The Snowball Effect

Oh the dreaded snowball effect.... You know what I mean; those moments when one small decision, that seems so insignificant ends up leading you right into another, and then another, on and on until the day ends? Need an example that’s pretty realistic for many people?

It’s 6 AM, you’re resting peacefully all snuggled up in bed. Then your alarm goes off, waking you from your dreams and comfort. You look at it with disgust and smack the snooze button. Now it’s buzzing again, you jump up realizing you’re going to be late to your gym session, so now you’re rushing around the house getting ready. Luckily you arrive on time so you can still get your whole workout in, but as you’re doing it you notice something. All of the weights feel extra heavy today, and the movements are strenuous, so you drop the weight a bit. All is well, just some sore muscles, nothing else about it.  Now it’s mid-day and you’re eating the lunch you brought from home, some grilled chicken with a balsamic drizzle and a salad. It’s good, but you feel like you’re missing something so you grab a soda to drink instead of some water. 3 o'clock rolls by and you’re ready for your afternoon snack, you have some peanut butter and rice cakes in your desk and you know you should eat those, but that vending machine with the devil's food cakes is calling to you. On your way to the machine you decide that you’re feeling sluggish so you stop in the break-room and make yourself a nice coffee with that super tasty peppermint mocha creamer that’s in the fridge.

Before you know it the end of the day is here, you haven’t realized how quickly time went by because you were still buzzing off of all the sugar and caffeine from that snack. You notice you missed completing a few reports, so you call your significant other and tell them you have to work another hour to finish up. Now that you’re staying later, you decide it’s probably best that you guys just go out for dinner instead of cooking like planned.  It’s not that bad though, you can go to your favorite spot and indulge in the culinary glory that they have.

After dinner you both decide that “since you’re already out”, you may as well grab some ice cream and then catch a movie. You can push your bedtime back a bit just this night. 

Here we are now, day 2 of the cycle. 6 AM just like normal. The alarm goes off, but today... Oh today you’re just not feeling it. So, you set another alarm for 7 AM, look, you’re tired, the gym was hard yesterday which has to mean your muscles need a break. You’ll take today off and the get back on schedule tomorrow. Right? 

This my friends is the snowball effect. This string of small decisions that end up leading to one large sense of disappointment. There is good news though. 

The snowball effect doesn’t always need to be bad. You can have a positive snowball effect as well. Good decisions can be just as contagious as the bad ones that got you here in the first place. 

Getting up on time leads you to having a better workout in the morning. This leads you to choosing a healthier lunch, and that leads to a healthier afternoon snack without all the sugar and caffeine. That leads to not feeling sluggish and missing things, which means a healthy dinner and then bedtime at a decent hour. Which all allows for the cycle to repeat itself.  Now take a minute and think about where the 2 paths I just laid out will take you over the next 3, 6, or 12 months. The path of good decisions will transform you mind and body. 

The bad decisions, well those will transform you too. But into a defeated, less fulfilled version of yourself. 

So the question now is: How do you stay on track?

The best solution I’ve been able to find is professional accountability. Basically, this means that you’ve asked someone to help keep you accountable for getting to your workouts and getting them done, eating right and getting plenty of sleep to fuel your body.

That’s why I’m here, I’ve helped my clients to follow the right path and embrace the snowball of positivity. 

If you’re looking for the help from someone who is passionate about your success, who wants you to achieve the best version of yourself and wants to guide you to make the right decisions. 

Get in touch with me. 

The quick form below is the easiest way to reach me, that way you and I can find out the best solution for you.