Recently a lady phoned me to enquire about my process to stop smoking.

She said that she loved smoking but it was getting to expensive to smoke cigarettes. Immediately the alarm bells went off in my mind. I asked her what was her main reason to quit smoking cigarettes. She replied that it was because it was too expensive to smoke.

Why did the alarm bells in my mind go off? They went off because if your main reason to stop smoking is the cost the chances of you succeeding are remote. You will always find money to smoke! The average person spends about $8 500 a year on cigarettes. The problem is that this expense only occurs one packet at a time.

The expense of smoking is not a major factor in quitting smoking, it’s a minor one. If you are trying to quit smoking because of the cost you are probably not ready and you should wait until a more important reason comes up.

Some of the reasons that are major driving factors to quitting smoking are: health, family, social and the shame of smoking. Most people start smoking to fit in, but now people want to stop smoking because they do not fit in.

Take your time when you decide that you want to stop smoking to look at the reasons why. The more emotions that they bring up the better they are as a reason to quit.

About Steve Gardiner

Stephen Gardiner originates from Rhodesia, (Zimbabwe) then working around the globe before finally settling in Brisbane Australia. As a scientist, Steve always had an interest in human development, especially Mind Plastisicity and how we cope with stress, anxiety and addictive behaviours. Over the past 15 years Steve has assisted many clients to transform their lives by resolving the obstacles holding them back.

Entries by Steve Gardiner