This program may take ten weeks or less or more according to your own pace, the goals you choose and other factors. If it is smoking, please know that this is the most addictive substance on Earth. I welcome you to use this as your goal to stop. You just have a challenge in front of you. If you start to fail in your quest to reduce smoking or alcohol in the first week, then choose another behavior to decrease. These physical addictions were covered earlier in this book, so hopefully, you have already addressed these chemicals. If not, then decreasing another bad habit will give you the confidence to tackle the more difficult addictions later. For this first week, I want you to ask five people who know very well if they feel you do anything too much such as television or shopping.  Please add these things to the list below. I also want you to measure accurately how much time you spend doing the following activities in the first week. There is a big danger of you reducing the amount of time or money you spend doing the following activities simply because you are monitoring yourself. This is called the “observer effect.” However, do your best to not reduce the amount in the first week for us to get a good baseline. Once again, make your accountability fully aware of your data and actions. Include the following activities on your list as well as the ones your friends mentioned.

Activity	Unit of Measurement
Television	Minutes
Internet	Minutes
Shopping	Dollar Amount
Hoarding	Number of Items
Pornography	Minutes
Computer Games	Minutes
Video Games	Minutes
Guilty Pleasure Books  (Sci-Fi,  Romance)	Minutes
Reading Tabloid Magazines	Minutes
Sex	Number of Current Partners
Masturbation	Number of times
Complaining	Number of times

Simply list how often you do any of the activities including any that your five friends mentioned. How you actually measure these behaviors is listed in the measurement category.

I understand that it is difficult to determine if anything is a bad habit. Some of you must be on the computer or internet for work. Others of you must watch the news on television to stay informed. I am asking for a bit of common sense here. If you are ever using the computer or television for pleasure, then this is how you would measure it. You would not include internet time for work. Also, if your job is to play video games, then you would not include that in the measurement also. Furthermore, making love to your wife or husband is great. However, if you have multiple lovers, you might have a bad habit or addiction. I understand you may not. Let us just measure it for now.

For the level of pleasure, please write down on a scale from 1 to 10, how pleasurable the activity was with 1 being not all pleasurable and 10 being maximum pleasure.

Week One

Date	Activity	Level of Ease

Now that we have a baseline, I want you to look at all the activities and determine which one is costing you the most in terms of time or money or both. This is a cost analysis. Simply, which one is interfering with you being more productive the most? For the .01% of you that have no bad habits whatsoever, then you can move on to the next chapter. However, before you believe such a thought, I ask you to confirm such a finding with five people who know you very well. Very few people have zero bad habits. For those of you who simply once in a while watch television for pleasure or very occasionally engage in the one of the above activities, I am simply asking you to stop this behavior for a month just to see if you can. Don’t worry, I am not asking any of you to remove all pleasure from your life permanently. So, chose one behavior you decide to reduce regardless of whether you think it is a real problem or not. Once you choose this behavior, please do the following.

1. Reduce the time, number of occurrences or money spent by 10%
2. When you feel the urge to not cut the behavior by a full 10%, take the following steps.
3. Imagine one of the proudest moments of your life. A time when you accomplished something you did not think you could accomplish.
4. Get a music player. Download the most inspirational music that makes you want to take on the world. I am very partial to 80s music myself.
5. Call your accountability partner, have them cuss you out.
6. Have a standard replacement behavior in hand that is productive. For instance, if I am trying to reduce going shopping, before I am allowed to purchase something, I must exercise for 20 minutes longer or study for 20 minutes. The replacement behavior must be at least minutes.
7. You must do all things above before you are allowed to not cut the behavior by 10%.
8. You may not need to do all things above to reach a 10% cut in the activity. However, these are strategies to help you reach your goal.
9. Fill out the data sheet and share with your accountability. Only fill out the replacement behavior if it was necessary. Write down the level of ease for the final column. Ten being the easiest and one being the least easy. Do not move on to week two until the level of ease is at six or higher.

