Barriers to Success

As I have mentioned in earlier posts, this challenge has not been an easy behavioral change. Changing any behavior, sustainable or not, will be intersected with barriers. For reducing food waste, barriers include forgetfulness and not being hungry. How can being full be a barrier? I thought about this and realized I might think I want more food, go back for seconds at the dining hall, and realize I am not hungry. Forcing myself to eat that food is not a pleasurable experience and makes me question my success during this challenge. I am the most successful when I take little food and realize I am satisfied. When I completely clear my plate I allow myself to have dessert as a reward. This is a very strong motivator, since I have a huge sweet tooth and always want dessert.

Forgetfulness is also a barrier I have come across. Luckily I have friends that are determined for me to be successful at this challenge and they have become my temporary parents by forcing me to eat everything on my plate. This system within itself has pluses and minuses. I am very grateful that my friends are there to remind me, but after every meal I look over to their plates and see a pile of waste. This frustrates me because I question if my my sustainable behavior will have any positive effects, if no one else chooses to do them with me. After this challenge is over, I am delighted to say I don’t think I will be able to completely go back to my old ways. I am now so aware of how much waste I produced, that I want to continue this sustainable behavior. Of course, after this challenge I will not be as strict with myself and hopefully my friends won’t either! This behavior change has positive effects on the environment and even if the effect is negligible, maybe I will influence others around me to change their behavior as well.