{"id":788,"date":"2008-07-03T10:00:48","date_gmt":"2008-07-03T17:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/"},"modified":"2019-03-08T09:47:30","modified_gmt":"2019-03-08T17:47:30","slug":"the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/","title":{"rendered":"The Beginner’s Guide to the 30 Day Trial"},"content":{"rendered":"

I first learned about the 30 Day Trial when I read Steve Pavlina\u2019s short, but influential article, 30 Days to Success<\/a>.  The core idea of the trial was simple: focus on one change, for a month and it would become a habit.  After a month, the behavior would be automatic and wouldn\u2019t require willpower or even conscious thinking to continue.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve since written<\/a> a<\/a> lot<\/a> about<\/a> the<\/a> 30 Day Trial<\/a>.  I\u2019ve used the technique to exercise regularly, wake up earlier, give up television, implement GTD, become a herbivore, write articles on a schedule and even increase my creativity.  The technique isn\u2019t magical, but it\u2019s one of the most practical tools I\u2019ve found for making changes.<\/p>\n

I get a lot of mail from people trying to use the 30DT (30 Day Trial) method.  It\u2019s not a difficult technique, so complex steps and theories shouldn\u2019t be necessary for using it.  However, making any changes (even with 30DTs) isn\u2019t easy.  So I\u2019ve created a short guide to give you some tips if you\u2019re looking to use the tool and want to get the best start possible.<\/p>\n

   Tip #1 – Start Simple, but Meaningful<\/strong><\/p>\n

Giving up a minor habit like sleeping in is an order of magnitude easier than stopping a dependency like smoking.  If you have many habits you want to change, I suggest starting with one that is simple, but meaningful.  Build confidence using the 30DT before trying to take on the most difficult steps.<\/p>\n

What is a simple change?  A simple change can be big or small, but it has a few ingredients that make it particularly well-suited for a 30DT:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1.     It is something you do every day.<\/li>\n
  2.     It is something you do in the same way, every day.  (e.g. waking up in the morning)<\/li>\n
  3.     It is a straightforward improvement.  This is more subjective, but it means that there aren\u2019t going to be large, painful side-effects to changing a behavior.<\/li>\n
  4.     It is something you intend to be permanent.  It\u2019s easier to be motivated to make a permanent change than one you only expect to last a month.<\/li>\n
  5.     You know clearly whether you are sticking to your change or not.  Exercise is a yes-no question.  Either you go to the gym or you don\u2019t.  \u201cBeing friendly\u201d is far more subjective and harder to do with a 30DT.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Your first 30DT should fulfill most, if not all, of those criteria.  But, above all, it should be something you consider meaningful.  If you don\u2019t see the change as important, you won\u2019t invest the energy for an entire month.<\/p>\n

        Tip #2 – Do Less<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Only one 30DT at a time.  Do less in your trial than you consider possible.  Intentionally do less than you feel you are capable of.  By limiting yourself, you\u2019ll avoid the common problem of burning out in the first week or two.<\/p>\n

        Tip #3 – If You Slip Up, Start Over<\/strong><\/p>\n

    If you make it 28 days of consistent exercise, then you miss day 30, start over.  If you accidentally slip on day 15, start over.  If something happens that makes it impossible for you to keep your habit on day 24, start over.  I\u2019m repeating for emphasis, because the need to start over when you slip up is crucial.<\/p>\n

    I\u2019ve probably run close to three dozen 30DT\u2019s.  Whenever I ignored a slip and continued, the behavior didn\u2019t become a habit.  Although you don\u2019t need perfect consistency after thirty days, you need 100% focus for at least the first month.  Tolerating occasional slips creates cracks in the foundation of any habit, so it won\u2019t take long before it crumbles.<\/p>\n

        Tip #4 – Expect Blunders<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The 30DT is a straightforward technique, but that doesn\u2019t mean it is perfect.  Some habit changes are poorly suited for it.  I had to run four trials before exercise became a permanent habit.  In the first, I got sick.  In the next two, I made the mistake of keeping non-daily exercise habits which don\u2019t mesh well with the 30DT.<\/p>\n

    If you don\u2019t expect every 30DT to work perfectly, it will be easier to adjust your approach and try again for the next one.<\/p>\n

        Tip #5 – Write it Down<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Writing down the habit is like forming a contract between you and your future self.  If you don\u2019t write it down, the future you is more likely to abandon the contract when things get tough.  Having a written record also lets you keep track of what 30DT\u2019s you\u2019ve done in the past, so you can monitor them.<\/p>\n

    That\u2019s all for today, check out Part II on Monday.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I first learned about the 30 Day Trial when I read Steve Pavlina\u2019s short, but influential article, 30 Days to Success.  The core idea of the trial was simple: focus on one change, for a month and it would become a habit.  After a month, the behavior would be automatic and wouldn\u2019t require willpower or […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[679,6],"tags":[87,121,122,676,123,28],"class_list":{"0":"post-788","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-nc-habits","7":"category-health-and-fitness","8":"tag-30-day-trial","9":"tag-30dt","10":"tag-exercise","11":"tag-habits","12":"tag-habitual-mastery","13":"tag-health","14":"entry"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Scott H Young\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AuthorScottYoung\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Scott Young\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@scotthyoung\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@scotthyoung\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Scott Young\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Scott Young\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c\"},\"headline\":\"The Beginner’s Guide to the 30 Day Trial\",\"datePublished\":\"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":847,\"commentCount\":6,\"keywords\":[\"30 Day Trial\",\"30DT\",\"exercise\",\"Habits\",\"habitual mastery\",\"health\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Habits\",\"Health and Fitness\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c\"},\"description\":\"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/2008\\\/07\\\/03\\\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Beginner’s Guide to the 30 Day Trial\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Scott H Young\",\"description\":\"Learn faster, achieve more\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c\",\"name\":\"Scott Young\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Scott Young\"},\"description\":\"Hello, my name is Scott H. Young and I am obsessed with personal development! When I am not reading several books a month on the subject I am constantly trying to find new ways to improve and get more out of life.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.scotthyoung.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/scottadmin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young","description":"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young","og_description":"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/","og_site_name":"Scott H Young","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AuthorScottYoung\/","article_published_time":"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00","author":"Scott Young","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@scotthyoung","twitter_site":"@scotthyoung","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Scott Young","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/"},"author":{"name":"Scott Young","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c"},"headline":"The Beginner’s Guide to the 30 Day Trial","datePublished":"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/"},"wordCount":847,"commentCount":6,"keywords":["30 Day Trial","30DT","exercise","Habits","habitual mastery","health"],"articleSection":["Habits","Health and Fitness"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/","url":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/","name":"The Beginner's Guide to the 30 Day Trial - Scott H Young","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2008-07-03T17:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2019-03-08T17:47:30+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c"},"description":"Starting a 30 day trial can be simple and straight forward. Check out my first 5 tips that will help you achieve access in forming a new habit.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2008\/07\/03\/the-beginners-guide-to-the-30-day-trial\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Beginner’s Guide to the 30 Day Trial"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/","name":"Scott H Young","description":"Learn faster, achieve more","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/2f58ab6c4a36422c78416e5b7a79604c","name":"Scott Young","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a2da240fb070ba8346e3be8b89043b66c39bdcf933d9e7311dcb10383d0bc645?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Scott Young"},"description":"Hello, my name is Scott H. Young and I am obsessed with personal development! When I am not reading several books a month on the subject I am constantly trying to find new ways to improve and get more out of life.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/author\/scottadmin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=788"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8847,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788\/revisions\/8847"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}