Week Two

Date	Activity	Replacement Behavior	Level of Ease

Decrease behavior by another 10%. Same rules apply as week two.

Week Three

Date	Activity	Replacement Behavior	Level of Ease

Decrease behavior by another 10%. Same rules apply.

Week Four

Date	Activity	Replacement Behavior	Level of Ease

Decrease behavior by 20%. Same rules apply as week two.

Week Five

Date	Activity	Replacement Behavior	Level of Ease

For the next five weeks, I want you to concentrate on an emotional addiction or unawareness. This is a challenge. First, I want you to write down a goal, activity or something you have not started that you want to accomplish. This could include the following:

Applying for a new job

Writing a book

Taking a course to learn something of value like a martial arts class

Learning a language

Taking a trip

Getting a license to do something new such as personal trainer

This could be anything. However, I do want you to choose something that is somewhat challenging and would increase pride in yourself. The goal of going to the dentist is very easy and anyone can do this. Choose something that actually would require some effort and more importantly would enhance you either emotionally, intellectually or both. It is something that you really know would enhance your life in some way, but you have been putting it off for various reasons. Choose whatever that thing is and write it down.

Second, I wish for you to write down all the reasons why are you highly rewarded for procrastinating this thing. For example, let us say that you chose learning martial arts. Here are some very good reasons why you have not been able to.

Too little time

Exhausted

Too much money for classes

I will have more time after new year

I am sick this week

These are logical and rational reasons to not take a martial arts class. However, I am asking you to take a leap of faith here and now write down subconscious motivations for not going. Most of us have the ability to do something if we really want to. Just for one minute, believe that the reason you have not engaged in the behavior is because you simply DO NOT WANT TO. Now, again, many people are defensive about such a behavioral approach. Even if you disagree with me, I am asking you for just sixty seconds to believe that you are afraid on some subconscious level of doing the thing you wrote down and to write down these fears. For a martial arts class, it could include:

I am afraid of getting hurt

It will interfere with so much pleasure such as watching television

I am afraid of the discomfort or amount of work it will take

I am afraid I will be very bad at it

When I was a kid, I got beat up. Any situation of fighting brings up past memories that are very difficult.

I feel intimidated.

Whenever we don’t try to do something that we believe we want, it is because of fear. It is okay to be afraid. It is how we cope with it that counts. However, as long as we have rational and objective reasons to not do something, we never will. I find that 99% of the time, these rational excuses are exactly that. They are excuses. Whenever a person starts to give me all the great excuses of why they cannot do something, I believe they are committing an emotional crime.

Graduate School

I know a girl who for five years has been planning to go to graduate school. Whenever she took an undergraduate course and really applied herself, she would constantly get the highest grade in the class. However, she would constantly drop classes saying she was too busy which prolonged her from getting her undergraduate degree. Finally, she got her bachelors, but then she started having many requirements for herself. They included:

It must be a graduate program near my house and family. I don’t want to move far away from them.

It must be a program in a specific area of study that is rare.

I can only go to school when I feel that I have time to start.

I will take the entrance exam when I am ready, but I have no time for now.

I need to gain more work experience before I start.

Her restrictions made it virtually impossible for her to get accepted into a program. She felt that her reasons were rational and objective. However, I looked at this as a fear. She was unaware that perhaps she was afraid of the following:

Living away from her family for the first time.

The amount of work it will take to complete the program.

Once she finishes graduate school, she would need to work full time. Something she has never done.

She would become independent for the first time.

She subconsciously does not believe she could pass the program.

The program would interfere with great pleasures in her life including going out with her local friends, being taken care of by her family and not having to work full time.

Fear allows us to make up great reasons to not do something.

Your final list should include three things.

1. Something you want to do but you have not done that could enhance your life.
2. Rational reasons why you have done it.
3. Hypothetical fears you have for procrastinating.

Once you have this list. Move on to week 6.

