Guy Reams (00:02.862)
Day 104. Hiccups happen. Every commitment starts with a vision. You imagine the person you want to become, the habits you want to embrace, and the lifestyle you hope to create. For a while, the momentum feels unstoppable, consistent, focused. You're making progress. And then out of nowhere, life throws a curveball, a stressful week, a missed day, or a moment of weakness. The inevitable hiccup.
Let's start with this truth. No commitment, no matter how solid, is immune to small lapses. You're human. I'm human. There will be days when circumstances, or even just your own frailty, get the best of you. What matters is not whether you stumble, but what you do next. Hiccups just simply are not the problem. A hiccup is just a moment. It's a misstep, not a broken foundation. Maybe you skipped a workout.
ate something you'd sworn off, or spent a whole evening scrolling on your phone instead of being present. These moments can feel like failure, but they're not. They're simply data points in a much larger story. The real danger isn't the hiccup itself, it's how we react to it. Too often a small lapse can trigger a cascade of negative thinking. You might have thoughts like, I've blown it now. Why even bother anymore? I'll just start over next week.
This kind of thinking transforms a hiccup into a gap, a period of inaction or disengagement that grows larger with each passing day. And if that gap isn't addressed, it can become a reversal, a slide back into old patterns and the abandonment of your commitment altogether. So what is the anatomy of a recovery after a hiccup? So how do you stop a hiccup from becoming a gap? Here's the process that I follow. First, acknowledge without judgment.
The first step is to name what happened without piling on shame or self-criticism. Acknowledge the misstep for what it is, a single moment, not the sum total of your journey. Be honest with yourself, but stay compassionate. Something I find very hard to do. Second, revisit the why. Every commitment starts with a reason, a deep personal motivation. When you stumble, go back to that why. Remind yourself why this commitment matters to you.
Guy Reams (02:27.041)
Your why can anchor you and give you the strength to keep on going. Third, take the next right step. Don't wait for the perfect moment to reset. Take the very next opportunity to get back on track. If you missed a workout, go for a walk or something simple. If you overindulge at dinner, make your next meal a healthy one. Action, no matter how small, interrupts the gap and reestablishes momentum. Fourth, reflect
and adjust. Use the hiccup as a chance to learn. Consider it feedback. Was there a trigger or pattern that led to it? Could you have prepared differently or responded better? Reflection isn't about beating yourself up. It's about equipping yourself to navigate similar moments in the future. The better you get at handling feedback loops, the stronger you become. You build resilience through imperfection.
One of the most powerful lessons I've learned through my own commitments is this. Resilience isn't built by avoiding mistakes. It's built by recovering from them. Every time you pull yourself out of a hiccup and get back on track, you strengthen your ability to stay the course over the long term. Remember, the goal isn't perfection. It's consistency. And consistency is not defined by never failing. It's defined by always getting back up.
Your journey is bigger than just one moment. As you move forward in your commitment, keep this perspective in mind. A hiccup is not the end of your story. It's just one sentence in a much longer narrative. The story you're writing is about growth, persistence, and transformation. When you feel yourself faltering, remind yourself of this very simple truth. You are not your mistakes. You are the person who keeps showing up, day after day, to build something meaningful.
Keep going. Your future self will thank you.