Transform Your Habits: A Guide to Authentic Change

Welcome to Authentic Living Coaching
I’m Linda Codlin, Transformational Life Coach.

Welcome, My Friends.

This week has flown by, we’ve been working on a few projects we want to complete before the winter weather sets in.
I’ve been thinking about patterns of behaviour lately.
Everything we do, has a pattern attached to it, some patterns are helpful and move us into a life we want and fill us with satisfaction.
And some patterns are unhelpful.
I’m going to share a few insights into one of my not so helpful patterns.
So, lets dive in.

Examining Your Actions: A Path to Authentic Change

Have you ever found yourself doing things you said you wouldn’t do?
Or struggling to take action on things you genuinely want to achieve?
Understanding the forces behind your actions can help you make lasting, authentic changes in your life.

Step 1: Start with a List

Begin by listing your daily actions—both wanted and unwanted. These can be small habits, routine behaviors, or even big decisions.

I was writing my list of daily actions, and as I wrote showering, I noticed my resistance.
Showering is a wanted action, it is good for my health and well-being, it is good for personal hygiene, it is a great way to reset and clear my mind.
Here a few other examples to give you more clarity:

Drinking a glass of water first thing in the morning (wanted action)
Scrolling on social media instead of working (unwanted action)
Taking a walk after dinner (wanted action)
Procrastinating on an important task (unwanted action)

Step 2: Examine the Thoughts Behind the Action

Every action starts with a thought, whether conscious or subconscious. Once you’ve listed your actions, reflect on the thoughts that come up right before you act.

Even though showering is an action I want to perform, I have resistance to it.
Yes, I know, you just get on and have a shower, but for this exercise, I want to show you how subtle the thought behind a little bit of resistance is, and how this tiny bit of resistance can affect your energy flow.
So, my thoughts behind not wanting to get into the shower, were, I don’t enjoy getting cold when undressing and dressing.
It costs money to run the hot water, my bill will go up.
It takes time, and I’ll have wet hair afterwards. “What would it matter if I skipped today?” “Who would know?”

Examples:

Drinking water → Thought: “My body needs hydration to feel good.”
Scrolling social media → Thought: “I’ll just check one thing quickly, and then I’ll start my work.”
Taking a walk → Thought: “This helps me clear my mind and feel better.”
Procrastinating → Thought: “I don’t feel ready. What if I fail?”

Step 3: Identify the Belief Behind the Thought

Our deeper beliefs influence our thoughts and, ultimately, our actions. Look at each thought and ask: What belief is driving this?

What is the belief behind the thought of my resisting having a shower?
It’s the belief around my value, to deserve a shower, to deserve to run the hot water, to deserve to have a heater running to warm the air in the shower room. It’s also around the scarcity factor of money and abundance.
It’s about instilling the belief that I’m worth having a hot shower for myself, regardless of anyone else around me. That enjoying the abundance of hot water and the availability of electricity is part of my chosen lifestyle.
Can you see how subtle this belief is, even when I know my value and worth, the underlying question is still, about questioning the old belief, which wants to take the easy way out and not shower?

Examples:

Drinking water → Belief: “Taking care of my body is important.”
Scrolling social media → Belief: “I need a break, but I’m not sure how to take one effectively.”
Taking a walk → Belief: “Movement is good for my well-being.”
Procrastinating → Belief: “If I don’t do it perfectly, I’ll fail, so it’s safer to wait.”

Step 4: Recognize What Drives Your Wanted Actions

The actions that bring you positive results are connected to empowering thoughts and beliefs. Strengthening these beliefs can help you stay consistent.

When I acknowledge that I actually do enjoy having a shower, coming out feeling fresh and clean, the positive reinforcement encourages me to continue to shower daily.
The wanted action behind showering, is the feeling of refreshment, alertness, and cleanliness. These are the reasons I want a shower.
I want to look good, to smell good, and to feel absolutely fabulous in my body.
By focusing on these traits I can feel more comfortable about the traits that aren’t so comfortable.

Examples:

“When I take care of my body, I feel more energized.”
“Movement supports my mental clarity and physical health.”
“I am capable of handling challenges, even if things aren’t perfect.”

Step 5: Challenge the Excuses for Unwanted Actions

For actions you say you don’t want, notice the excuses you use. These often mask limiting beliefs that keep you stuck.

I have mentioned the excuses I was thinking about that could have stopped me from showering.
The biggest challenge in this scene is to investigate the root cause, the feelings of undervaluing, and discounting my worthiness.
If I want to remove the resistance to showering for good, this is where I need to begin, looking at why I feel this action isn’t worthy of my time, my money, my comfort, and my self-love?
Excuses are code for limiting beliefs, in my case I could take care of the cold aspect with a heater, I could take care of the power account by taking less time, (same root belief, scarcity.), earning more financially, I could be super quick in the shower, (Time scarcity) but none of these will actually deal with the underlying cause, which means the lacking in value and worth will pop up somewhere else in my life.

Examples:

“I don’t have time to work out” → (Reality: I could make time, but I believe I need to do an hour instead of just moving for 10 minutes.)
“I’ll do it later when I’m more focused” → (Reality: I might never feel ‘ready,’ but small steps still count.)

Step 6: Shift Your Beliefs and Thoughts

Once you’ve uncovered the beliefs behind your actions, you can start shifting them to better serve you.

This is where doing the inner work makes all the difference.
I can change the resistance around the simple act of showering by shifting my point of view about myself. By using this time as evidence that I do love and care for my body, my soul, and my spirit. I can have a shower with love and joy. I can do the physical things to make getting ready for a shower easier, I can shift my value and worth beliefs, which will affect every other area of my life.
I hope that using this showering illustration gives you a tangible example of how our inner beliefs affect our outer actions and attitudes about those actions.

Replace “I’m not ready” with “Every step I take moves me forward.”
Replace “I don’t have time” with “I make time for what matters.”
Replace “I might fail” with “I am learning and growing with each attempt.”

Until Next time:

Examine your actions, thoughts, and beliefs. You can create conscious change in your life.
Start small—choose one action to explore today. What’s behind it? And what shift can you make to move toward the results you truly want?

Ready to Dive Deeper?

If you’re ready to uncover the beliefs driving your actions and create lasting change, let’s work together. Book a coaching session today and take the first step toward a more intentional, empowered life.

📅 Schedule your session now:

https://calendar.app.google/uhjZsfU1fvCwRjR48

📩 Have questions? Reach out at authenticlivingwithlinda@gmail.com

@lindacodlin

As a certified Life Coach, I help you to help yourself, so you can create a well lived life your way. 

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