There is one more thing I want you to write down before you begin. Make a list of all the reasons you can do what you wrote down. It should include the following:

1. Past accomplishments that you thought you could not reach
2. Positive qualities that you have that will enable you to reach this goal
3. How many people you feel have been able to reach this goal and why
4. How much pride you will feel once you reach the goal

For example, the girl mentioned above could write the following.

1. When I apply myself, I make the highest grade in a class.
2. I am able to study, write and comprehend information quickly. I am charismatic and will easily make friends at a graduate program.
3. Thousands of people have completed a program like this. So can I.
4. I will have one of the greatest days of my life when I complete the program.

For week six, do the following.

1. Notify your accountability of one overall goal. Supply him/her with the data
2. For the first week, do one thing to reach your goal. If it is to get a new job, create a resume. If it is to take a martial arts class, then call some dojos etc.
3. Do something for at least 15 minutes a day to reach your goal.
4. If you do not do your fifteen minutes, you must clean your accountability partner’s garage or other room in their house.
5. Write down the level of ease for the final column. Ten being the easiest and one being the least easy. Do not move on to week two until the level of ease is at six or higher.

Week Six

Date	Activity	Level of Ease

You should have some concrete information about your goal at this point. For this week, spend at least 15 minutes a day writing down a full schedule of activities or game plan you will need to accomplish to reach your final goal. If your goal is to take a trip, you should include dates, cost of the trip, where you will stay, what you need to bring etc. It should be very, very specific. This may take longer than a week. Do not move on to week eight until you have a full plan. Some rules apply as in week six.

Week Seven

Date	Activity	Level of Ease

For week eight, I want you to find someone that has accomplished this goal and have a conversation with them. It can be over the phone. 99% of people love talking about their accomplishments. This is not hard. You simply start making calls. If you want to get into graduate school to become a doctor, you simply start asking everyone you know if they have a friend who is a doctor in your field of interest and simply make calls yourself. Whoever you speak to, include the following dialogue and questions.

Hello, my name is______. I am trying very hard to accomplish what you have accomplished and just want a few pieces of information. I have learned that by asking successful people questions is the best way to get ahead.

1. Can you tell me what was the biggest obstacle you faced in reaching your goal?
2. What are some of the biggest mistakes you see others make when trying to do what you have done?
3. What qualities do you have that you feel really helped to reach your goals?
4. What were you the most afraid of before you began?
5. Do you have any advice for me on how to begin?
6. I have list of things that I think I need to do to reach my goal. May I share it with you?
7. Did you ever believe you could not do it?
8. Where do you get your confidence?

For week eight, you must do something that means “there is no turning back.” It is an action that will commit you to your goal. For instance, if you are applying to graduate school, you can pay for a date to take the entrance exam. If it is taking a trip, purchase your ticket now. If it is taking a martial arts class, then pay for the class. This locks you in to actually do it. For the rest of the week, spend 15 minutes a day or more to prepare further. This is beyond writing down timelines. This is actually learning or doing the activity. For instance, if you are going to graduate school, then study the academic material daily. If it is taking a trip, then read a book about where you are going. If it is taking a martial arts class, watch YouTube videos on the moves or exercise. Same rules apply as week six.

Week Eight

Date	Activity	Level of Ease

Prepare a presentation for your accountability partner on how your goal is going to unfold. You can use PowerPoint or simply a verbal presentation. The presentation must have timelines, financial benchmarks and most importantly, the qualities you have that will enable you to reach this goal. Same rules apply as week six.

Week Nine

Date	Activity	Level of Ease

Week ten can involve one of two activities. First, you can actually start the activity such as actually going to a martial arts class, going on your trip or going to school. Or, second, you can have a test run. If you plan on going to graduate school, then you must study a chapter in book related to your field and take a quiz. If you are going on a trip, then you take a quiz on the place you are going to. If you plan on taking martial arts, then you must perform 20 moves in front of your accountability that you learned from your studies. Same rules apply as week 6.

Week Ten

Date	Activity	Level of Ease