As we begin 2024, I want to share a letter from Val which is apropos for the start of a new year. Here’s what Val wrote: Please do a vlog on getting past the brain chatter that says “I will start next week” or “I will start next month” or “I can’t do it because I’ll never be able to eat cake again.” I keep wanting to start, but I can’t seem to.
Val, many people grapple with this. So to start, I want to encourage you to use the January 1 “fresh start effect.” We’re past January 1st by a few days, but still: Boot Camp registration is open, and you can use the start of the new year to galvanize yourself into action.
The fresh start effect may not be enough to keep you going, but it’s often enough to help you get started.
Take advantage of the fact that the Boot Camp has a 14-day, 100 percent money-back guarantee. So if there’s a part of you that’s resistant, see if you can convince yourself that you’re just going to give this a try, just for a few days, and see how it goes. Commit to, say, three days. Do the initial part of the Boot Camp knowing that if it doesn’t work you can get your money back—no harm, no foul. That’s a legitimate way to get over the hump and get started.
Of course, the reality is that you may want to stay with it once you start, but this gives you a potential out if you need it.
Also remember that inside the Boot Camp, there’s a bonus module that’s specifically designed to break through resistance. It’s called “The Break Through Your Resistance Road Map.” I encourage you to use that to address the part of you that is resistant. My guess is that this part of you is trying to protect you from failure, by keeping you from starting. But that part of you doesn’t know about this new program called Bright Line Eating that is entirely tailored to the way your brain works.
You may have tried plans before that have “cheat days” or build in snacks or try to sell you sugar and flour products—all kinds of things to hijack your brain. No wonder you didn’t succeed with them! They weren’t designed for the way your brain works. But now you have a plan designed for you, in your most authentic self, and you don’t need to be terrified of failure. Just follow the fabulous plan. JFTFP.
Finally, let’s talk about that part about never being able to eat cake again. I have a story for you that you may have heard me share in the vlog before, but it seems fitting.
Imagine, for example, that you’re worried about being able to eat cake at your son’s wedding, or some kind of potential future event like that.
I had something similar happen to me when I was 20. I had a history of drug and alcohol abuse in my teens. I quit and got clean and sober when I was 20, about 10½ months before my 21st birthday. I was living in California where the legal drinking age was 21, and I thought, I can’t get clean and sober because I will surely drink on my 21st birthday. And people told me not to worry about that, and just to live in the day. That seemed dismissive to me because I was sure I wasn’t going to stay sober on my birthday—but that’s what people kept telling me.
And that’s what I’d say to you, Val. Just worry about today. You don’t have to worry about the future. You just need to follow the plan for today.
In the end, I DID stay sober, all the way up to my birthday. And I was invited by members of my group to attend an international convention in San Diego. So on my 21st birthday, I found myself in San Diego with 60,000 sober alcoholics dancing at a street party downtown, partying all night long with zero alcohol, and having the time of my life.
What I found is that I was so different by that time from the person that I’d been the year before that I didn’t even think about needing a drink.
So I envision you staying Bright today, knowing that you don’t have to worry about the future. You only need to plan for today. You don’t need to worry about your son’s wedding, because by that time you may have committed to a MasterMind group and a buddy, and you might go to the wedding thinking instead about your son’s well-being and your new daughter-in-law. And maybe the fifty pounds you’ve lost impresses your beloved cousin who needs to make some changes to their health—and as the night goes on you spend your time talking to them and don’t even care much when cake is served. You stay Bright and have a fabulous time.
The main thing is to use the fresh start effect to register for Boot Camp now before it’s too late. Just tell yourself you only have to try it for three days. Get started and see how it feels. Get into action. You’ve got this.
