I’ll tape the Dallasd interview on Wednesday evening. A reporter I know with the North County News here in Westchester, NY, wants to interview me about my being elected President of the Shakespeare Oxford Society. I’ll do some blogging about Shakespeare later on. In fact, I set up a blog called True Shakespeare. Haven’t had time to do much with that blog yet. On the Shakespeare topic, I’m expecting to see a story about me in the Westchester Business Journal. The reporter who interviewed me last week is nowthe mangaing editor of the Biz Journal. I had the feeling he liked the topic and will do a good story. I’ll post the story once it appears. Guess that’s enough for now. Time for a late dinner!

This is my very first HabitForce! blog post.  For those in the Dallas listening area, be sure to tune in to KLLI Radio tonight, 8:00 ET.  I’ll be a guest on the Better Living Show with Lauri Dodd.  KLLI is the CBS affiliate in Dallas. 

I’ve been doing quite a few radio and some TV interviews lately.  The response from hosts to my ideas about HabitForce! — how to Recognize, Reject and Replace the habits and mindsets that hold you back … has been terrific.  So tune in tonight if you can.  If you want to learn more about HabitForce! or even buy a signed copy of the book online, just visit www.habitforcethebook.com. 

I also sent out a press release this morning.  Maybe I’ll post a copy of the release below this short message.  I like this idea of a “HabitForce! Check Up from the Neck Up.”  That’s the first step in making lasting personal changes.  

Here’s the release.  Let me know what you think.

Already Disillusioned with Your Resolutions? 
 

HabitForce! author and motivational speaker, Matthew Cossolotto, says you can still redeem your dreams for 2006 – starting with a “HabitForce! Check Up From the Neck Up”
 

“It takes a habit to replace a habit.”
 

YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, NY – JANUARY 12, 2006 – Matthew Cossolotto, author of HabitForce! How to Kick the Habits of F.A.I.L.U.R.E. and Adopt the Habits of S.U.C.C.E.S.S., today urged those who already feel disillusioned with their Resolutions not to despair.  Don’t throw in the towel just yet, he says.  There’s still time to “redeem your dreams” for 2006.  The first step is to get what he calls a “HabitForce! Check Up From The Neck Up.”

“If you’re really serious about personal transformation, if you really want to redeem your dreams for 2006, the first order of business is to take inventory of the underlying habits and mindsets that control your life.  We’re all the product of our habits and mindsets.  Aristotle said it well:  ‘We are what we repeatedly do.’  That’s where the ‘HabitForce! Check Up From the Neck Up’ comes in.  This means taking stock of your underlying habits with the checklist of F.A.I.L.U.R.E.  and S.U.C.C.E.S.S. habits that I describe in my book HabitForce! and in my Harness Your HabitForce! workshops and private coaching sessions.”

Cossolotto believes real transformation can’t begin until we closely monitor “our thoughts, our internal dialogue, the self-talk that goes on constantly in the back of our heads.”  He says self awareness — especially with regard to this often negative, unconscious self-talk — is the key to harnessing your HabitForce! and turning things around.

“We become what we think about,” Cossolotto said.  “This is a great truism offered by Earl Nightingale.  Another key concept is that it takes a habit to replace a habit.  That’s the basic idea behind the easy-to-follow structure I created in HabitForce!  We need to replace the F.A.I.L.U.R.E. habits with their S.U.C.C.E.S.S. counterparts.  And we do this by following three straightforward steps:  Recognize, Reject, Replace.  The F.A.I.L.U.R.E. habits and mindsets tend to undermine us, to hold us back from achieving our goals.  Transformation begins when we Recognize these habits, Reject them consciously, and Replace them with the ‘replacement’ S.U.C.C.E.S.S. habits.

Cossolotto continued:  “Most people feel stuck, trapped, unable to get enough traction to make the changes they’d like to make in their lives.  Why?  Because HabitForce! is working against them.  And that means setting goals and making New Year’s resolutions amounts to wishful thinking.  It’s a formula for frustration and failure.  It’s like driving your car around with the emergency brake on and three flat tires.  You’re not going to get anywhere that way.” 

Cossolotto coaches individuals and organizations on ways to kick the F.A.I.L.U.R.E. habits that hold them back.  He has developed a series of targeted Harness Your HabitForce! workshops and presentations for schools, community groups, and business and professional organizations.  His HabitForce!-based workshops and coaching sessions center around two seven-letter acronyms – F.A.I.L.U.R.E. and S.U.C.C.E.S.S.  This easily remembered structure magnifies the program’s lasting power to transform individual behavior and organizational performance.  For more information, to set up an interview with Matthew Cossolotto, or to schedule a HabitForce! presentation or workshop for your company or organization, please call 914-245-9721, email habitforce@ovations.com, or visit www.habitforcethebook.com.