By now you heard reasons why you should quit hundreds of times. Google it and you will get lists upon lists of reasons but they are the same three reasons but in different words: 1) Health 2) Money and 3) Social pressure. Quit Now - Save Money and Live Longer! That’s it, that is the message we are constantly getting and it is easy to understand, it calls to action and it clearly states benefits. So why are smokers still smoking, and why are tobacco companies still making profits?
The way we think
You have probably made a list of what you will gain from quitting this habit.
You indicated all the great reasons and I did it too. The benefits aren’t really that hard to see. I saw it constantly. While buying cigarettes I would think to myself that I could be buying something better instead. I would get ill with bronchitis regularly at least twice a year and I knew that it was due to smoking. I had this information, you have this information but that doesn't change anything. The reason for this is very simple - it’s due to how we think.
The way we talk
First obstacle we come across in this quest of ours is the words we use. We tend to think by speaking to ourselves. This makes it important what kind of language do we use. I’m talking about “quitting smoking”. Quitting is not a positive term.
Quitting entails loss of something. What other options do we have? None really… Give up smoking? That one is even worse! You are already looking at your pack of cigarettes and feeling sentimental though you are smoking. Cigarette and you have been through good times and bad times. You smoked when you were stressed and you smoked when you celebrated.
You smoked when you had an argument and you smoked after making up. Cigarette was there for you and now you are going to quit, you are going to give up on it? That’s not what friends do!
Ask the right questions
It is a bit silly but words we use have a very strong impact and this is why from this moment on I will speak only about what you gain.
My turning point came when I asked myself “Why should I smoke?”. I said to myself “I should quit” many times and I would ask myself “Why should I quit?” constantly. Changing the language had led to strong reasons why I should embrace cigarette-free life and changed my stance towards smoking completely. This change in language was one of the reasons, if not the reason, why I was able to quit.
Health benefits
Regarding health, you think and every other smoker believes “It won’t happen to me.” That's why messages like “Smoking causes cancer” or “Smoking causes heart attacks and stroke” don't seem to have much impact. Again, more effective messages would be positive ones. Put health benefits on your list of reasons but remember that these reasons will have to withstand reasoning of an addicted brain. You will have to remind yourself that it is not some mythical future-you that will reap in the rewards, it is you-you.
